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- Volume 55, Issue 5, 2007
Geophysical Prospecting - Volume 55, Issue 5, 2007
Volume 55, Issue 5, 2007
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A laboratory study of seismic velocity and attenuation anisotropy in near‐surface sedimentary rocks
Authors Angus I. Best, Jeremy Sothcott and Clive McCannABSTRACTThe laboratory ultrasonic pulse‐echo method was used to collect accurate P‐ and S‐wave velocity (±0.3%) and attenuation (±10%) data at differential pressures of 5–50 MPa on water‐saturated core samples of sandstone, limestone and siltstone that were cut parallel and perpendicular to the vertical borehole axis. The results, when expressed in terms of the P‐ and S‐wave velocity and attenuation anisotropy parameters for weakly transversely isotropic media (ɛ, γ, ɛQ, γQ) show complex variations with pressure and lithology. In general, attenuation anisotropy is stronger and more sensitive to pressure changes than velocity anisotropy, regardless of lithology. Anisotropy is greatest (over 20% for velocity, over 70% for attenuation) in rocks with visible clay/organic matter laminations in hand specimens. Pressure sensitivities are attributed to the opening of microcracks with decreasing pressure. Changes in magnitude of velocity and attenuation anisotropy with effective pressure show similar trends, although they can show different signs (positive or negative values of ɛ, ɛQ, γ, γQ). We conclude that attenuation anisotropy in particular could prove useful to seismic monitoring of reservoir pressure changes if frequency‐dependent effects can be quantified and modelled.
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Modelling and analysis of attenuation anisotropy in multi‐azimuth VSP data from the Clair field
Authors Sonja Maultzsch, Mark Chapman, Enru Liu and Xiang‐Yang LiABSTRACTAnisotropic variations in attenuation are of interest since they can give information on the fracture system and may be more amenable to measurement than absolute attenuation values. We examine methods for detecting changes in relative attenuation with azimuth from VSP data, and validate the techniques on synthetic data. Analysis of a multi‐azimuth walkaway VSP data set from a fractured hydrocarbon reservoir indicates that such azimuthal variations in P‐wave attenuation are observable. The effects are localized in the reservoir, and analysis allows the prediction of a fracture strike direction, which agrees with geological information. The observed effects can be modelled under reasonable assumptions, which suggests the validity of the link between the anisotropic attenuation and the fracturing.
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Estimating permeability from field measurements of seismic attenuation in fractured chalk
Authors S.S. Payne, M.H. Worthington, N.E. Odling and L.J. WestABSTRACTBroadband (100–4000 Hz) cross‐hole seismic data have been acquired at a borehole test site where extensive hydrological investigations have previously been performed, including in situ estimates of permeability. The rock type is homogeneous chalk and fractures and bedding planes have been identified from well logs. High values of seismic attenuation, Q= 22 ≤ 27 ≤ 33, were observed over a 10 m depth interval where fracture permeability values of 20–50 darcy had been recorded. An attempt has been made to separate the attenuation due to scattering and intrinsic mechanisms. The estimated values of intrinsic attenuation, Q= 31 ≤ 43 ≤ 71, have been reproduced using a number of current theories of seismic‐wave propagation and fluid‐flow‐induced seismic attenuation in cracked and fractured media. A model that considers wavelength‐scale pressure gradients is the preferred attenuation mechanism. Model parameters were obtained from the hydro‐geological and seismic data. However, we conclude that it is not possible to use seismic Q to measure rock permeability remotely, principally because of the inherent uncertainties arising from model parameterisations.
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Attenuation tomography: An application to gas‐hydrate and free‐gas detection
Authors Giuliana Rossi, Davide Gei, Gualtiero Böhm, Gianni Madrussani and José M. CarcioneABSTRACTWe estimate the quality factor (Q) from seismic reflections by using a tomographic inversion algorithm based on the frequency‐shift method. The algorithm is verified with a synthetic case and is applied to offshore data, acquired at western Svalbard, to detect the presence of bottom‐simulating reflectors (BSR) and gas hydrates. An array of 20 ocean‐bottom seismographs has been used.
