
3.16 Waves in boreholes
Synopsis
Elastic wave propagation in the presence of a cylindrical fluid-filled borehole involves
different modes caused by internal refraction, constructive interference and trapping
of wave energy in the borehole. The theory of borehole wave propagation has been
described in the books by White (1983), Paillet and Cheng (1991), and Tang and
Cheng (2004), where references to the original literature may be found. The dispersion
characteristics of borehole wave modes depend strongly on the shear wave velocity of
the elastic medium surrounding the borehole. Two scenarios are usually considered:
“fast” formation when the S-wave velocity in the formation is greater than the
borehole fluid velocity and “slow” formation when the S-wave velocity in the formation
is slower than the borehole fluid velocity. Wave modes are guided by the borehole only
when the formation S-wave velocity is greater than the phase velocity of the modes;
otherwise the modes become leaky modes, radiating energy into the formation.
In fast formations, pseudo-Rayleigh modes or shear normal modes exist above
characteristic cut-off frequencies. The pseudo-Rayleigh mode is strongly dispersive
and is a combined effect of reflected waves in the fluid and critical refraction along
the borehole walls. The phase velocity of the pseudo-Rayleigh wave at the cut-off
frequency drops from the shear wave velocity of the formation and approaches the
fluid velocity at high frequencies. In slow formations pseudo-Rayleigh modes do not
exist. Stoneley waves in boreholes refer to waves along the borehole interface. At low
frequencies the Stoneley waves are referred to as tube waves. Stoneley waves exist at
all frequencies and in both fast and slow formations. “Leaky P” modes exist in slow
formations and are dominated by critical refraction of P-waves at the borehole wall.
They lose energy by conversion to shear waves. Higher-order modes include the
dipole or flexural mode and the quadrupole or screw mode (Tang and Cheng, 2004).
Isotropic elastic formation
A low-frequency (static) analysis for a thick-walled elastic tube of inner radius b and
outer radius a, with Young’s modulus E, and Poisson ratio n, containing fluid with
bulk modulus B, and density r, gives the speed of tube waves as (White, 1983)
c
t
¼
1
B
þ
1
M
1=2
M ¼
Ea
2
b
2
ðÞ
21þ nðÞa
2
þ b
2
ðÞ2nb
2
½
For a thin-walled tube with thickness h ¼ða bÞ; a b; and M Eh=2b: For a
borehole in an infinite solid a b and the speed of the tube wave in the low-
frequency limit is
160 Seismic wave propagation