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TemperatureMeasurementsinBoreholes:

Home
TemperatureMeasurementsinBoreholes:
AnOverviewofEngineeringandScientificApplications
StephenPrensky,U.S.GeologicalSurvey,Denver
[Originallypublishedin1992,TheLogAnalyst,v.33,no.3,p.313333.]
INTRODUCTION
Temperaturedataobtainedinboreholesserveascriticalinputtomanyfieldsofengineering,
exploration,andresearch:(1)inwellcompletions,(2)gasandfluidproductionengineering,(3)inthe
explorationforhydrocarbonsandoreminerals,and(4)fortestinghypothesesconcerningthe
evolutionoftheEarth'scrustandtectonicprocesses.Wirelineconveyedmaximumrecording
thermometersandcontinuousreadingthermistorsareusedtomeasureabsolutetemperatures,
differentialtemperatures,andtemperaturegradientsatdepth.Temperaturelogscandetectthermal
anomaliesproducedbytemperaturecontrastsbetweentheboreholefluidandtheformationfluidor
formation(alsocementbehindcasing).Avarietyofinformationcanbeobtainedfromthe
identificationandinterpretationoftheseanomalies.Highresolutiontemperaturegradientlogscanbe
usedfordetailedlithologicidentificationandcorrelation,ofsimilarqualitytootherelectricand
nuclearwelllogs.Theintentofthispaperistoprovideageneralintroductiontothediverse
applicationsofthesedata.
GEOTHERMICS
Geothermicsisthesubdisciplineofgeophysicsthatstudiesterrestrialheatflow(seeKappelmeyerand
Haenel,1974Buntebarth,G.,1984Haeneletal.,1988Jessop,1990a).Heatflowisthetransferof
heatfromtheearth'sinteriortothesurfaceandistheprincipaldriverofgeologicalprocesses.The
majorsourceoftheinteriorheatisthedecayofradioelementsintheearth'scrustanduppermantle:up
to70%ofcontinentalheatflowmaybegeneratedwithintheupper1020kmofthecrustwhile96%
oftheoceanicheatflowisfrombeneaththeoceaniccrustwhichlargelydevoidofradioactive
elements(KeareyandVine,1990).Thedistributionofheatflowisrelatedtothetectonichistoryof
theearth'scrust,i.e.,theaverageheatflowdensityisinverselyproportionaltothegeologicageofa
tectonicunitorofoceaniccrust(Sclateretal.,1980Condie,1989).Withinagiventectonicunit,heat
flowdensitypatternsreflectregionaldifferencesincrustalradioactivity,faultdistribution,
hydrogeology,andhydrothermalactivity(Cermak,1983).Knowledgeofthesubsurfacetemperature
fieldiscentraltounderstandingtheoriginandevolutionofsedimentarybasins,oilandgasgeneration,
depositionoforebodies,andtheoccurrenceofearthquakesandvolcanism(Nielsen,1986).While
geothermicsisprimarilyconcernedwithheatflow,inabroadsense,itcanbeconsideredtoincludeall
applicationsofsubsurface(borehole)temperaturedata.
Heatflowmeasurementsinboreholesaremadebycombiningsetsoftemperatureandthermal
conductivitydatabytheformulaQ=K(dt/dz),whereQisheatflow,Kisthermalconductivity,andt
istemperatureatdepthz.
THERMALCONDUCTIVITY
Thermalconductivity,abasicphysicalpropertyofrocksandfluids,varieswithchangesinrock
composition.Thermalconductivityisinverselyproportionaltothermalgradient(seeaboveformula).
Atemperature(gradient)loginawellinthermalequilibriumshowstheactualvariationofgeothermal
gradient(i.e.thermalconductivity)withlithology(Figure1)(Hill,1990).Reliablevaluesofthermal
conductivityareessentialtomodelsofbasinevolutionandthermalmaturation."Ifthemean
conductivitycannotbeaccuratelypredicted,eventhemostsophisticatedandappropriatemodeling
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techniques...arenotsufficientforaccuratetemperaturepredictions"(BlackwellandSteele,1989).
Thermalconductivityisnormallymeasuredinthelaboratoryoncore,crushedsamples,orwell
cuttingsusingoneoftwotechniques:dividedbarorneedleprobe(BlackwellandSpafford,1987
Beck,1988Jessop,1990aSomerton,1992).Thereisgreatinterestininsitudeterminationof
thermalconductivity,eitherbydirectorindirectmethods.Inparticular,theabilitytoaccurately
determinethermalconductivityfromwelllogsishighlydesirablebecauseofthelargenumberof
explorationwellsthathavebeendrilledandthewideavailabilityofwelllogdatafromthesewells
(Anandetal.,1973Gossetal.,1975Hagedorn,1985Vacquieretal.,1988DoveandWilliams,
1989Brigaudetal.,1989Brigaudetal.,1990Demongodinetal.,1991SetoandBharatha,1991
Brigaudetal.,1992).Otherapproachesincludeinversiontechniques(Ponzinietal.,1989),borehole
relaxation(Wilhelm,1990),nonlinearfitting(DaXin,1986),temperaturebuildupcurves(Xuand
Desbrandes,1991),thermalpulse(SillimanandNeuzil,1990),andvariationincirculationflowrate
(Pascaletal.,1989),estimationfromthermalgradients(Hoang,1980Somerton,1992).
