scholarly journals Tutorial for wave-equation inversion of skeletonized data

2017 ◽  
Vol 5 (3) ◽  
pp. SO1-SO10 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kai Lu ◽  
Jing Li ◽  
Bowen Guo ◽  
Lei Fu ◽  
Gerard Schuster
Keyword(s):  
Wave Equation ◽  
Objective Function ◽  
Seismic Data ◽  
Local Minimum ◽  
Global Minimum ◽  
Waveform Inversion ◽  
Iterative Solution ◽  
Optimization Method ◽  
Full Waveform Inversion ◽  
Full Waveform

Full-waveform inversion of seismic data is often plagued by cycle-skipping problems such that an iterative optimization method often gets stuck in a local minimum. To avoid this problem, we simplify the objective function so that the iterative solution can quickly converge to a solution in the vicinity of the global minimum. The objective function is simplified by only using parsimonious and important portions of the data, which are defined as skeletonized data. We have developed a mostly nonmathematical tutorial that explains the theory of wave-equation inversion of skeletonized data. We also demonstrate its effectiveness with examples.

scholarly journals Full-waveform inversion using a nonlinearly smoothed wavefield

Geophysics ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 83 (2) ◽  
pp. R117-R127 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yuanyuan Li ◽  
Yunseok Choi ◽  
Tariq Alkhalifah ◽  
Zhenchun Li ◽  
Kai Zhang
Keyword(s):  
Objective Function ◽  
Global Minimum ◽  
Waveform Inversion ◽  
Gradient Methods ◽  
Low Frequency ◽  
Full Waveform Inversion ◽  
Half Cycle ◽  
Low Frequencies ◽  
Full Waveform ◽  
Global Correlation

Conventional full-waveform inversion (FWI) based on the least-squares misfit function faces problems in converging to the global minimum when using gradient methods because of the cycle-skipping phenomena. An initial model producing data that are at most a half-cycle away from the observed data is needed for convergence to the global minimum. Low frequencies are helpful in updating low-wavenumber components of the velocity model to avoid cycle skipping. However, low enough frequencies are usually unavailable in field cases. The multiplication of wavefields of slightly different frequencies adds artificial low-frequency components in the data, which can be used for FWI to generate a convergent result and avoid cycle skipping. We generalize this process by multiplying the wavefield with itself and then applying a smoothing operator to the multiplied wavefield or its square to derive the nonlinearly smoothed wavefield, which is rich in low frequencies. The global correlation-norm-based objective function can mitigate the dependence on the amplitude information of the nonlinearly smoothed wavefield. Therefore, we have evaluated the use of this objective function when using the nonlinearly smoothed wavefield. The proposed objective function has much larger convexity than the conventional objective functions. We calculate the gradient of the objective function using the adjoint-state technique, which is similar to that of the conventional FWI except for the adjoint source. We progressively reduce the smoothing width applied to the nonlinear wavefield to naturally adopt the multiscale strategy. Using examples on the Marmousi 2 model, we determine that the proposed FWI helps to generate convergent results without the need for low-frequency information.

Elastic full-waveform inversion with probabilistic petrophysical model constraints

Geophysics ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 85 (2) ◽  
pp. R101-R111 ◽  
Author(s):  
Odette Aragao ◽  
Paul Sava
Keyword(s):  
Probability Density Function ◽  
Objective Function ◽  
Seismic Data ◽  
Waveform Inversion ◽  
Basin Of Attraction ◽  
Well Logs ◽  
Feasible Region ◽  
Full Waveform Inversion ◽  
Full Waveform ◽  
Petrophysical Model

Full-waveform inversion (FWI) based on the minimization of data residuals may not enhance our understanding of the subsurface and can at times lead to misleading subsurface models. Additionally, unconstrained multiparameter FWI may also lead to models that do not represent realistic lithology for independently derived parameters. We have developed a method for elastic FWI that explicitly imposes petrophysical restrictions to guide models toward realistic and feasible lithology, that is, to subsurface models consistent with the seismic data and with the underlying petrophysics. We exploit petrophysical information, such as that provided by well logs, to constrain the inversion and to avoid implausible models. We achieve this goal by confining the inverted models to a feasible region defined by a probability density function instead of imposing lithologic facies as a function of position. Inside this feasible petrophysical regime, the inverted models do not need to obey a specific trend, that is, we do not link the parameters with explicit and potentially inaccurate petrophysical relations. Instead, we define a petrophysical basin of attraction that confines models to a feasible region validated by regional lithologic and petrophysical information. We find through elastic models that incorporating probabilistic petrophysical constraints into the inversion objective function leads to models that are superior to models obtained either without constraints or with approximate analytic constraints. In addition, we discover that these constraints can help in mitigating common issues affecting elastic FWI, such as the artifacts produced by interparameter crosstalk and limited acquisition coverage.

