Traveltime parameters in tilted transversely isotropic media

Geophysics ◽  
2012 ◽  
Vol 77 (6) ◽  
pp. C43-C55 ◽  
Author(s):  
Pavel Golikov ◽  
Alexey Stovas
Keyword(s):  
Strong Dependence ◽  
Transversely Isotropic ◽  
Model Parameters ◽  
Weak Anisotropy ◽  
Anisotropic Models ◽  
Transversely Isotropic Media ◽  
Long Offset ◽  
Isotropic Media ◽  
The One ◽  
Approximate Equations

Traveltime parameters define the coefficients of the Taylor series for traveltime or traveltime squared as a function of offset. These parameters provide an efficient tool for analyzing the effect of the medium parameters for short- and long-offset reflection moveouts. We derive the exact equations for one-way and two-way traveltime parameters in a homogeneous transversely isotropic medium with the tilted symmetry axis (TTI). It is shown that most of the one-way traveltime parameters in TTI differ from the two-way traveltime parameters, and we observe strong dependence of all traveltime parameters on tilt. The equations for traveltime parameters are extended to a vertically heterogeneous TTI medium, and weak-anisotropy and weak-anellipticity approximations are considered. We also apply the exact and approximate equations to invert the traveltime parameters into the model parameters for different acquisition setups. Using the traveltime parameters in a weak-anisotropy approximation, our tests show that an analytical inversion is not applicable, whereas the numerical inversion with exact equations yields a good accuracy for strongly anisotropic models.

Normal moveout from dipping reflectors in anisotropic media

Geophysics ◽  
1995 ◽  
Vol 60 (1) ◽  
pp. 268-284 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ilya Tsvankin
Keyword(s):  
Symmetry Axis ◽  
Transverse Isotropy ◽  
Transversely Isotropic ◽  
Anisotropic Media ◽  
Weak Anisotropy ◽  
Anisotropic Models ◽  
Transversely Isotropic Media ◽  
Wide Range ◽  
Isotropic Media ◽  
The Difference

Description of reflection moveout from dipping interfaces is important in developing seismic processing methods for anisotropic media, as well as in the inversion of reflection data. Here, I present a concise analytic expression for normal‐moveout (NMO) velocities valid for a wide range of homogeneous anisotropic models including transverse isotropy with a tilted in‐plane symmetry axis and symmetry planes in orthorhombic media. In transversely isotropic media, NMO velocity for quasi‐P‐waves may deviate substantially from the isotropic cosine‐of‐dip dependence used in conventional constant‐velocity dip‐moveout (DMO) algorithms. However, numerical studies of NMO velocities have revealed no apparent correlation between the conventional measures of anisotropy and errors in the cosine‐of‐dip DMO correction (“DMO errors”). The analytic treatment developed here shows that for transverse isotropy with a vertical symmetry axis, the magnitude of DMO errors is dependent primarily on the difference between Thomsen parameters ε and δ. For the most common case, ε − δ > 0, the cosine‐of‐dip–corrected moveout velocity remains significantly larger than the moveout velocity for a horizontal reflector. DMO errors at a dip of 45 degrees may exceed 20–25 percent, even for weak anisotropy. By comparing analytically derived NMO velocities with moveout velocities calculated on finite spreads, I analyze anisotropy‐induced deviations from hyperbolic moveout for dipping reflectors. For transversely isotropic media with a vertical velocity gradient and typical (positive) values of the difference ε − δ, inhomogeneity tends to reduce (sometimes significantly) the influence of anisotropy on the dip dependence of moveout velocity.

Reflection and transmission responses for layered transversely isotropic media with vertical and horizontal symmetry axes

Geophysics ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 84 (4) ◽  
pp. C181-C203 ◽  
Author(s):  
Song Jin ◽  
Alexey Stovas
Keyword(s):  
Transversely Isotropic ◽  
Model Parameters ◽  
Local Anisotropy ◽  
Weak Anisotropy ◽  
Reflection And Transmission ◽  
Contrast Model ◽  
Transversely Isotropic Media ◽  
Horizontal Symmetry ◽  
Isotropic Media ◽  
Independent Parameters