BOREHOLETEMPERATUREMEASUREMENTANDDATAREDUCTION
HistoricalBackground
Jessop(1990a)presentsahistoryofthemeasurementofundergroundtemperatures.Briefly,the
earliestmeasurementsofundergroundtemperaturesweremadeduringthe1700s,soonafter
thermometersweredeveloped,inmineshafts,tunnels,andwaterwells.Someoftheearliest
systematicmeasurementsinboreholeswereconductedbetween1868and1883undertheauspicesof
acommitteeoftheBritishAssociationfortheAdvancementofScience(seeJessop,1990a).One
purposeofthesestudieswastoexamineandcompiledataonregionalgeothermalgradients.A
primaryimpetuswas"thenecessityofreducingworkingtemperaturesinminesandtunnelstowithin
safeandcomfortablelimits..."(Strong,1933).Initially,thesemeasurementswereindividualreadings
frommaximumreadingthermometers,takenatdepthsuptoseveralhundredfeet.
Thedevelopmentofthepetroleumindustryduringthesecondhalfofthenineteenthcenturymade
deepboreholesavailableforsubsurfacetemperaturemeasurementandtheparalleldevelopmentof
electricalresistancethermometersgreatlyimprovedtheaccuracyandprecisionofthemeasurements.
Itwasatthistimethattemperaturemeasurementandgeothermics"...assumedgeneraleconomicvalue
andwidescientificinterest"(seeAPI,1930Strong,1933).Intwooftheearlysystematicstudiesof
boreholetemperaturesindeepwells,JohnsonandAdams(1916)andVanOrstrand(1918)usedboth
handoperatedmaximumreadingmercurythermometersandelectricalresistanceequipment.Van
Orstrand(1918)discussedtemperatureanomaliesassociatedwithfluidentry(gas,oil,andwater)into
theborehole.Schlumbergerfirstintroducedthetemperaturesurvey,usingcontinousrecording
loggingtools,inthelate1930s.Thissurveyhadimmediateapplicationsindesignandrepairofwell
completionsandinproductionengineering(Guyod,1936Leonardon,1936DeussenandGuyod,
1937Schlumbergeretal.,1937).thewidespreaduseoftemperatureloggingwasboostedwith
publicationofGuyod's(1946)seriesofarticlesdiscussingtheoryandthevarious(then)currentand
potentialuses,inapetroleumindustrytradejournal.
CurrentMethodsofMeasurement
Themajorityofboreholetemperaturemeasurementsareobtainedasmaximumreadingvalues
acquiredduringloggingrunsorascontinuousrecordedtemperaturesurveysinwellsdrilledfor
commercialpurposes(explorationandproductionofhydrocarbons,minerals,andgeothermalenergy)
andwaterwells.Duetotheconditionsunderwhichthesedataareobtainedandthepurposesforwhich
theyareused,theaccuracyofthesedataaremuchlowerthanthoseobtainedformeasurementofheat
flow.Timeconstraintsimposedbythecommercialnatureofthesewellsmeansthatwellsmaybe
loggedduring,orsoonaftercirculationofdrillingfluids,duringproductionflowofgasandfluids,
andathighloggingspeeds.Theeffectiveaccuracyofcommercialtemperaturelogsis0.5C
(BlackwellandSpafford,1987).Thesedata,obtainedunderdynamicconditions,mustthenbe
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extrapolatedtostaticconditions.JordenandCampbell(1984),Plisga(1987),andHill(1990)
summarizetheacquisitionandusesoftemperaturesurveysandtemperaturelogginginthepetroleum
industryandHallenburg(1984)andJessopandJudge(1975),inmineralexploration.
BlackwellandSpafford(1987),Haeneletal.(1988),andJessop(1990a)provideexcellentreviewsof
thescientificmeasurementofheatflow,boththetechnologyandthemethodology.Whilevarious
typesofwirelinetechniques(electricalandnonelectrical)havebeenusedtomeasureborehole
temperatures,ingeneral,themostaccuratetemperatureandheatflowdataareobtainedwithhigh
resolutionthermistorsloweredintosmalldiameter,thermallystableboreholesatloggingspeedsof
3050ft/min(1015m/min)(BlackwellandSpafford,1987BeckandBalling,1988Blackwelland
Steele,1989).Thesedataaregenerallyrecordedascontinuoustemperatureortemperaturegradient
logs.Althoughtheresolutionof"research"equipmentmayrangebetween0.0001Cand0.001C,
typicalaccuracyrangesfrom0.02Cto0.05C(BlackwellandSpafford,1987).The"thermal
recovery"timeforaborehole(Figure2)mayrangefromafewdaysforashallow(100150m)air
drilledholetoseveralmonthsfordeepmuddrilledoilwells(BlackwellandSpafford,1987).