Estimating a starting model for full-waveform inversion using a global optimization method

Geophysics ◽  
2016 ◽  
Vol 81 (4) ◽  
pp. R211-R223 ◽  
Author(s):  
Debanjan Datta ◽  
Mrinal K. Sen
Keyword(s):  
Global Optimization ◽  
Local Minimum ◽  
Waveform Inversion ◽  
Synthetic Data ◽  
Velocity Model ◽  
Optimization Method ◽  
Full Waveform Inversion ◽  
Global Optimization Method ◽  
Full Waveform ◽  
Starting Model

Full-waveform inversion (FWI) has become a popular method to estimate elastic earth properties from seismograms. It is formulated as a data-fitting least-squares minimization problem that iteratively updates an initial velocity model with the scaled gradient of the misfit until a satisfactory match between the real and synthetic data is obtained. However, such a local optimization approach can converge to a local minimum if the starting model used is not close enough to an optimal model. We have developed a two-step process in which we first estimate a starting model using a global optimization method. Unlike local optimization methods, a global optimization method starts with a random starting model and is not generally susceptible to be trapped in a local minimum. The starting model for FWI that we aim to estimate is sparsely parameterized and contains a set of interfaces and velocities that are used to represent the entire velocity model. We have obtained the depth of the interfaces and the velocities by minimizing the data misfit in the least-squares sense using a global optimization method called very fast simulated annealing (VFSA). Once the sparse velocity model was obtained from VFSA, we used that as a starting model in a conventional gradient-based FWI to obtain the final model. We have applied the proposed method to one synthetic data set and two field data sets from offshore India. The proposed method was able to estimate a velocity model that was not cycle skipped for realistic frequency bands. We have demonstrated that with the proper choice of model parameterization and optimization parameters, the global and gradient optimization algorithms converge in a finite number of iterations. We have determined that the resulting algorithm is computationally feasible in two dimensions and accurate for practical implementation of FWI.

Robust source-independent elastic full-waveform inversion in the time domain

Geophysics ◽  
2016 ◽  
Vol 81 (2) ◽  
pp. R29-R44 ◽  
Author(s):  
Qingchen Zhang ◽  
Hui Zhou ◽  
Qingqing Li ◽  
Hanming Chen ◽  
Jie Wang
Keyword(s):  
Objective Function ◽  
Time Domain ◽  
Seismic Data ◽  
Time Window ◽  
A Priori ◽  
Waveform Inversion ◽  
Accurate Estimation ◽  
Full Waveform Inversion ◽  
Full Waveform ◽  
The Time Domain

Accurate estimation of source wavelet is crucial in a successful full-waveform inversion (FWI); however, it cannot be guaranteed in the case of real seismic data. We have developed time-domain source-independent elastic FWI using the convolution-based objective function that was originally developed for acoustic FWI. We have applied a new time window on the reference traces in the objective function to suppress the noises induced by the convolution and crosscorrelation operations. Also, we have adopted [Formula: see text]-, Huber-, and hybrid-norm objective functions to improve the antinoise ability of our algorithm. We implemented a multiscale inversion strategy to conduct the tests with a quasi-Newton limited-memory Broyden-Fletcher-Goldfarb-Shanno (L-BFGS) method to reduce the sensitivity to initial models and to improve the quality of inversion results. Synthetic tests verified that the new added time window can not only improve the inversion results, but also accelerate the convergence rate. Our method can be implemented successfully without a priori knowledge or accurate estimation of the source wavelet and can be more robust to Gaussian and spike noises, even for a Dirac wavelet. Finally, we applied our method to real seismic data. The similarity between the observed and modeled seismic data, the higher resolution of the migration image, and flatter common image gathers corresponding to the inverted models proved the relevance of our algorithm.

scholarly journals Full-Waveform Inversion for Imaging Faulted Structures: A Case Study from the Japan Trench Forearc Slope

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ehsan Jamali Hondori ◽  
Chen Guo ◽  
Hitoshi Mikada ◽  
Jin-Oh Park
Keyword(s):  
Seismic Data ◽  
Initial Velocity ◽  
Waveform Inversion ◽  
Velocity Model ◽  
Control Measures ◽  
Japan Trench ◽  
Full Waveform Inversion ◽  
Full Waveform ◽  
Time Migration ◽  
Shallow Sediments

