scholarly journals Two-grid full-waveform Rayleigh-wave inversion via a genetic algorithm — Part 2: Application to two actual data sets

Geophysics ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 84 (5) ◽  
pp. R815-R825 ◽  
Author(s):  
Zhen Xing ◽  
Alfredo Mazzotti

We have applied our two-grid genetic-algorithm Rayleigh-wave full-waveform inversion (FWI) to two actual data sets acquired in Luni (Italy) and Grenoble (France), respectively. Because our technique used 2D elastic finite-difference modeling for solving the forward problem, the observed data were 3D to 2D corrected prior to the inversion. To limit the computing time, both inversions focused on predicting low-resolution, smooth models by using quite coarse inversion grids. The wavelets for FWI were estimated directly from the observed data by using the Wiener method. In the Luni case, due to the strong dispersion effects on the data, to strengthen the inversion, envelopes and waveforms were considered in the objective function and an offset-marching strategy was applied. Though no a priori information was exploited, the outcomes of the Luni and Grenoble data inversion were fair. The predicted Luni [Formula: see text] model indicates a strong velocity increase from approximately 3 to 6 m, and velocity inversions have been detected at approximately 2 and 9 m depths. Analyzing the dispersion spectra, it results that the predicted Luni data reasonably reproduced the waveforms related to the fundamental mode and, likely, a small part of those related to the first higher mode. Concerning the Grenoble example, the predicted [Formula: see text] model coincides reasonably well with the long-wavelength structures presented in the [Formula: see text] profiles obtained from nearby boreholes. The data reconstruction is generally satisfactory, and when mismatches occur between the predicted and observed traces, the phase differences are always within half-periods. The fair inversion outcomes suggest that the predicted Luni and Grenoble models would likely be adequate initial models for local FWI, which could further increase the resolution and the details of the estimated [Formula: see text] models.

Geophysics ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 84 (5) ◽  
pp. R805-R814 ◽  
Author(s):  
Zhen Xing ◽  
Alfredo Mazzotti

When reliable a priori information is not available, it is difficult to correctly predict near-surface S-wave velocity models from Rayleigh waves through existing techniques, especially in the case of complex geology. To tackle this issue, we have developed a new method: two-grid genetic-algorithm Rayleigh-wave full-waveform inversion (FWI). Adopting a two-grid parameterization of the model, the genetic algorithm inverts for unknown velocities and densities at the nodes of a coarse grid, whereas the forward modeling is performed on a fine grid to avoid numerical dispersion. A bilinear interpolation brings the coarse-grid results into the fine-grid models. The coarse inversion grid allows for a significant reduction in the computing time required by the genetic algorithm to converge. With a coarser grid, there are fewer unknowns and less required computing time, at the expense of the model resolution. To further increase efficiency, our inversion code can perform the optimization using an offset-marching strategy and/or a frequency-marching strategy that can make use of different kinds of objective functions and allows for parallel computing. We illustrate the effect of our inversion method using three synthetic examples with rather complex near-surface models. Although no a priori information was used in all three tests, the long-wavelength structures of the reference models were fairly predicted, and satisfactory matches between “observed” and predicted data were achieved. The fair predictions of the reference models suggest that the final models estimated by our genetic-algorithm FWI, which we call macromodels, would be suitable inputs to gradient-based Rayleigh-wave FWI for further refinement. We also explored other issues related to the practical use of the method in different work and explored applications of the method to field data.


Geophysics ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 83 (5) ◽  
pp. R449-R461 ◽  
Author(s):  
Guanghui Huang ◽  
Rami Nammour ◽  
William W. Symes

Source signature estimation from seismic data is a crucial ingredient for successful application of seismic migration and full-waveform inversion (FWI). If the starting velocity deviates from the target velocity, FWI method with on-the-fly source estimation may fail due to the cycle-skipping problem. We have developed a source-based extended waveform inversion method, by introducing additional parameters in the source function, to solve the FWI problem without the source signature as a priori. Specifically, we allow the point source function to be dependent on spatial and time variables. In this way, we can easily construct an extended source function to fit the recorded data by solving a source matching subproblem; hence, it is less prone to cycle skipping. A novel source focusing annihilator, defined as the distance function from the real source position, is used for penalizing the defocused energy in the extended source function. A close data fit avoiding the cycle-skipping problem effectively makes the new method less likely to suffer from local minima, which does not require extreme low-frequency signals in the data. Numerical experiments confirm that our method can mitigate cycle skipping in FWI and is robust against random noise.


2021 ◽  
Vol 40 (5) ◽  
pp. 324-334
Author(s):  
Rongxin Huang ◽  
Zhigang Zhang ◽  
Zedong Wu ◽  
Zhiyuan Wei ◽  
Jiawei Mei ◽  
...  