Reflection and transmission (R/T) responses characterize the energy distributions for incident and generated waves across the subsurface interface. The R/T coefficients are considerably influenced by the local anisotropy, and this implies the significance of the R/T responses analysis for anisotropic media. We have considered the plane interface bounded by two transversely isotropic media with, respectively, vertical and horizontal symmetry axes, and R/T coefficients normalized by the vertical energy flux are obtained in the phase domain. We define two simple anisotropic layered models characterized by fewer independent model parameters. Under the assumption of weak contrast model parameters across the interface, the R/T coefficient approximations are obtained as the perturbations from the simple models’ counterparts. The isotropic background medium is also used to obtain the approximations under an additional weak anisotropy assumption. Compared with approximations degenerated from more general cases, our approximations rely on fewer independent parameters. Numerical tests are implemented to evaluate our approximations.

Reflection and transmission responses in a layered transversely isotropic medium with horizontal symmetry axis

Geophysics ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 84 (3) ◽  
pp. C143-C157 ◽  
Author(s):  
Song Jin ◽  
Alexey Stovas
Keyword(s):  
Good Accuracy ◽  
Symmetry Axis ◽  
Local Property ◽  
Transversely Isotropic ◽  
Weak Anisotropy ◽  
Reflection And Transmission ◽  
Numerical Tests ◽  
Transversely Isotropic Media ◽  
Horizontal Symmetry ◽  
Isotropic Media

Seismic wave reflection and transmission (R/T) responses characterize the subsurface local property, and the widely spread anisotropy has considerable influences even at small incident angles. We have considered layered transversely isotropic media with horizontal symmetry axes (HTI), and the symmetry axes were not restricted to be aligned. With the assumption of weak contrast across the interface, linear approximations for R/T coefficients normalized by vertical energy flux are derived based on a simple layered HTI model. We also obtain the approximation with the isotropic background medium under an additional weak anisotropy assumption. Numerical tests illustrate the good accuracy of the approximations compared with the exact results.

scholarly journals The offset‐midpoint traveltime pyramid in transversely isotropic media

Geophysics ◽  
2000 ◽  
Vol 65 (4) ◽  
pp. 1316-1325 ◽  
Author(s):  
Tariq Alkhalifah
Keyword(s):  
Anisotropy Parameter ◽  
Transversely Isotropic ◽  
Fourth Power ◽  
Weak Anisotropy ◽  
Time Migration ◽  
Transversely Isotropic Media ◽  
Isotropic Media ◽  
Equivalent Equation ◽  
Two Parameters ◽  
Vti Media

Prestack Kirchhoff time migration for transversely isotropic media with a vertical symmetry axis (VTI media) is implemented using an offset‐midpoint traveltime equation, Cheop’s pyramid equivalent equation for VTI media. The derivation of such an equation for VTI media requires approximations that pertain to high frequency and weak anisotropy. Yet the resultant offset‐midpoint traveltime equation for VTI media is highly accurate for even strong anisotropy. It is also strictly dependent on two parameters: NMO velocity and the anisotropy parameter, η. It reduces to the exact offset‐midpoint traveltime equation for isotropic media when η = 0. In vertically inhomogeneous media, the NMO velocity and η parameters in the offset‐midpoint traveltime equation are replaced by their effective values: the velocity is replaced by the rms velocity and η is given by a more complicated equation that includes summation of the fourth power of velocity.

Moveout approximations for P- and SV-waves in dip-constrained transversely isotropic media

Geophysics ◽  
2013 ◽  
Vol 78 (6) ◽  
pp. C53-C59 ◽  
Author(s):  
Véronique Farra ◽  
Ivan Pšenčík
Keyword(s):  
Transversely Isotropic ◽  
Arbitrary Orientation ◽  
Transversely Isotropic Medium ◽  
Weak Anisotropy ◽  
Transversely Isotropic Media ◽  
Isotropic Media ◽  
Axis Of Symmetry ◽  
Dip Angle ◽  
P And Sv Waves ◽  
Axes Of Symmetry