DataReductionCorrectiontoStaticConditions
Therehavebeenmanymethodsandalgorithmsproposedtoextrapolatebottomholetemperature
(BHT)valuesmeasuredduringdrilling(duringthermaldisturbance),orsoonaftercirculationhas
ceased(duringthermalrelaxation),toobtainstatic("true")boreholeorformationtemperature.Caoet
al.(1988a)dividedthesemethodsintotwogeneralclasses,(1)thosethatconcentrateonthebottomof
theboreholewheretheBHTvalueismeasured,and(2)thosethatsimulateoftheevolutionofthe
temperatureofthecompletemudcolumn.Becausethedeterminationof"static"bottomhole
temperatureisimportanttoallapplicationsofboreholetemperaturedata,amoreindepthdiscussion
isprovidedalongwithacompletelistingofrelevantcitations.
Theoriginal(andalsothesimplest)methodtodetermineformationtemperatureandtemperature
gradients,isthetwopoint,ormultiplepointaveragetemperaturegradient.Alinearrelationshipis
assumedbetweentheambientsurfacetemperatureandBHTtemperaturesatotherdepthsare
determinedbyinterpolation(Schlumbergeretal.,1937).Summers(1972)andSpeeceetal.(1985)
usedregressiontechniquestocalculategeothermalgradientsforlargedatasets.
Mosttechniques(usingalgorithmsortimetemperaturecurves)treattemperatureasatransient
function,i.e.,theyinvolveprogressivemeasurementsoftemperaturewithtimeaftercessationof
circulation,toextrapolatethetemperatureatstaticconditions(Bullard,1947CooperandJones,1959
LachenbruchandBrewer,1959Jaeger,1961Cheremenski,1960Edwardsonetal.,1962Schoeppel
andGilarranz,1966Kehleetal.,1971Parasnis,1971Oxburghetal.,1972Manetti,G.,1973
Middleton,1979,1982).Themostcommonlyusedmethodisthetimesequential,Hornertype
extrapolationofbottomholetemperature(BHT)data(TimkoandFertl,1972DowdleandCobb,
1974FertlandWichmann,1977TanakaandSato,1977Leblancetal.,1982Drury,1984Sasaki,
1985,1987Fertl,etal.,1986KritikosandKutasov,1988HasanandKabir,1992).
Otherapproachesinclude:thetransientmethodofboreholerelaxation(Oxburghetal.,1972Luheshi,
1983)transientmethodsusinggraphicaltypecurves(BarelliandPalama,1981Lee1982Dixon,
1986)leastsquaresinversion(Vasseuretal.,1985)empiricalrelationshipsbetweenBHTand
temperaturesobtainedduringshutin(andbuildup)testing(Joyner,1975OxburghandAndrew
Speed,1981Sekiguchi,1984BenDhia,19871988see"GeothermalEnergy")andmathematical
inversionmethods(see"RecentDevelopments").Ribeiro(1987)usesanapproachforcorrecting
temperaturedatainwaterwells(bottomwelltemperatures,BWT)similartothatofusingBHTdatain
petroleumwells.
Determiningthebottomholetemperatureduringcirculation,orthetemperatureatpointsalongthe
boreholeduringproductionflow,areneededfordesigningwellcompletions,interpretationof
productionlogs,andinproductionengineering.Anumberofmethodshavebeenproposedfor
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estimatingdownholetemperaturesduringcirculation(bottomholecirculatingtemperature,BHCT)and
production(e.g.,Boldizar,1958Lesem,1958Moss,1959Edwardsonetal.,1962Ramey,1962
Tragesseretal.,1967KellerandCrouch,1968,Raymond,1969HolmesandSwift,1970Kelleret
al.,1973SumpandWilliams,1973Chernayak,1979ShiuandBegs,1980Wooley,1980,fora
summaryofpre1980developmentsMiddleton,1982BeckandShen,1985ThompsonandBurgess,
1985Jones,1986RibeiroandHamza,1986ShenandBeck,1986see"RecentDevelopments").
Thewidespreadavailabilityofpowerfulcomputersandtheroutineuseofdigitaldatabasesmakesit
possibletogeneratefieldwideandregionalstudiesusingBHTdata.Manyearlystudiesofthistype
useduncorrectedBHTvalues(e.g.,SchoeppelandGilarranz,1966Harper,1971Summers,1972
Grisafietal,1974CarvalhoandVacquier,1977StaubandTreat,1981ReiterandTovar,1982
EgglestonandReiter,1984AlamandPilger,1986).Someearlystudies,andmostofthemorerecent
onesapplysometypeofcorrectiontotheBHTvaluestoaccountforthermaldisturbances(drilling
fluidcirculation)(e.g.EvansandColeman,1974Evans,1977CarstensandFinstad,1981Chapman
etal.,1984Vacquier,1984Reiteretal.,1986DemingandChapman,19871988bWillettand
Chapman,1987BenDhia,1988,1991Kumar,1989Jones,etal.,1989LucazeauandBenDhia,
1989Correiaetal.,1990).