The combined use of traveltime and attenuation tomography provides a 3D velocity–Q cube, which can be used to map the spatial distribution of the gas‐hydrate concentration and free‐gas saturation. In general, high P‐wave velocity and quality factor indicate the presence of solid hydrates and low P‐wave velocity and quality factor correspond to free‐gas bearing sediments.
The Q‐values vary between 200 and 25, with higher values (150–200) above the BSR and lower values below the BSR (25–40). These results seem to confirm that hydrates cement the grains, and attenuation decreases with increasing hydrate concentration.
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Seismic attenuation in porous rocks with random patchy saturation
Authors J. Toms, T. M. Müller and B. GurevichABSTRACTSaturation of porous rocks with a mixture of two fluids has a substantial effect on seismic‐wave propagation. In particular, partial saturation causes significant attenuation and dispersion of the propagating waves due to the mechanism of wave‐induced fluid‐flow. Such flow arises when a passing wave induces different fluid pressures in regions of rock saturated by different fluids. Most models of attenuation and dispersion due to mesoscopic heterogeneities imply that fluid heterogeneities are distributed in a regular way. However, recent experimental studies show that mesoscopic heterogeneities have less idealized distributions and that the distribution itself affects attenuation and dispersion. Based on an approximation for the coherent wavefield in random porous media, we develop a model which assumes a continuous distribution of fluid heterogeneities. As this continuous random media approach assumes that there will be a distribution of different patch sizes, it is expected to be better suited to modelling experimental data. We also show how to relate the random functions to experimentally measurable parameters.
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Stratigraphic filtering and source penetration depth
Authors Mirko Van Der Baan, James Wookey and Dirk SmitABSTRACTSeismic exploration underneath highly heterogeneous layers such as basalt flows is possible by lowering the principal source frequency. Unfortunately this also reduces resolution. Wave‐localization theory is a multiple scattering theory that can be used to study stratigraphic filtering in chaotic lithologies. It predicts the apparent attenuation due to scattering of a plane wave traversing a layer with high velocity fluctuations. It can therefore predict the optimum principle source frequency in the trade‐off between loss of resolution and increased penetration depth. We show how this can be done with the help of a few statistical parameters derived from a well‐log analysis; namely, the average background velocity, the expected standard deviation in the velocity fluctuations, the typical scale length of the heterogeneities and the thickness of the basalt layer. In the likely situation that no local well logs exist, a multitude of scenarios can easily be examined at low cost.
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Extension of White's layered model to the full frequency range
Authors Bouko Vogelaar and David SmeuldersABSTRACTThe low‐frequency theory of the White model to predict the dispersion and intrinsic attenuation in a single porous skeleton saturated with periodic layers of two immiscible fluids is extended to the full frequency range using the Biot theory. The extension is similar to the Dutta–Odé model for spherical inhomogeneities. Below the layer resonance frequency, the acoustic bulk properties for several gas–water fractions are in good agreement with the original White model. Deviations start to occur at higher frequencies due to the growing importance of resonance phenomena that were neglected in the original White model. The full model predicts significantly higher damping at sonic frequencies than the original White model. We also show that attenuation is significantly dependent on porosity variations. With realistic rock and fluid properties, a maximum attenuation of about 0.3 is found at seismic frequencies.
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Asymmetry in the time‐lapse seismic response to injection and depletion
More LessABSTRACTLarge changes in seismic reflection amplitude have been observed around injectors, and result from the decrease in elastic‐wave velocity due to the increase in pore pressure in the reservoir. In contrast, the velocity change resulting from the decrease in pore pressure in depleting reservoirs is observed to be smaller in magnitude. Elastic‐wave velocities in sandstones vary with stress due to the presence of stress‐sensitive grain boundaries within the rock. Grain‐boundary stiffness increases non‐linearly with increasing compressive stress, due to increased contact between opposing faces of the boundary. This results in a change in velocity due to a decrease in pore pressure that is smaller than the change in velocity caused by an increase in pore pressure, in agreement with time‐lapse seismic observations. The decrease in porosity resulting from depletion is not fully recovered upon re‐pressurization, and this leads to an additional steepening of the velocity vs. effective stress curve for injection relative to depletion. This difference is enhanced by any breakage of cement or weakening of grain contacts that may occur during depletion and by the reopening or formation of fractures or joints and dilation of grain boundaries that may occur during injection.
