Retrieving surface wave dispersion curve from 3D seismic acquisition scheme

Three-dimensional (3D) seismic surveys are always more often used both in oil prospection and in near surface problems to handle complex geological structures. At the same time surface wave methods are often coupled to other seismic techniques (2D seismic reflection or refraction) where it is possible the use of seismic data to retrieve dispersion curve along the seismic line. In this work the possibilities and the limits of retrieving dispersion curves from 3D seismic acquisition scheme are analysed. Several tests based on synthetic and real data show that the estimated dispersion curves are in agreement with the dispersion curves estimated through the traditional methods. Furthermore, in case of “cross-spread” acquisition schemes, the proposed processing approach can be used to retrieve 3D subsoil models, also for inaccessible areas.