Inadditiontocorrectingmeasuredtemperaturedatatoequilibriumconditions,itiscommoninheat
flowstudies,whereverysmallvariations(0.01C)areconsideredsignificantandaccuracyiscritical,
tofurtherreduce(correct)thesedataforanumberofgeologicalfactors:climate,topography,uplift
anderosion(seediscussioninJessop,1990a).
APPLICATIONS
Theapplicationsofboreholetemperaturedatacanbegroupedintotwobroadcategories,engineering
usesandscientificuses.Thereisacertainamountofoverlapbetweenthesegroups,particularlyinthe
areaofhydrocarbonandmineralsexploration.
EngineeringUses
CorrectionofResistivityLogs.Electricalresistivityisafunctionoftemperatureandsalinity.Well
loginterpretationrequiresthatmeasurementsofresistivityatsurfaceconditions(e.g.,mud
characteristicsRm,Rmf,Rmc)aswellasintheborehole(Rw,Rt),becorrectedtoformation
temperatureatthedepthofinterest(thisrequirescalculationofageothermalgradient)(seechartsGen
69,Schlumberger,1989).
ReservoirEngineering.Temperatureisrequiredforcalculationsofhydrocarbonrecoveryfactors,
includingpressurevolumetemperaturerelationships,andgasoilratios.
WellCompletionandProductionLogging.(Includingtheproductionofhydrocarbonsand
geothermalenergy,andinthestudyofgroundwaterandaquiferpotential.)
CasingcementsSettingcementisanexothermicreactionthatproducesanobvious
temperatureanomaly(Figure3).Temperaturedataareusedindesigningcementslurries,for
locatingthetopofcasingcement,andfordetectingchannelsinthecement(Vendittoand
George,1984BergrenandBradley,1988JuttenandMorriss,1990Tilghmanetal.,1990
Pilkington,1992).
Completiondesign.Temperaturedataarerequiredforassessingdrillingmudcompositionthe
stabilityoftubulars(drillpipe,casing,tubing)toavoidbucklingduetothermalstressdesignof
packers,wellhead,andproductionequipmentdepositionofwaxesintubingdesignofdrillbits
(Wooley,1980).
Fluidflow.Liquidsenteringthewellborehavewarmertemperaturesthantheboreholefluids
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whilethoseenteringtheformationwillhavecoolertemperatures(Figure4).Gasenteringthe
wellborecoolsbyexpansionwhilegasinjectedintotheformationheatsbycompression(Joule
Thompsoneffect)(Figure5).Temperatureanomaliesareusedforidentifyingthedepthoffluid
andgasentryorexit,detectionofcasingleaksandintervalsoflostcirculation,locating
undergroundblowoutsandsourcesofgaskicks,andforvolumetricdeterminationsofthisflow
forpurposesofproductionandinjection(Plisga,1987McKinley,1989Hill,1990).
Evaluationoffractures.Zonesofnaturalfracturescanbeidentifiedandinducedfracturescan
beevaluated(bothpreandpostfracturetreatments)usingtemperatureanomaliesproducedby
thecontrastintemperaturebetweeninjectedfluidandformationfluids(Figure6)(Anderson,
1989Hill,1990).Acidtreatmentsarealsousedtostimulatefluidproductionthereactionsof
theacidwiththeformationrockproducesanexothermicreactionwhichingeneratesthermal
anomalies.Evaluationofacidtreatmentsismadebyexaminationoftheseanomalies.
Fluidinjection.Temperatureanomaliesofthetypementionedabove,areusedtoidentify
permeable(fractured)zonesforinjectionofwaterandsteamandinthemonitoringfloodsweep
efficiency(WoodandDunham,1986Fialkaetal.,1990).
WastedisposalAnomaliespresentontemperaturesurveyscanbeusedtotraceinjection
progressduringfluidwastedisposalandforassessingmechanicalintegrityofwells(Jarrelland
Lyle,1987seealso"Hydrology",below).
ScientificUses
StratigraphicCorrelation.Asmentionedearlier,changesinthermalconductivity(thermalgradient)
maycorrespondtolithologicvariationsandanaccuratetemperaturegradientlog(Tlog)maybeused
forstratigraphiccorrelationinsomeareas(Figure7)(DeussenandGuyod,1937JudgeandBeck,
1973Beck,1976ConawayandBeck,1977Reiteretal.,1980).Belowthewatertable,precision
temperaturelogscanoftenprovidemoredetailedandaccuratelithologicinformationthannatural
gammaraylogsinsandstonesandlimestonesthatcontainsignificantamountsofshalesince
temperaturelogsarenotaffectedbythepresenceofradioactive(KUTh)minerals(Blackwelland
Spafford,1987).Ingeneral,thermalresistivityhasanegativecorrelationwithelectricalresistivity
(Figure7),exceptforcoalunits.TheTlogisusefulforidentifyingcoals,especiallywhenotherhigh
resistivityformationsarepresent(Beck,1976Kayal,1981KayalandChristoffel,1982).
