Channel Detection Using LTFT and Q Factor Estimation

Elastic energy of a seismic wave is attenuated while propagation through the earth. Generally, attenuation is determined by quality factor (Q) which is a dimensionless parameter. Due to the frequency dependency of attenuation, it is usually studied in frequency domain based on power spectrum and statistical methods. We used the local time-frequency transform (Fomel et al., 2010) as a time-frequency representation tool and the spectral ratio method to estimate Q for a given seismic data set using. Performance of the method was tested on both real and synthetic seismic data. A channel within a stacked volume was detected by estimating Q cube using the method.