A borehole fluid conductivity logging method for the determination of fracture inflow parameters

It is of much current interest to determine the flow characteristics of fractures intersecting a wellbore to provide data in the estimation of the hydrologic behavior of fractured rocks. The fluid inflow rates from the fractures into the wellbore are important quantities to measure. Often these inflows are at very low rates. One often finds that only a few percent of the fractures identified by core inspection and geophysical logging are water-conducting fractures, the rest being closed, clogged, or isolated from the water flow system. A new procedure is proposed and a corresponding method of analysis developed to locate water-conducting fractures and obtain fracture inflow parameters by means of a time sequence of electric conductivity logs of the borehole fluid. The physical basis of the analysis method is discussed. The procedure is applied to an existing set of data, which shows initiation and growth of nine conductivity peaks in a 900-m section of a 1690-m borehole, corresponding to nine water-conducting fractures intersecting the borehole. We are able to match all nine peaks and determine the flow rates from these fractures. 16 refs., 28 figs., 5 tabs.