INTRODUCTION

The Spontaneous Potential was one of the first logging measurements ever made. It was
discovered by accident, appearing as a direct current (DC) potential in the borehole that caused
perturbations on the old electric logging systems. The spontaneous potential (SP) curve records
the naturally occurring electrical potential (voltage) produced by the interaction of formation
connate water, conductive drilling fluid, and shale. The SP curve reflects a difference in the
electrical potential between a movable electrode in the borehole and a fixed reference electrode at
the surface, as depicted in Figure 1: Spontaneous Potential Configuration. Its usefulness was
soon realized, and it is one of the few well log measurements to have been in continuous use for
so many years.

Figure 1

Though the SP is used primarily as a lithology indicator and as a correlation tool, it has other uses
as well:
 permeability indicator,

 shale volume indicator (see Vsh calculation in the next section),

 porosity indicator, and
 measurement of Rw (hence formation water salinity).

Figure 2 shows a typical SP log, with the SP recorded in track one.

 Figure 2

Opposite shales, the SP readings are usually fairly constant and tend to follow a straight line,
called the Shale Base Line. Opposite permeable formations, the SP shows excursions from the
shale base line and drifts to one or more Sand Line levels. (Depending on the relative salinities
between the formation water and the mud filtrate, the excursions may be to the left or the right of
the shale base line.) This SP effect is produced by two components: the electro-chemical and the
electro-kinetic potentials. The SP log is measured in millivolts (abbreviated mV). Notice that there
is no absolute scale in mV, only a relative scale of so many mV per division.
When mud filtrate salinities are lower than connate water salinities (i.e., Rmf is > Rw), the SP
deflects to the left (the SP potential is negative). This is called a normal SP. When the salinities
are reversed (i.e., salty mud and fresh formation water, Rmf < Rw), the SP deflects to the right.
This is called a reverse SP. Other things being equal, there is no SP (and no SP deflection) at all
when Rmf = Rw.

It is quite common to find fresh water in shallow sands and increasingly saline water as depth
increases. Such a progression is shown in Figure 3, where the SP appears to be deflecting to the
left deep in the well, but is reversed nearer the surface.
 Figure 3

In sand A, we see that Rw is less than Rmf; which means that formation water is saltier than the
mud filtrate. In sand B, the SP deflection is less than in sand A and thus a fresher formation water
is indicated. In sand C, the SP is reversed, indicating that formation water is fresher than the mud
filtrate and thus Rw is greater than Rmf. Somewhere in the region of 7000 feet it may be guessed
that Rmf and Rw are equal.

RECORDING THE SP
The SP can be recorded very simply by suspending a single electrode in the borehole and
measuring the voltage difference between the electrode and a "ground" electrode (often called a
"fish"), making electrical contact with the earth at the surface. A generalized illustration of the SP
recording system is shown in Figure 4. SP electrodes can be integrated into many logging tools.
For example, the SP can be recorded together with an induction log, a laterolog, a sonic log, and a
sidewall core gun, once there is conductive mud in the hole. It is important to point out that the
SP cannot be recorded in oil-base muds, which allow no conductive path.

THE ELECTROCHEMICAL COMPONENT

The electro-chemical component Ec consists of the liquid junction potential (Ej) and the membrane
potential (Em). These potentials create a current that flows at the shale / reservoir interface. When
a reference electrode is moved across this interface a difference in potential is measured.

Liquid Junction Potential

We’ve stated that the SP is affected by formation water salinity. When solutions of differing
concentration are brought into contact, ions from the solution with a higher concentration tend to
migrate toward the solution of lower concentration until equilibrium occurs (Figure 5).

Figure 5 .

However, with sodium chloride (NaCl) solutions, the C1- anions move faster than Na+ cations, so a
conventional current (or potential) flows from the less concentrated solution to the more
concentrated solution. The electrical potential that results from the combined sodium and
chlorine ion movement is known as the liquid junction potential (Elj).
In terms of the solutions present in a formation, mud filtrate can be substituted for the less
concentrated solution and formation water will be the more concentrated solution. Borehole mud-
weight is usually higher than the formation fluid pressure. This produces an over-pressure at the
face of the reservoir exposed to the borehole, and causes mud filtrate to invade the reservoir. A
mudcake is subsequently formed and the invasion process slows down. An invasion profile as
shown in Figure 6: Liquid Junction Potential is formed which separates, in this case, a high saline
formation water and the low salinity mud filtrate.

Figure 6
The liquid junction potential Ej is created at the interface between the invaded zone and the
uncontaminated zone due to a salinity difference between mud filtrate and formation water. Since
the negative Cl - anions (assuming an NaCl solution) have a greater mobility than the positive Na+
cations, the net result is a flow of negative charges (Cl - ions) from the more concentrated solution
to the less concentrated solution. This mechanism, which is driven by the conductivity difference
the mud filtrate and formation water is also shown by the above Liquid Junction Potential graphic.
The greater the contrast in salinity between mud filtrate and formation water, the larger this
potential (Figure 7 ).