BasinAnalysisandModeling.
Basinhydrodynamics.Thermallydrivengroundwatercirculation(togetherwiththermal
conductivity)exertsthemajorinfluenceonthetemperatureswithinasedimentarybasinduring
itsevolution(Blackwelletal.,1983SmithandChapman,1983Chapman,1987Bethkeetal.,
1988BlackwellandSteele,1989Jessop,1989Majorowicz,1989Chapmanetal.,1991).
Modelinghasdemonstratedtheexistenceofthermallydrivenfluidcirculationinmanybasins
(recentexamplesincludeBachu,1985Hitchonetal.,1986JonesandMajorowicz,1987
Kukkonen,1988Becketal.,1989Vugrinovich,1989WillettandChapman,1989BenDhia,
1991).Basinhydrodynamicsareintimatelyrelatedtomigrationanddepositionofhydrocarbon
deposits(Hitchon,1984Hermanrud,1986Roberts,1986Toth,1988Davis,1991),ore
minerals(Roberts,1986Hitchonetal.,1987SharpandKyle,1988BethkeandMarshak,
1990),andgeothermalenergypotential(see"GeothermalEnergy").
Modelingthermalmaturationoforganicmatter.Increasesintemperatureandpressurewith
burialarethedeterminingfactorsinthematurationoforganicmatter(kerogen)andthe
subsequentgenerationofhydrocarbons(Tissotetal.,1971Lopatin,1971Waples,1984Tissot
etal.,1987Wood,1988Barker,1989b).Lerche(1990a,1990b)discussesthedifferent
methodsusedtoassessthermalhistoryandthermalmaturity.Determinationofthermalmaturity
andthepaleoheatfluxofbasinscanprovideimportantinsightsintothetimingofpetroleum
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generation,migration,accumulation,andpreservation(NuccioandBarker,1990).
Consequently,anunderstandingofthehistoryofabasin,especiallythethermalhistory
(paleogeothermics)resultsinanimprovedmodelforuseinexplorationforoilandnaturalgas
(Burrus,1986Stegna,1988Barker,1989aMcCulloughandNaeser,1989Demingetal.,
1989).
DetectionofZonesofOverpressuring.Sharpbreaksinthethermalgradientoccuratthetopof
overpressuredreservoirs.Theincreasedwatercontentcontainedinoverpressuredshales(dueto
undercompactionand/orclaydiagenesis)resultsinthisincreaseingeothermalgradient.Theresulting
"dogleg"inthegeothermalgradientmayserveasapredictorofoverpressuring(LewisandRose,
1970George,1970Jones,1975Pilkington,1988).Asimilar"dogleg"inpaleotemperature
(vitrinitereflectance)profilesmayreflectpaleoporepressure(Law,etal.,1989).FertlandLeach
(1990)concludethatinGulfCoastTertiaryrocks,thehighestconcentrationsofhydrocarbonsare
foundnearthetopofoverpressuring.Temperaturelogsmaythusserveasanexplorationtool.
ExplorationforEnergyMinerals
Petroleumandcoal.Earlyeffortstoapplyboreholetemperatureandtemperaturelogsto
hydrocarbonexplorationcenteredonthepotentialforusingthermalanomaliesforidentifying
petroleumdepositsandstructuraltraps(e.g.,Anonymous,1930Carlson,1930DeGolyer,
1918Thom,1925VanOrstrand,1926,1941Heald,1930)andfordistinguishing
hydrocarbonbearingintervalsfromwaterzones(Guyod,1946).Althoughthereisadifference
inthermalconductivityofoilcomparedtootherfluidsandrock,theseeffortswerelargely
unsuccessfulbecausetheoverallthermalconductivityofreservoirrockswaslittleaffectedby
theslightdifferencesinthermalpropertiesofhydrocarbonsandwater(Hill,1990).
Morerecently,improvedunderstandingofthestrongdependenceofthermal
maturation/petroleumgenerationontemperaturehasledtorenewedinterestinusingthermal
dataintheexplorationforhydrocarbons,inparticular,therecognitionthatthermalgradientscan
beusedtoidentifyprospectiveareasforoilandgasexploration.Temperatureandheatflow
datacanidentifylateralandverticalthermalanomalieswhichmaybeassociatedwithzonesof
enhancedmaturationandoilaccumulations(Gretener,1981Roberts,1981Ball,1982
Hitchon,1984McConnell,1985MyerandMcGee,1985Blackwell,1986Jonesetal.,1986
Majorowiczetal.,1988McGeeetal.,1989AndersonandWilliams,1990Swiftetal.,1990).
Hydrodynamicanalysiscanbeusedtotestgeologicalstructurestoseeiftheycanserveas
hydrocarbontraps(Davis,1991).Alocalsourceofheatthatresultsinanenhancedheatflow,
e.g.,volcanicrocksormagmaticintrusion(SummerandVerosub,1989),orresultingfroma
sharpcontrastinthermalconductivity,e.g.,saltdomes(SeligandWallick,1966O'Brienand
Lerche,1984,1988),canprovideanenhancedenvironmentforhydrocarbonmaturation.Kayal
(1981),KayalandChristoffel(1982),andMwenifumbo(1989)havediscussedtheuseof
temperatureslogsintheexplorationforcoalseamsandforevaluationofcoalquality.