We generalize the P- and SV-wave moveout formulas obtained for transversely isotropic media with vertical axes of symmetry (VTI), based on the weak-anisotropy approximation. We generalize them for 3D dip-constrained transversely isotropic (DTI) media. A DTI medium is a transversely isotropic medium whose axis of symmetry is perpendicular to a dipping reflector. The formulas are derived in the plane defined by the source-receiver line and the normal to the reflector. In this configuration, they can be easily obtained from the corresponding VTI formulas. It is only necessary to replace the expression for the normalized offset by the expression containing the apparent dip angle. The final results apply to general 3D situations, in which the plane reflector may have arbitrary orientation, and the source and the receiver may be situated arbitrarily in the DTI medium. The accuracy of the proposed formulas is tested on models with varying dip of the reflector, and for several orientations of the horizontal source-receiver line with respect to the dipping reflector.

scholarly journals Nonlinear amplitude versus angle inversion for transversely isotropic media with vertical symmetry axis using new weak anisotropy approximation equations

2020 ◽  
Vol 17 (3) ◽  
pp. 628-644 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lin Zhou ◽  
Zhuo-Chao Chen ◽  
Jing-Ye Li ◽  
Xiao-Hong Chen ◽  
Xing-Ye Liu ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Symmetry Axis ◽  
Transversely Isotropic ◽  
Weak Anisotropy ◽  
Transversely Isotropic Media ◽  
Isotropic Media ◽  
Amplitude Versus

An effective anisotropy parameter in transversely isotropic media

Geophysics ◽  
1987 ◽  
Vol 52 (12) ◽  
pp. 1654-1664 ◽  
Author(s):  
N. C. Banik
Keyword(s):  
Transverse Isotropy ◽  
Anisotropy Parameter ◽  
Transversely Isotropic ◽  
P Wave ◽  
Weak Anisotropy ◽  
Reflection Seismic ◽  
The North ◽  
Reflection Amplitude ◽  
Transversely Isotropic Media ◽  
Isotropic Media

An interesting physical meaning is presented for the anisotropy parameter δ, previously introduced by Thomsen to describe weak anisotropy in transversely isotropic media. Roughly, δ is the difference between the P-wave and SV-wave anisotropies of the medium. The observed systematic depth errors in the North Sea are reexamined in view of the new interpretation of the moveout velocity through δ. The changes in δ at an interface adequately describe the effects of transverse isotropy on the P-wave reflection amplitude, The reflection coefficient expression is linearized in terms of changes in elastic parameters. The linearized expression clearly shows that it is the variation of δ at the interface that gives the anisotropic effects at small incidence angles. Thus, δ effectively describes both the moveout velocity and the reflection amplitude variation, two very important pieces of information in reflection seismic prospecting, in the presence of transverse isotropy.

3-D description of normal moveout in anisotropic inhomogeneous media

Geophysics ◽  
1998 ◽  
Vol 63 (3) ◽  
pp. 1079-1092 ◽  
Author(s):  
Vladimir Grechka ◽  
Ilya Tsvankin
Keyword(s):  
Fractured Reservoirs ◽  
Symmetry Plane ◽  
Transversely Isotropic ◽  
Inhomogeneous Media ◽  
P Wave ◽  
Orthorhombic Symmetry ◽  
Azimuthal Variation ◽  
Anisotropic Models ◽  
Transversely Isotropic Media ◽  
Isotropic Media

We present a new equation for normal‐moveout (NMO) velocity that describes azimuthally dependent reflection traveltimes of pure modes from both horizontal and dipping reflectors in arbitrary anisotropic inhomogeneous media. With the exception of anomalous areas such as those where common‐midpoint (CMP) reflection time decreases with offset, the azimuthal variation of NMO velocity represents an ellipse in the horizontal plane, with the orientation of the axes determined by the properties of the medium and the direction of the reflector normal. In general, a minimum of three azimuthal measurements is necessary to reconstruct the best‐fit ellipse and obtain NMO velocity in all azimuthal directions. This result provides a simple way to correct for the azimuthal variation in stacking velocity often observed in 3-D surveys. Even more importantly, analytic expressions for the parameters of the NMO ellipse can be used in the inversion of moveout data for the anisotropic coefficients of the medium. For homogeneous transversely isotropic media with a vertical axis of symmetry (VTI media), our equation for azimuthally dependent NMO velocity from dipping reflectors becomes a relatively simple function of phase velocity and its derivatives. We show that the zero‐dip NMO velocity Vnmo(0) and the anisotropic coefficient η are sufficient to describe the P-wave NMO velocity for any orientation of the CMP line with respect to the dip plane of the reflector. Using our formalism, Vnmo(0) and η (the only parameters needed for time processing) can be found from the dip‐dependent NMO velocity at any azimuth or, alternatively, from the azimuthally dependent NMO for a single dipping reflector. We also apply this theory to more complicated azimuthally anisotropic models with the orthorhombic symmetry used to describe fractured reservoirs. For reflections from horizontal interfaces in orthorhombic media, the axes of the normal moveout ellipse are aligned with the vertical symmetry planes. Therefore, azimuthal P-wave moveout measurements can be inverted for the orientation of the symmetry planes (typically determined by the fracture direction) and the NMO velocities within them. If the vertical velocity is known, symmetry‐plane NMO velocities make it possible to estimate two anisotropic parameters equivalent to Thomsen’s coefficient δ for transversely isotropic media.

