The nonlinear characteristics of an acoustic tube wave propagating alo
ng the axis of a fluid-filled circular borehole in an elastic solid th
at is locally isotropic but whose properties may vary radially is cons
idered. The analysis is carried out in the quasistatic limit. All term
s through quadratic in the amplitude of the wave are considered and th
e amplitude of second-harmonic generation and the pressure dependence
of the tube wave speed, dV(T)/dp, are expressed in terms of the fluid
and formation nonlinear parameters. The results show that if there is
no radial variation of the shear modulus of the solid then both the am
plitude of second-harmonic generation and dV(T)/dp are independent of
the third-order elastic constants of the solid and nearly equal to tho
se of the fluid alone. If there is a radial variation of the shear mod
ulus then the numerical calculations indicate that both the amplitude
of second-harmonic generation and dV(T)/dp can be completely dominated
by the nonlinear parameters of the solid. A perturbation theory valid
for the case in which the shear modulus is nearly constant is derived
that demonstrates that the nonlinear response is scaled by the value
of the third-order parameters of the solid, leveraged by the degree an
d depth of alteration of the shear modulus.