Basic USIT

Interpretation

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 How good is the USIT?

Client: “Do I a good cement job”

Engineer:????
 Cement placement - zone isolation
 Cement coverage - channels
 Cement compressive strength
 Cement to casing bond
 Cement to formation bond
 Gas filled micro-annulus
 Liquid filled micro-annulus
 Top of cement (TOC)
 Cement composition (gaseous, contaminated)

USIT
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 How good is the USIT?

Engineer:
 Cement placement - zone isolation
 Cement coverage - channels
 Cement compressive strength
 Cement to casing bond
 Cement to formation bond
 Gas filled micro-annulus
 Liquid filled micro-annulus
 Top of cement (TOC)
 Cement composition (gaseous, contaminated)

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 USIT-CBL-VDL

USIT
Bond Index Impedance CBL Bond Interpretation
Image Index

CBL & USIT Gas Very low Free gas

agree
Liquid Very low Free pipe
Channels Medium Channels in good
cement.

USIT shows more Cement High Good cement

cement Low / medium
Cement Liquid microannulus.
Fast formations.
Formation / 2nd
casing reflection.

Z slightly Medium Mixed light / heavy

above ZTCM* cement.

CBL shows more Gas Medium Gas microannulus.

cement
Z about same High / medium Gaseous cement.
as ZTCM*
Patches or High / medium / Light cement
streaks low

* ZTCM = USIT Cement Impedance Threshold

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 How good is the USI-CBL/VDL?

Engineer:
 Cement placement - zone isolation
 Cement coverage - channels
 Cement compressive strength
 Cement to casing bond
 Cement to formation bond
 Gas filled micro-annulus
 Liquid filled micro-annulus
 Cement thickness
 Top of cement (TOC)
 Cement composition (gaseous, contaminated)

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 USI Interpretation Examples

Formation reflections
Secondary signals
Special casings
Casing rugosity
Micro-annulus
Casing shape

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 USIT Job

Formation reflections:

The T3 processing is deliberately short to minimize

contamination by reflections. Formation reflections
are to be significant when:

1. The 3rd interface is smooth and provides a large

impedance contrast with the cement (i.e., double string or
hard formation).

2. The annulus is thin or the process window is long.

3. The cement is of high density and well set. It will have

high acoustic velocity and low attenuation.

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Galaxy Patterns:

They are formation/casing reflections that have

characteristic pattern of interference fringes on the
cement map.

Due to the constructive or destructive signal interference

the apparent impedance is respectively reduced or
increased resulting in fringes oriented parallel to the
casing and centered on the narrowest part of the cement
sheath.

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Galaxy patterns

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 USIT Job, cont.
Special Casing Types

 Alloyed steel casing:

In stainless and high alloy the acoustic velocity can vary
up to +/- 5% causing

1. A small effect on measured cement impedance (0 - 0.5

Mrayl).

2. An error in casing thickness of up to +/- 5%.

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 USIT Job, cont.
Special Casing Types, cont.

 Fiberglass casing:
This casing cannot be evaluated by the USIT at this
time. Why not?

Fiberglass has a much lower acoustic velocity and

density than steel, so its acoustic impedance is much
lower than steel and similar to neat cement.
The casing cannot resonate and the T3 processing is not
suitable for evaluating the thickness or cementation.

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 USIT Job, cont.
Special Casing Types, cont.

 Protective coatings:
They change the effective impedance in contact with
the casing, preventing a cement impedance
measurement, but a thickness measurement should be
possible.

 Special equipment:
Scratchers, centralizers, external casing packers, dump
valves and collars affect the measurement.
The change in effective thickness means T3 parameters
are out of range.

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 USIT Job, cont.
Casing shape, rugosity … etc., cont.

 Rugosity:
 Internal rugosity reduces the initial reflection,
reducing the measured impedance causing gas effect.
 External rugosity damps the resonance and
increases the measured impedance.

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Highly corroded casing

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 USIT Job, cont.
Casing shape, rugosity … etc., cont.

 Cleanliness:
Deposits on the inner diameter will change the
measured impedance.

 Micro-annulus:
A small fluid-filled gap between casing and cement.
This causes a reduction in measured impedance.
Gas micro annulus is seen as Gas...

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Cement inside casing

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 USIT Job, cont.
Casing shape, rugosity … etc.

 Shape:
Welded casing may cause the appearance of a vertical
line on the amplitude and impedance maps, and, in
extreme cases, on the radius and thickness maps.

 Seamless:
Generally have thickness variations of around 10%, the
inner diameter causing the variation in profile.
Typical problems are eccentered bore and bore ovality
causing a reduced measured impedance.
Non parallel surface (inner and outer diameter) causes a
reduction in resonant energy, and hence, an increased
measured impedance.

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 Casing shape effects

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10

Track 5 Internal Radius

Image and Track 7
Thickness Image show
one joint of casing at
2600 feet in a newly
completed well where the
image patterns differ
indicating that this joint
was manufactured by a
separate milling process.

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