Structure-guided gravity inversion for layered density modeling with an application in the Chezhen Depression, Bohai Bay Basin
Gravity inversion, as a static potential field inversion, has inherent ambiguity with low vertical resolution. In order to reduce the nonuniqueness of inversion, it is necessary to impose the apriori constraints derived by other geophysical inversion, drilling or geological modeling. Based on the a priori normalized gradients derived from seismic imaging or reference models, a structure-guided gravity inversion method with a few known point constraints is developed for mapping density with multiple layers. The cubic B-spline interpolation is used to parameterize the forward modeling calculation of the gravity response to smooth density fields. A recently proposed summative gradient is used to maximize the structural similarity between the a priori and inverted models. We first demonstrate the methodology, followed by a synthetic fault model example to confirm its validity. Monte Carlo tests and uncertainty tests further illustrate the stability and practicality of the method. This method is easy to implement, and consequently produces an interpretable density model with geological consistency. Finally, we apply this method to the density modeling of the Chezhen Depression in the Bohai Bay Basin. Our work determines the distribution of deep Lower Paleozoic carbonate rocks and Archean buried hills with high-density characteristics. Our results are consistent with the existing formation mechanism of the upper source-lower reservoir type oil-gas targets.