Permafrostandgashydrates.Toprotectexploration,production,andengineeringprojects
againstproblemsofgroundinstabilitythatarerelatedtothawingandrefreezingofpermafrost,
itisnecessarytoknowthethicknessofandtemperaturedistributionwithinpermafrost
(Lachenbruchetal.,1982Collettetal.,1989).Thisinformationisalsoneededforcorrectionof
seismicvelocities,developingregionalgroundwatermodelsandtheidentificationand
evaluationofgashydrates(HnatiukandRandall,1977CollettandBird,1988).Temperature
logsrunintimelapsesequence(astheboreholefluidapproachesthermalstabilization),provide
thebestestimateofpermafrostthickness,i.e.,depthto0C(permafrostbase)(Hnatiukand
Randall,1977TaylorandJudge,1981).Scottetal.(1985)reviewtheuseofwirelinelogsfor
identifyingandinterpretingpermafrost.Thepresenceoffrozenmethaneraisesthemeltingpoint
andextendstheinfluenceoffrozengrounddownward(Jessop,1990a).Jonesetal.(1989)and
Majorowiczetal.(1990)discusstheapplicationsofstatisticalBHTstudiesforstudying
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permafrostandsubpermafrostheatflow.
Gashydrates(morepreciselycalledclathrates)areasolidformofmethanetrappedina
crystallineframeworkofice.Gashydratesrepresentasignificantpotentialhydrocarbon
resource,infactestimatesofhydratereservesaretwiceasgreatasthecombinedfossilenergy
resource(Trofimuketal.,1984CollettandKvenvolden,1989Sloan,1990,1991Appenzeller,
1991Collett,1992).Thespecificconditionsoftemperatureandpressureunderwhichhydrates
formarecommonin(1)northernlatitudesandArcticareasbeneathzonesofpermafrost,and(2)
justbelowtheoceanflooralongcontinentalmargins(KvenvoldenandCooper,1987
KvenvoldenandGrantz,1990Sloan,1990).Inadditiontothermalconductivity,contrastsin
otherphysicalpropertiesbetweenice(permafrost)andhydratespermitsidentificationbyother
typesofwelllogs(Collettetal.,19881989).
ExplorationforOreMinerals.Hydrodynamiccirculationofthermalfluidsistheprimaryfactorin
thegenesisanddepositionofmanystratabound,vein,andskarntypeore(metallic)minerals
(Roberts,1986Garven,1986Sverjansky,1987SharpandKyle,1988BethkeandMarshak,1990).
Therehasbeenincreasinginterestinincorporatinghydrodynamicsintoatotalbasinanalysisapproach
togainabetterunderstandingofthegenesisanddistributionoforemineraldeposits(Forceetal.,
1991Klein,1991).Temperaturedataareusedfordetectingthermalanomaliesthatmayberelatedto
orebodiesbythefollowingmechanisms:heatrefractionresultingfromthecontrastinthermal
conductivitiesbetweenoreandsurroundingrock(e.g.sphaleritedeposits)localcontrastsinheat
generationresultingfromradioactiveelementsintheoreororezonelocalcontrastsinheat
generationresultingfromtheoxidationofsulphidesrecentintrusionofvolcanicswithwhichtheore
isassociatedmovementofwateralongoreassociatedfracturezones(Guyod,1946Jessopand
Judge,1975Housemanetal.,1989Mwenifumbo,1991).
Hydrology/Hydrogeology
Groundwater.Asmentionedpreviously,temperaturelogsareusedtodetectandmeasurefluid
flow.Mostpublishedworkinthisfieldisrelatedtodetectionofregionalaquiferflow
(discussedaboveunder"BasinHydrodynamics")intrawellflow(see"ProductionLogging")
thedetectionoffracturezonesandplanningfor,ordetectionoftheinjectionoffluidwastes
(Druryetal.,1984Williamsetal.,1984Jessop,1987Berner,1987Conaway,1988Drury,
1989Jessop,1990Keys,1990).
Geothermalenergy.Workinthisfieldiscenteredaroundexplorationandreservoirassessment.
Inaddition,thehightemperatureconditionshaverequireddevelopmentofspecialloggingtools
andcables(Lysneetal.,1990).Explorationforgeothermalreservoirsinvolvesidentificationof
thermalanomalies(Wrightetal.,1985MongelliandHaenel,1988Rybach,1989Gosnold,
1991).ArecenttrendhasbeentoemployBHTdatafromoilwellsinreconnaissancesurveys
(Jonesetal.,1985LamandJones,1986).
