Geoscience teams bring together multiscale and multidisciplinary data to solve complex multivariate problems, a process we call integration. Several geoscience disciplines, such as seismic geophysics, borehole geology, petrophysics, rock physics, and geomechanics, require accurate dipole sonic results for integration. But accuracy is dependent on the difficulties encountered in each data set. The borehole geophysicist must communicate these complications to the downstream users to integrate the dipole sonic data into an accurate multidisciplinary result.

Dipole sonic data is adversely affected by three categories of complications, tool-related, environment-related, and interpretation-related. Tool-related complications include unbalanced and miswired transducers. Environment-related complications include enlarged and noncircular boreholes, mud properties that vary with depth, and irregular tool motion. Interpretation-related complications include dispersive waveforms, anisotropy, invasion, formation alteration, acoustic sensitivity to stress, relative dip, and thin beds.

This presentation concentrates on common complications in dipole sonic data and results. I will suggest new diagnostic plots to assess the data and differentiate depths where the data is good from depths where the data or interpretation are compromised. This context is critical for downstream users to integrate this vital data into the geoscience model.