Seismic imaging using full-wavefield data that includes primary reflections, transmitted waves, and their multiples has been the holy grail for generations of geophysicists. To be able to use the full-wavefield data effectively requires a forward-modeling process to generate full-wavefield data, an inversion scheme to minimize the difference between modeled and recorded data, and, more importantly, an accurate velocity model to correctly propagate and collapse energy of different wave modes. All of these elements have been embedded in the framework of full-waveform inversion (FWI) since it was proposed three decades ago. However, for a long time, the application of FWI did not find its way into the domain of full-wavefield imaging, mostly owing to the lack of data sets with good constraints to ensure the convergence of inversion, the required compute power to handle large data sets and extend the inversion frequency to the bandwidth needed for imaging, and, most significantly, stable FWI algorithms that could work with different data types in different geologic settings. Recently, with the advancement of high-performance computing and progress in FWI algorithms at tackling issues such as cycle skipping and amplitude mismatch, FWI has found success using different data types in a variety of geologic settings, providing some of the most accurate velocity models for generating significantly improved migration images. Here, we take a step further to modify the FWI workflow to output the subsurface image or reflectivity directly, potentially eliminating the need to go through the time-consuming conventional seismic imaging process that involves preprocessing, velocity model building, and migration. Compared with a conventional migration image, the reflectivity image directly output from FWI often provides additional structural information with better illumination and higher signal-to-noise ratio naturally as a result of many iterations of least-squares fitting of the full-wavefield data.


Geophysics ◽  
2017 ◽  
Vol 82 (3) ◽  
pp. R135-R151 ◽  
Author(s):  
Herurisa Rusmanugroho ◽  
Ryan Modrak ◽  
Jeroen Tromp

By allowing spatial variations in the direction of the anisotropic fast axis, tilted transverse isotropy (TTI) helps to image complex or steeply dipping structures. Without a priori geologic constraints, however, recovery of all the anisotropic parameters can be nontrivial and nonunique. We adopt two methods for TTI inversion with tilt-angle recovery: one based on the familiar Voigt parameters, and another based on the so-called Chen and Tromp parameters known from regional and global seismology. These parameterizations arise naturally in seismic wave propagation and facilitate straightforward recovery of the tilt angle and anisotropic strength. In numerical experiments with vertical transversely isotropic starting models and TTI target models, we find that the Voigt as well as the Chen and Tromp parameters allow quick and robust recovery of steeply dipping anticlinal structures.


Geophysics ◽  
2006 ◽  
Vol 71 (6) ◽  
pp. R91-R100 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kun Xu ◽  
Stewart A. Greenhalgh ◽  
MiaoYue Wang

In this paper, we investigate several source-independent methods of nonlinear full-waveform inversion of multicomponent elastic-wave data. This includes iterative estimation of source signature (IES), standard trace normalization (STN), and average trace normalization (ATN) inversion methods. All are based on the finite-element method in the frequency domain. One synthetic elastic crosshole model is used to compare the recovered images with all these methods as well as the known source signature (KSS) inversion method. The numerical experiments show that the IES method is superior to both STN and ATN methods in two-component, elastic-wave inversion in the frequency domain when the source signature is unknown. The STN and ATN methods have limitations associated with near-zero amplitudes (or polarity reversals) in traces from one of the components, which destroy the energy balance in the normalized traces and cause a loss of frequency information. But the ATN method is somewhat superior to the STN method in suppressing random noise and improving stability, as the developed formulas and the numerical experiments show. We suggest the IES method as a practical procedure for multicomponent seismic inversion.


Author(s):  
Peng Zuo ◽  
Peter Huthwaite

Quantitative guided wave thickness mapping in plate-like structures and pipelines is of significant importance for the petrochemical industry to accurately estimate the minimum remaining wall thickness in the presence of corrosion, as guided waves can inspect a large area without needing direct access. Although a number of inverse algorithms have been studied and implemented in guided wave reconstruction, a primary assumption is widely used: the three-dimensional guided wave inversion of thickness is simplified as a two-dimensional acoustic wave inversion of velocity, with the dispersive nature of the waves linking thickness to velocity. This assumption considerably simplifies the inversion procedure; however, it makes it impossible to account for mode conversion. In reality, mode conversion is quite common in guided wave scattering with asymmetric wall loss, and compared with non-converted guided wave modes, converted modes may provide greater access to valuable information about the thickness variation, which, if exploited, could lead to improved performance. Geometrical full waveform inversion (GFWI) is an ideal tool for this, since it can account for mode conversion. In this paper, quantitative thickness reconstruction based on GFWI is developed in a plate cross-section and applied to study the performance of thickness reconstruction using mode conversion.


2019 ◽  
Vol 16 (5) ◽  
pp. 1001-1014 ◽  
Author(s):  
Zi-Ying Wang ◽  
Jian-Ping Huang ◽  
Ding-Jin Liu ◽  
Zhen-Chun Li ◽  
Peng Yong ◽  
...  

Abstract Full-waveform inversion (FWI) is a powerful tool to reconstruct subsurface geophysical parameters with high resolution. As 3D surveys become widely implemented, corresponding 3D processing techniques are required to solve complex geological cases, while a large amount of computation is the most challenging problem. We propose an adaptive variable-grid 3D FWI on graphics processing unit devices to improve computational efficiency without losing accuracy. The irregular-grid discretization strategy is based on a dispersion relation, and the grid size adapts to depth, velocity, and frequency automatically. According to the transformed grid coordinates, we derive a modified acoustic wave equation and apply it to full wavefield simulation. The 3D variable-grid modeling is conducted on several 3D models to validate its feasibility, accuracy and efficiency. Then we apply the proposed modeling method to full-waveform inversion for source and residual wavefield propagation. It is demonstrated that the adaptive variable-grid FWI is capable of decreasing computing time and memory requirements. From the inversion results of the 3D SEG/EAGE overthrust model, our method retains inversion accuracy when recovering both thrust and channels.


Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document