Themostimportantmeasurementsforgeothermalreservoirassessmentareformation
temperatureandthermalconductivityaswellasidentificationoffractures(Murphyand
Lawton,1977Fertl,andOverton,1982Drury,1989).Thesevaluescanbeusedforestimating
thermalgradient,heatcontent,andproductioncapacity(Mathews,1982).Estimatesofstatic
formationtemperaturearemadeusingboreholetemperaturebuildupdata(Rouxetal.,1980
Brennand,1984Hermanrudetal.,1991),Hornerplots(afterDowdleandCobb,1975),or
relativelynewnuclearloggingtechniques(Rossetal.,1982).
MiningandCivilEngineering.Includedunderthisheadingareconstructioninpermafrostregions
(discussedabove),storageofheatproducingwastes,anddesignoftechnicalinstallationsinmines
(Delisle,1988).Thermalanomaliesresultingfromfluidflowhavebeenusedtodetectleaksin
pipelinesandindams(KappelmeyerandHaenel,1974).
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Paleoclimatology.Temperaturechangesattheearth'ssurfacepropagatedownwardstodepthsthat
dependonthemagnitudeanddurationofthetemperaturedisturbanceatthesurface.Temperature
disturbances(anomaliesandinversions)mayserveasindicatorsbothofpastclimatesandtheamount
ofsurfacetemperaturechange(Lane,1923Strong,1933Birch,1948Crain,1968Cermak,1971,
1976,1977Beck,1982ShenandBeck,1983LachenbruchandMarshall,1986Harrison,1991).
Seasonalchangesmayaffectonlytheupper20m,climatechangessincetheendofthePleistocene
mayaffecttheupper500m,andtheglacialeffectfromthePleistocenemayaffecttheupper1000
2000m(Jessop,1990a).
Asmentionedearlier,temperaturedata,especiallyinshallowboreholes,mustbecorrectedforthese
disturbancesinordertoobtainaccuratemeasurementsofheatflow(Beck,1977Vasseurand
Lucazeau,1983Clauser,1984).Therapidwarmingintheyears18801940producedatemperature
inversioninthermalgradientatdepthsof50100minmanypartsofNorthAmericaandAustralia
(Jessop,1990a).
StudyoftheEarth'sEvolution.Whileitisgenerallyacceptedthatplatemotionsareduetomantle
convection(Condie,1989KeareyandVine,1990),theoccurrenceofmantleupwellingunrelatedto
plateboundaries(mantleplumesand"hotspots")hasledtoanongoingdebateonwhethertheplates
"drive"themselvesbysubsidenceandsubductionorarepassivelytransportedbymantleconvection.
Thermaldata(temperatureandconductivity)provideameansforcalibratingempiricalandtheoretical
geologicalandgeophysicalmodelsofthecrust(WilliamsandAnderson,1990).Suchmodelsareused
intheexaminationofplatetectonics,crustalstudies,magmaemplacement,andstructuralgeology.As
discussedabove,regionalthermalstudiesmayhavedirectapplicationinthattheymayserveto
identifythelocationofminingbelts(Sawkins,1990)andareasofthermalmaturityandhydrocarbon
potential.
Thefollowingreferencesrepresentabriefselectionofrecentpapersthatprovideanintroductionto
thermalapplicationsincrustalstudies:Sclateretal.,1980ChapmanandRybach,1985Uyeda,1988
PollackandSass,1988Bristow,1989MorganandGosnold,1989DeRitoetal.,1989Gallagher,
1990Jessop,1990aBlackwell,etal.,1991.Thenumberofindividualpapersisfartoonumerousto
cite,however,frequentsourcesofsuchpapersarethejournalsGeophysics,Geothermics,Journalof
Geodynamics,JournalofGeophysicalResearch,andTectonophysics.Thesejournalsfrequently
publishtheproceedingsofsymposiaonheatflow(e.g.,Jessop,1977Beck,1985Rybach,1985
Uyedaetal.,1989Cermaketal.,1989CermakandSass,1991).
Inadditiontoregionalandbasinstudies,boreholesdrilledforscientificresearchareservingasfoci
forthermalstudiesdesignedtofurtherourunderstandingofbasicprocessescontributingtocrustal
evolution(WilliamsandAnderson,1990).RecentprojectsofsignificanceincludetheCajonPasswell
(Lachenbruch,andSass,1988,1992Williamsetal.,1988Sassetal.,1992),SaltonSeadrilling
project(Sassetal.,1988Newmark,etal.,1988),KTBprogram(Burkhardtetal.,1989),ToaBaja
(AndersonandLarue,1991),andDSDP/ODPboreholes(mostsitesinvolvemeasurementsofheat
flow,e.g.,Hyndmanetal.,1984Gableetal.,1989Nobesetal.,1991ShipboardScientificParty,
1992).
