Communications – electrical: acoustic wave systems and devices – Borehole testing
Reexamination Certificate
2006-05-09
2006-05-09
Keith, Jack (Department: 3663)
Communications, electrical: acoustic wave systems and devices
Borehole testing
C367S025000, C367S031000, C367S032000, C073S152510, C073S152520, C702S011000
Reexamination Certificate
active
07042802
ABSTRACT:
A method for determining the maximum and minimum horizontal stresses of formations surrounding a borehole includes the following steps: suspending a logging device in the borehole; transmitting sonic energy from the logging device to establish flexural waves in the formations; receiving, at the logging device, sonic energy from the flexural waves, and producing, from the received sonic energy, measurement signals at a number of frequencies; determining, at the number of frequencies, the fast and slow flexural wave velocities in the formations, to obtain fast and slow flexural velocity dispersions; establishing a model of formation stresses in which stresses of a loaded state are represented by the sum of an omnidirectional hydrostatically loaded mean reference stress, a vertical stress perturbation, and maximum and minimum horizontal stress perturbations; establishing an inversion model that includes inputs from the fast and slow flexural velocity dispersions and also includes unknown horizontal perturbations of the model of formation stresses; deriving, from the inversion model, estimates of the maximum and minimum horizontal stress perturbations; and determining, from the estimates of the maximum and minimum horizontal stress perturbations and the mean reference stress, estimates of the maximum and minimum horizontal stresses of the formations.
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DeStefanis Jody Lynn
Gaudier Dale
Hughes Scott A.
Keith Jack
Novack Martin M.
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