3D 3-C full-wavefield elastic inversion for estimating anisotropic parameters: A feasibility study with synthetic data

Geophysics ◽  
2009 ◽  
Vol 74 (6) ◽  
pp. WCC159-WCC175 ◽  
Author(s):  
Hui Chang ◽  
George McMechan
Keyword(s):  
Synthetic Data ◽  
Transversely Isotropic ◽  
Model Parameters ◽  
Data Sets ◽  
Multiple Sources ◽  
Trade Offs ◽  
Transversely Isotropic Media ◽  
Free Data ◽  
Isotropic Media ◽  
Anisotropy Parameters

Traveltime-based inversions cannot solve for all of the anisotropy parameters for orthorhombic media. Vertical velocities cannot be recovered simultaneously with the dimensionless anisotropy parameters. Also, the density cannot be solved because it does not affect the normal moveout of P and S reflections. These limitations can be overcome using full-wavefield inversion for anisotropy parameters for orthorhombic media and for transversely isotropic media with vertical and horizontal symmetry axes. Tsvankin’s parameters and the orientation of the local (anisotropic) coordinates are inverted from three-component, wide-azimuth data sets containing P reflected and PS converted waves. The inversions are performed in two steps. The first step uses only reflections from the top of an anisotropic layer, whichdoes not constrain the trade-offs between the vertical velocities, the anisotropies, and density, as shown by parameter correlation analysis. The results from the first step are refined by using them as the starting model for the second step, which fits reflections from the top and bottom of the layer. The properties of the target layer influence the amplitudes of top and bottom reflections as well as the traveltime of the bottom reflections; when all these data are used, the inversion is highly overdetermined and all model parameters are estimated accurately. When Gaussian noise is added, the inversion results are very similar to those for the noise-free data because only the coherent signal is fitted. The residual at convergence for the noisy data corresponds to the noise level. Concurrent inversion of data from multiple sources increases the azimuthal illumination of a target.

Scalar generalized‐screen algorithms in transversely isotropic media with a vertical symmetry axis

Geophysics ◽  
2001 ◽  
Vol 66 (5) ◽  
pp. 1538-1550 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jéro⁁me H. Le Rousseau ◽  
Maarten V. de Hoop
Keyword(s):  
Symmetry Axis ◽  
Complex Structure ◽  
Numerical Algorithms ◽  
Transversely Isotropic ◽  
Isotropic Case ◽  
Polarization Angle ◽  
Screen Method ◽  
Transversely Isotropic Media ◽  
Isotropic Media ◽  
The One

The scalar generalized‐screen method in isotropic media is extended here to transversely isotropic media with a vertical symmetry axis (VTI). Although wave propagation in a transversely isotropic medium is essentially elastic, we use an equivalent “acoustic” system of equations for the qP‐waves which we prove to be accurate for both the dispersion relation and the polarization angle in the case of “mild” anisotropy. The enhanced accuracy of the generalized‐screen method as compared to the split‐step Fourier methods allows the extension to VTI media. The generalized‐screen expansion of the one‐way propagator follows closely the method used in the isotropic case. The medium is defined in terms of a background and a perturbation. The generalized‐screen expansion of the vertical slowness is based upon an expansion of the medium parameters simultaneously into magnitude and smoothness of variation. We cast the theory into numerical algorithms, and assess the accuracy of the generalized‐screen method in a particular VTI medium with complex structure (the BP Amoco Valhall model) in which multipathing is significant.

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