RECENTADVANCESINBOREHOLEGEOTHERMICS
StaticFormationTemperature
BeckandBalling(1988)discussandcomparethemethodscurrentto1988.Mostofthemethodscited
aboveinthesectionon"DataReduction,"use"forward"modeling,i.e.,temperaturevaluesare
obtainedbytheforward(intime)calculationofgivenparametervaluesandthesubsequentadjustment
oftheseparameterstofittheobserveddata(Caoetal.,1988a).Themostrecenttrendinvolvesthe
applicationofmathematicalinversiontechniques(generallybasedonfiniteelementmodels)to
determinestatic("true")formationtemperature.Inversiontechniquesworkbackwardsfromthe
observeddatatoinfervaluesoftheinputparameters(Caoetal.,1988a,1988bDemingand
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Chapman,1988a,1988bDeming,1989HermanrudandShen,1989,Hermanrudetal.,1990Lerche,
1990b,Nielsenetal.,1990McPhersonandChapman,1991).BothHermanrudetal.(1990)and
Nielsenetal.(1990)concludethatincomparisonwithothertechniques,theirinversionmethodsyield
temperaturesthatare(1)higherthanthoseobtainedbytheHornertypeextrapolation,and(2)thatare
moreconsistentwithtemperaturesobtainedduringDSTandproductiontests.
BoreholeTemperaturesforWellCompletionsandinFlowingWells
NewmethodsandalgorithmshavebeendevelopedforimproveddeterminationofBHCT,
temperaturesduringflow,andformationtemperaturesfromshutintemperaturebuildup.BHCTis
crucialtovariouscementingpracticesduringwellcompletion,e.g.,designofcementslurries
(Kutasovetal.,1988Tilghmanetal.,1990Kabinoffetal.,1992).Informationonwellboreheatloss
anddynamictemperatureprofiles(takenduringfluidfloworinjection)isimportanttoproduction
engineering.Anumberofpapersintherecentliteraturehaveproposednewmethodstoobtainthese
data(e.g.,flowratepulses,Pascaletal.,1989),refinementstoexistingmethods(e.g.,shutin
temperaturebuildup,CarslonandBarnette,1988drillstemtests,Hermanrudetal.,1991),ornew
mathematicalmodelsfordeterminingwellboreheatlossandfluidtemperatures(Kutasov,1989Sagar
etal.,1989SeyerandLanden,1990HasanandKabir,1991a,1991b).
ApplicationofComputerBHTDatabases
LargedigitaldatabasesofBHTdata,originallycompiledunderthesponsorshipofAAPG(Kehleet
al.,1971),permitanalysisofdatafromthousandsofwellsfortheevaluationofthethermalregimesof
sedimentarybasins.Thestatisticsofusinglargedatabaseshelpstoreducetheinaccuraciesthatare
inherentinindividualBHTvalues(seereviewbyBachuetal.,1987).Thiseffortwasledbya
CanadiangroupinvestigatingthehydrodynamicsandenergypotentialofthewesternCanadabasin
(MajorowiczandJessop,1981LamandJones,1982LamandJones1984a,1984bMajorowiczet
al.,1984Jonesetal.,1985Lametal.,1985Majorowiczetal.,1985LamandJones,1986
Majorowiczetal.,1986).Similartechniqueshavebeenappliedbyothersinotherregions(Speeceet
al.,1985BodnerandSharp,1987Hitchonetal.,1987Majorowiczetal.,1988PfeifferandSharp,
1989Jones,1991).
InsituMeasurementofThermalConductivity(seeabove,"ThermalConductivity")
Paleoclimatology
Therehasbeenrenewedinterestintheuseofsubsurfacetemperaturedatatoinferclimatechanges,
e.g.,theAmericanGeophysicalUniondevotedfulltechnicalsessionstothistopicatits1989and
1990fallmeetings(Jessop,1990bPollackandClow,1990).Recentpapersusebothlinearregression
(GosnoldandBauer,1991)andinversiontechniques(MongelliandZito,1988HallandThomas
Betts,1989NielsenandBeck,1989)forextractinginformationonpaleoclimatefromtemperature
logs(seeabove,"Paleoclimatology").
ChangesinSeaLevel
Anomaliesinshallowtemperaturegradientsareusedtoidentifychangesinshorelineposition,i.e.,
uplift/sealevelchange,inArcticregions(Taylor,1991).
SUMMARY
Temperaturesobtainedinboreholes,eitherassinglevaluesfrommaximumreadinginstrumentsoras
continuoustemperaturesurveysorlogs,areessentialtomanyareasofengineeringandscientific
research.Theseinclude:commercialapplicationse.g.,explorationfor,andproductionof,energyand
oremineralsresearchontectonicprocessesassociatedwithevolutionofbasinsandcrustalstudies
andstudiesonclimatechange.Theidentificationandinterpretationoftemperatureanomaliesinthe
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thermalgradientisusedtoidentify(1)fluidflow(in,oraround,aboreholeandalsoonabasinscale),
(2)exothermicreactions(settingcement,mineraloxidation),(3)zonesofenhancedthermal
maturationoforganicmaterialandpotentialaccumulationsofhydrocarbonsorcoal,(4)changesin
surfacetemperaturewithtime.Measurementofcrustalheatflowisusedtomapregionaland
worldwidevariationsthatareinturnusedfordevelopingmodelsofcrustalevolution.
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