AbstractFull-waveform inversion (FWI) of limited-offset marine seismic data is a challenging task due to the lack of refracted energy and diving waves from the shallow sediments, which are fundamentally required to update the long-wavelength background velocity model in a tomographic fashion. When these events are absent, a reliable initial velocity model is necessary to ensure that the observed and simulated waveforms kinematically fit within an error of less than half a wavelength to protect the FWI iterative local optimization scheme from cycle skipping. We use a migration-based velocity analysis (MVA) method, including a combination of the layer-stripping approach and iterations of Kirchhoff prestack depth migration (KPSDM), to build an accurate initial velocity model for the FWI application on 2D seismic data with a maximum offset of 5.8 km. The data are acquired in the Japan Trench subduction zone, and we focus on the area where the shallow sediments overlying a highly reflective basement on top of the Cretaceous erosional unconformity are severely faulted and deformed. Despite the limited offsets available in the seismic data, our carefully designed workflow for data preconditioning, initial model building, and waveform inversion provides a velocity model that could improve the depth images down to almost 3.5 km. We present several quality control measures to assess the reliability of the resulting FWI model, including ray path illuminations, sensitivity kernels, reverse time migration (RTM) images, and KPSDM common image gathers. A direct comparison between the FWI and MVA velocity profiles reveals a sharp boundary at the Cretaceous basement interface, a feature that could not be observed in the MVA velocity model. The normal faults caused by the basal erosion of the upper plate in the study area reach the seafloor with evident subsidence of the shallow strata, implying that the faults are active.

scholarly journals Adding Prior Information in FWI through Relative Entropy

Entropy ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 23 (5) ◽  
pp. 599
Author(s):  
Danilo Cruz ◽  
João de Araújo ◽  
Carlos da Costa ◽  
Carlos da Silva
Keyword(s):  
Inverse Problem ◽  
Relative Entropy ◽  
Global Minimum ◽  
Prior Information ◽  
Waveform Inversion ◽  
Petroleum Industry ◽  
Synthetic Data ◽  
Full Waveform Inversion ◽  
Full Waveform

Full waveform inversion is an advantageous technique for obtaining high-resolution subsurface information. In the petroleum industry, mainly in reservoir characterisation, it is common to use information from wells as previous information to decrease the ambiguity of the obtained results. For this, we propose adding a relative entropy term to the formalism of the full waveform inversion. In this context, entropy will be just a nomenclature for regularisation and will have the role of helping the converge to the global minimum. The application of entropy in inverse problems usually involves formulating the problem, so that it is possible to use statistical concepts. To avoid this step, we propose a deterministic application to the full waveform inversion. We will discuss some aspects of relative entropy and show three different ways of using them to add prior information through entropy in the inverse problem. We use a dynamic weighting scheme to add prior information through entropy. The idea is that the prior information can help to find the path of the global minimum at the beginning of the inversion process. In all cases, the prior information can be incorporated very quickly into the full waveform inversion and lead the inversion to the desired solution. When we include the logarithmic weighting that constitutes entropy to the inverse problem, we will suppress the low-intensity ripples and sharpen the point events. Thus, the addition of entropy relative to full waveform inversion can provide a result with better resolution. In regions where salt is present in the BP 2004 model, we obtained a significant improvement by adding prior information through the relative entropy for synthetic data. We will show that the prior information added through entropy in full-waveform inversion formalism will prove to be a way to avoid local minimums.

scholarly journals Multi-scale time-frequency domain full waveform inversion with a weighted local correlation-phase misfit function

2019 ◽  
Vol 16 (6) ◽  
pp. 1017-1031 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yong Hu ◽  
Liguo Han ◽  
Rushan Wu ◽  
Yongzhong Xu
Keyword(s):  
Frequency Domain ◽  
Seismic Data ◽  
Waveform Inversion ◽  
Low Frequency ◽  
Full Waveform Inversion ◽  
Local Correlation ◽  
Time Frequency ◽  
Model Dependence ◽  
Full Waveform ◽  
Frequency Components

Abstract Full Waveform Inversion (FWI) is based on the least squares algorithm to minimize the difference between the synthetic and observed data, which is a promising technique for high-resolution velocity inversion. However, the FWI method is characterized by strong model dependence, because the ultra-low-frequency components in the field seismic data are usually not available. In this work, to reduce the model dependence of the FWI method, we introduce a Weighted Local Correlation-phase based FWI method (WLCFWI), which emphasizes the correlation phase between the synthetic and observed data in the time-frequency domain. The local correlation-phase misfit function combines the advantages of phase and normalized correlation function, and has an enormous potential for reducing the model dependence and improving FWI results. Besides, in the correlation-phase misfit function, the amplitude information is treated as a weighting factor, which emphasizes the phase similarity between synthetic and observed data. Numerical examples and the analysis of the misfit function show that the WLCFWI method has a strong ability to reduce model dependence, even if the seismic data are devoid of low-frequency components and contain strong Gaussian noise.

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