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Wide‐angle linear forward modelling of synthetic seismograms
More LessABSTRACTWe address the issue of linearity and scale dependence in forward modelling of seismic data from well logs, for large ray parameters, wide angles or large offsets. We present a forward model, within the context of seismic‐to‐well matching, that is linearized in the elastic properties of the earth. This model preserves linearity at large ray parameters and can handle fine‐layering effects such as induced anisotropy. Starting from a low‐contrast small‐ray‐parameter model, we extend it to a large‐ray‐parameter model by fully linearizing the elastic‐property contrasts. Overall linearity of the forward model is extended by partitioning the compressional‐wave and shear‐wave velocity fields into two fundamental scales: a kinematic scale that governs wavefield propagation effects and a dynamic scale that governs wavefield scattering effects. This analysis reveals that the standard practice in forward modelling of strongly filtering the ratio of compressional‐wave velocity to shear‐wave velocity is well founded in the underlying physics. The partitioning of the velocity fields also leads naturally to forward modelling that accounts fully for stretch effects, to resolution of the angle‐of‐incidence versus ray‐parameter dichotomy in seismic‐amplitude analysis, and to full accounting for induced anisotropy and dispersion effects due to fine‐layering of isotropic media. With the onset of routine long‐offset acquisition and the compelling need to optimize asset management in order to maximize reserve recovery, this forward model recognizes the physics of seismic wave propagation and enables a more complete exploitation of amplitude information in pre‐critical seismic data.
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AVO study of a gas‐hydrate deposit, offshore Costa Rica
Authors Christian Müller, Christian Bönnemann and Sönke NebenABSTRACTAmplitude variation with offset (AVO) analysis and waveform inversion are techniques used to determine qualitative or quantitative information on gas hydrates and free gas in sediments. However, the quantitative contribution of gas hydrates to the acoustic impedance contrast observed at the bottom‐simulating reflector and the reliability of quantitative AVO analyses are still topics of discussion. In this study, common‐midpoint gathers from multichannel wide‐angle reflection seismic data, acquired offshore Costa Rica, have been processed to preserve true amplitude information at the bottom‐simulating reflector for a quantitative AVO analysis incorporating angles of incidence of up to 60°. Corrections were applied for effects that significantly alter the observed amplitudes, such as the source directivity. AVO and rock‐physics modelling indicate that free gas immediately beneath the gas‐hydrate stability zone can be detected and low concentrations can be quantified from AVO analysis, whereas the offset‐dependent reflectivity is not sensitive to gas‐hydrate concentrations of less than about 10% at the base of the gas‐hydrate stability zone. Bulk free‐gas saturations up to 5% have been determined from the reflection seismic data assuming a homogeneous distribution of free gas in the sediment. Assuming a patchy distribution of free gas increases the estimated concentrations up to 14%.
There is a patchy occurrence of bottom‐simulating reflectors south‐east of the Nicoya Peninsula on the continental margin, offshore Costa Rica. AVO analysis indicates that this phenomenon is related to the local presence of free gas beneath the gas‐hydrate stability zone, probably related to a focused vertical fluid flow. In areas without bottom‐simulating reflectors, the results indicate that no free gas is present.
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Modelling magnetic fields due to steel drum accumulations
More LessABSTRACTModelling the magnetic fields produced by accumulations of steel drums is a problem that is relevant to the detection and evaluation of disposal sites containing materials that are potentially hazardous to the environment. Accurate modelling is possible with existing integral equation techniques but these are numerically intensive due to the need to solve very large systems of linear equations. Use of an approximate iterative technique for the solution of the equations (system iteration) allows the integral equation technique to be extended to modelling the magnetic effect of substantially large accumulations, comprising up to several hundred drums, on very moderate computing facilities. However, even this process remains time‐consuming and suggests the use of more rapid, if less accurate, modifications. Several are available.
Surprisingly, quite reasonable results can also be achieved with a very basic approximation that represents each drum by a discrete dipole located at its centroid. The dipole moments are found from the magnetic behaviour of single drums exposed to a uniform inducing field, which can be conveniently defined by a dyadic drum apparent susceptibility. The basic discrete dipole model for drum accumulations can be substantially improved by using a first‐order accommodation of the depolarizing effect produced by the shape of the accumulation.
