Multi-frequency borehole imager
AssigneeBaker Hughes Incorporated
InventorAnjani R. Achanta
Life of this patent
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Abstract
An apparatus for imaging an earth formation, the apparatus including: a logging instrument configured to be conveyed through a borehole penetrating the earth formation; a source of acoustic waves disposed at the logging instrument, wherein the source is configured to emit first acoustic waves having at least a first frequency and to enable intermodulation of the first acoustic waves in a medium having a nonlinear acoustic property resulting in generating new acoustic waves that are transmitted to the earth formation, the new acoustic waves having a new frequency different from the at least first frequency; and a receiver of acoustic waves configured to receive the new acoustic waves reflected from the earth formation, wherein the received new acoustic waves provide an image of the earth formation.
Claims21
An apparatus for imaging an earth formation, the apparatus comprising:
- a logging instrument configured to be conveyed through a borehole penetrating the earth formation;
- a source of acoustic waves disposed at the logging instrument, wherein the source is configured to emit first acoustic waves having at least a first frequency and to enable intermodulation of the first acoustic waves in a borehole fluid external to the logging instrument, the borehole fluid having a nonlinear acoustic property resulting in generating new acoustic waves that are transmitted to the earth formation, the new acoustic waves having a new frequency different from the at least first frequency;
- and
- a receiver of acoustic waves configured to receive the new acoustic waves reflected from the earth formation, wherein the received new acoustic waves provide an image of the earth formation.
A method for imaging an earth formation, the method comprising:
- conveying a logging instrument through a borehole penetrating the earth formation;
- emitting first acoustic waves from the logging instrument, the first acoustic waves comprising at least a first frequency and directed to the earth formation;
- generating new acoustic waves by intermodulation of the first acoustic waves in a borehole fluid external to the logging instrument and having a nonlinear acoustic property, wherein the new acoustic waves have a new frequency different from the at least first frequency and are transmitted into the earth formation;
- and
- receiving the new acoustic waves that are reflected by the earth formation, wherein the received new acoustic waves provide an image of the earth formation.
A non-transitory machine-readable medium comprising machine-executable instructions for imaging an earth formation by implementing the following steps:
- emitting first acoustic waves from a logging instrument disposed in a borehole penetrating the earth formation, the first acoustic waves having at least a first frequency and directed to the earth formation;
- generating new acoustic waves by intermodulation of the first acoustic waves in a borehole fluid external to the logging instrument and having a nonlinear acoustic property, wherein the new acoustic waves have a new frequency different from the at least first frequency and are transmitted into the earth formation;
- and
- receiving the new acoustic waves that are reflected by the earth formation, wherein the received new acoustic waves provide an image of the earth formation.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.