Figure 7

Membrane Potential
Another "battery" found in the formation arises from the molecular construction of shale beds.
Shale can act as an ionic sieve or membrane. This means that shale can be permeable for one
type of ion while acting as a barrier for another type. This property is called ionic perm-
selectivity, and the result is that the shale-membrane can preferentially prevent the
movement of negative ions. In this case, shales are permeable to Na+ ions, but not so
permeable to C1- ions.
Shales are cation exchangers; they are electro-negative, and therefore repel anions. This
phenomenon occurs as a result of the crystalline structure of clay minerals. Their exterior surfaces
exchange sites where positively charged cations cling temporarily. In most instances, the shales
are 100% effective and therefore repel all chlorine (negatively charged) ions. The positive sodium
ions move toward the lower salinity mud in the borehole, but the chlorine ions cannot follow this
movement.
Since Na+ ions effectively manage to penetrate through the shale from the saline formation water
to the less saline mud column, a positive potential is generated toward the low-concentration NaCl
solution of the mud column. This potential is known as the membrane potential (Em). Figure 8
indicates the process.
 Figure 8

The membrane potential Em acts across the shale between the uncontaminated zone in the
reservoir and the mud in the borehole, as depicted in Figure 9: Membrane Potential. This same
surface conductance effect manifests itself in the electrical behavior of shaly sands.

Figure 9

TOTAL SP
The total SP (Figure 10) can now be appreciated as the sum of the two components:
 Figure 10

[E-1]

Etotal = Elj + Em

The total potential, measurable in the borehole by an electrode, is also referred to as the
electrochemical component of the SP.
Considering the shale/reservoir interface, a current is created by the Ej and Em potentials acting in
series. Ej has a positive value toward the uncontaminated zone containing formation water. In
contrast, Em is positive toward the mud in the borehole, which has the lower NaCl concentration.
The magnitude of both the liquid junction potential and the membrane potential depends on the
difference in ion concentration between the mud (filtrate) and the uncontaminated formation water,
and can therefore both be expressed as:
[E-2]

Con w
E K log
Con mf

in which K is a constant that varies with temperature (see equation below), while Conw and Conmf
are the ion concentrations in the formation water and the mud filtrate respectively that produce the
Ej and Em potentials. Conw and Conmf are inversely proportional to the resistivity, Rw of the
formation water and Rmf the resistivity of the mud filtrate respectively.
K can be estimated from the temperature of the formation. A good approximation is:
[E-3]

T  505
K
8

where T is the formation temperature in F.

 The constant K is different for the Ej and the Em potential but the equivalence of the relations
allows the combination into one effective potential E:
[E-4]

R mf
E E j  E m ( 71) log
R wf

In which E is expressed in mV, and the factor (-71) is the combination of the K constants. Normally
the resistivity of the mud filtrate Rmf is measured at the wellsite at room temperature and the SP
measures the potential E at borehole temperature. Rmf should therefore be corrected for this
temperature difference. Using equation [E-3] and the measured values for E and Rmf , the
resistivity of the uncontaminated water in the formation Rw can be calculated. From the value of Rw
the formation water salinity can be derived taking into account the reservoir temperature.

ELECTROKINETIC COMPONENT
Up until now, the "streaming potential" caused by the movement of the mud filtrate through the
mudcake has been ignored. Like the shale layers, the mudcake acts also as a membrane that
retards the movement of the negative ions. A potential difference Ek is thereby generated, and the
SP has to be corrected for this electrokinetic component. The value of Ek can be obtained from
laboratory experiments with various muds that are in common use. For modern muds that seal the
formation very effectively, the streaming potential Ek can often be ignored.

COMBINATION OF SP COMPONENTS
The combination of the junction-, membrane-and kinetic-potentials creates a current through the
shale / reservoir interface, as depicted in Figure 11: Currents created by the Ej, Em, and Ek.
 Figure 11

The currents created by this series of potentials flow through 5 different media, each with its own
resistivity:
 borehole filled with mud (Rm),
 mudcake (Rmc),
 invaded zone filled with mud filtrate (Rxo),
 virgin zone filled with uncontaminated fluids (Rt)
 surrounding shales (Rsh).
In each medium the potential along a line of current flow (I) drops in proportion to the resistance
that is encountered.
[E-5]

Etotal = I . Rm + I . Rmc + I . Rxo + I .R t + I . Rsh

mud mudcake flushed zone virgin zone adjacent shale

The motor providing the potential (Etotal) can therefore be expressed as:
[E-6]

E total E m  E j  E kmc  E ksh

As mentioned previously, the streaming potentials Ekmc over the mudcake and Eksh through the
shale are often ignored.