Fracture detection using P‐wave AVO

Author(s):  
Ronit Strahilevitz ◽  
Gerald H. F. Gardner
Keyword(s):  
P Wave ◽  
Geophysics ◽  
1988 ◽  
Vol 53 (1) ◽  
pp. 76-84 ◽  
Author(s):  
E. L. Majer ◽  
T. V. McEvilly ◽  
F. S. Eastwood ◽  
L. R. Myer

In a pilot vertical seismic profiling study, P-wave and cross‐polarized S-wave vibrators were used to investigate the potential utility of shear‐wave anisotropy measurements in characterizing a fractured rock mass. The caprock at The Geysers geothermal field was found to exhibit about an 11 percent velocity variation between SH-waves and SV-waves generated by rotating the S-wave vibrator orientation to two orthogonal polarizations for each survey level in the well. The effect is generally consistent with the equivalent anisotropy expected from the known fracture geometry.


Geophysics ◽  
2010 ◽  
Vol 75 (5) ◽  
pp. 75A15-75A29 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ilya Tsvankin ◽  
James Gaiser ◽  
Vladimir Grechka ◽  
Mirko van der Baan ◽  
Leon Thomsen

Recent advances in parameter estimation and seismic processing have allowed incorporation of anisotropic models into a wide range of seismic methods. In particular, vertical and tilted transverse isotropy are currently treated as an integral part of velocity fields employed in prestack depth migration algorithms, especially those based on the wave equation. We briefly review the state of the art in modeling, processing, and inversion of seismic data for anisotropic media. Topics include optimal parameterization, body-wave modeling methods, P-wave velocity analysis and imaging, processing in the [Formula: see text] domain, anisotropy estimation from vertical-seismic-profiling (VSP) surveys, moveout inversion of wide-azimuth data, amplitude-variation-with-offset (AVO) analysis, processing and applications of shear and mode-converted waves, and fracture characterization. When outlining future trends in anisotropy studies, we emphasize that continued progress in data-acquisition technology is likely to spur transition from transverse isotropy to lower anisotropic symmetries (e.g., orthorhombic). Further development of inversion and processing methods for such realistic anisotropic models should facilitate effective application of anisotropy parameters in lithology discrimination, fracture detection, and time-lapse seismology.


2008 ◽  
Author(s):  
Wang Jiushuan ◽  
Yang Jing ◽  
Huang Zhi ◽  
Shao Linhai ◽  
Huo Lina ◽  
...  

Geophysics ◽  
1999 ◽  
Vol 64 (4) ◽  
pp. 1193-1201 ◽  
Author(s):  
Xiang‐Yang Li

An algorithm is proposed for determining the fracture orientation based on the azimuthal variations in the P-wave reflection moveout for a target interval. The differential moveout between orthogonal survey lines from the bottom of a given target shows cos 2ϕ variations with the line azimuth ϕ measured from the fracture strike for a fixed offset. A configuration of four intersecting survey lines may be used to quantify the fracture strike. The four lines form two orthogonal pairs, and the fracture strike can be obtained by analyzing the crossplot of the two corresponding pairs of the differential moveouts. An offset‐depth ratio (x/z) of 1.0 or greater (up to 1.5) is often required to quantify the moveout difference reliably. The sensitivity of the method is further enhanced by low/high impedance contrast at the top target interface but is greatly reduced by high/low impedance contrast. The method may be particularly useful in marine exploration with repeated surveys of various vintages where continuous azimuthal coverage is often not available. A data set from the North Sea is used to illustrate the technique.


2013 ◽  
Author(s):  
Xie Chunhui ◽  
Yong Xueshan ◽  
Yang Wuyang ◽  
Zhou Chunlei ◽  
Wang Hongqiu ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
P Wave ◽  

Geophysics ◽  
2007 ◽  
Vol 72 (1) ◽  
pp. D1-D7 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yaping Zhu ◽  
Ilya Tsvankin ◽  
Pawan Dewangan ◽  
Kasper van Wijk

Anisotropic attenuation can provide sensitive attributes for fracture detection and lithology discrimination. This paper analyzes measurements of the P-wave attenuation coefficient in a transversely isotropic sample made of phenolic material. Using the spectral-ratio method, we estimate the group (effective) attenuation coefficient of P-waves transmitted through the sample for a wide range of propagation angles (from [Formula: see text] to [Formula: see text]) with the symmetry axis. Correction for the difference between the group and phase angles and for the angular velocity variation help us to obtain the normalized phase attenuation coefficient [Formula: see text] governed by the Thomsen-style attenuation-anisotropy parameters [Formula: see text] and [Formula: see text]. Whereas the symmetry axis of the angle-dependent coefficient [Formula: see text] practically coincides with that of the velocity function, the magnitude of the attenuation anisotropy far exceeds that of the velocity anisotropy. The quality factor [Formula: see text] increases more than tenfold from the symmetry axis (slow direction) to the isotropy plane (fast direction). Inversion of the coefficient [Formula: see text] using the Christoffel equation yields large negative values of the parameters [Formula: see text] and [Formula: see text]. The robustness of our results critically depends on several factors, such as the availability of an accurate anisotropic velocity model and adequacy of the homogeneous concept of wave propagation, as well as the choice of the frequency band. The methodology discussed here can be extended to field measurements of anisotropic attenuation needed for AVO (amplitude-variation-with-offset) analysis, amplitude-preserving migration, and seismic fracture detection.


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