Method and apparatus for analyzing drill cuttings

摘要

A method and apparatus for identifying cuttings from a wellbore is disclosed. The cuttings can be identified by measuring emissions such as alpha, beta, or gamma particles which emanate from the cuttings. A continuous wellbore profile of the alpha or beta emissions can be constructed by measuring the emissions from cuttings taken from different locations in the wellbore, and by documenting such emissions. The effects of cuttings dispersion caused by differing particle sizes can be reduced by collecting cuttings of an intermediate size for analysis. The profile of the intermediate size cuttings can be compared with a well log to identify the original elevation of the cuttings within the wellbore.