All of the above modelling techniques require details of individual drum locations and orientation. This information is generally unavailable to geophysical practitioners involved in environmental surveys and so prompts the idea of models that represent drum accumulations as a continuous distribution of magnetization. The convenience of neglecting details of drum location and orientation comes at the cost of some loss in accuracy of the modelled responses. However, for accumulations buried sufficiently deep and in which the drums are uniformly distributed, the total field magnetic anomaly is found to be reasonably approximated by the effect of a continuous magnetization, expressible in terms of an effective isotropic susceptibility. Again, the basic model can be improved by the accommodation of demagnetization effects due to the shape of the accumulation.
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Detection of preferential infiltration pathways in sinkholes using joint inversion of self‐potential and EM‐34 conductivity data
Authors A. Jardani, A. Revil, F. Santos, C. Fauchard and J.P. DupontABSTRACTThe percolation of water in the ground is responsible for measurable electric potentials called self‐potentials. These potentials are influenced by the distribution of the electrical conductivity of the ground. Because sinkholes are associated both with self‐potential and electrical conductivity anomalies, a joint inversion of EM‐34 conductivity and self‐potential data is proposed as a way of delineating the location of these features. Self‐potential and EM conductivity data were obtained at a test site in Normandy (France) where sinkholes and crypto‐sinkholes are present over a karstic area in a chalk substratum overlain by clay‐with‐flint and loess covers. The presence of sinkholes and crypto‐sinkholes is associated with negative self‐potential anomalies with respect to a reference electrode located outside the area where the sinkholes are clustered. The sinkholes also have a conductivity signature identified by the EM‐34 conductivity data. We used the simulated‐annealing method, which is a global optimization technique, to invert jointly EM‐34 conductivity and self‐potential data. Self‐potential and electrical conductivity provide clear complementary information to determine the interface between the loess and clay‐with‐flint formations. The sinkholes and crypto‐sinkholes are marked by depressions in this interface, focusing the groundwater flow towards the aquifer contained in the chalk substratum.
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Volumes & issues
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Volume 72 (2023 - 2024)
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Volume 71 (2022 - 2023)
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Volume 70 (2021 - 2022)
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Volume 69 (2021)
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Volume 68 (2020)
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Volume 67 (2019)
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Volume 66 (2018)
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Volume 65 (2017)
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Volume 64 (2015 - 2016)
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Volume 63 (2015)
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Volume 62 (2014)
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Volume 61 (2013)
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Volume 60 (2012)
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Volume 59 (2011)
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Volume 58 (2010)
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Volume 57 (2009)
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Volume 56 (2008)
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Volume 55 (2007)
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Volume 54 (2006)
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Volume 53 (2005)
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Volume 52 (2004)
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Volume 51 (2003)
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Volume 50 (2002)
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Volume 49 (2001)
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Volume 48 (2000)
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Volume 47 (1999)
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Volume 46 (1998)
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Volume 45 (1997)
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Volume 44 (1996)
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Volume 43 (1995)
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Volume 42 (1994)
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Volume 41 (1993)
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Volume 40 (1992)
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Volume 39 (1991)
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Volume 38 (1990)
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Volume 37 (1989)
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Volume 36 (1988)
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Volume 35 (1987)
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Volume 34 (1986)
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Volume 33 (1985)
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Volume 32 (1984)
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Volume 31 (1983)
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Volume 30 (1982)
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Volume 29 (1981)
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Volume 28 (1980)
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Volume 27 (1979)
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Volume 26 (1978)
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Volume 25 (1977)
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Volume 24 (1976)
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Volume 23 (1975)
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Volume 22 (1974)
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Volume 21 (1973)
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Volume 20 (1972)
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Volume 19 (1971)
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Volume 18 (1970)
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Volume 17 (1969)
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Volume 16 (1968)
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Volume 15 (1967)
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Volume 14 (1966)
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Volume 13 (1965)
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Volume 12 (1964)
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Volume 11 (1963)
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Volume 10 (1962)
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Volume 9 (1961)
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Volume 8 (1960)
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Volume 7 (1959)
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Volume 6 (1958)
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Volume 5 (1957)
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Volume 4 (1956)
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Volume 3 (1955)
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Volume 2 (1954)
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Volume 1 (1953)