Seismic Methods

Fundamentals of elasticity,
Stress
• When an external force is applied to a body, there are balanced internal forces set up within the
body.
• Stress is a measure of these internal forces. Units are "force per unit area" or N/m2.
Strain
• If a body is stressed it will undergo a change in size and shape. The body is strained.
• If the strains are small then the body will recover its original shape when the stress is removed. This is elastic
strain.
• If the strain is too great so that the yield strength is exceeded, then the body deforms plastically and may ultimately
fracture. Plastic strain is not recoverable.
• Strain
Elastic Moduli
• The linear relationship between stress and strain is known as Hooke's Law and is specified by five elastic moduli or
elastic constants which express the ratio of a particular stress to a resultant strain
• The elastic constants include the bulk modulus, Lame constant, Poisson's ratio, shear modulus, and Young's modulus.
• Elastic constants are important in seismology because the velocity of waves depends on the elastic constants and density of
the rock.
Young's Modulus
• Consider a rod (figure right) of length l, cross-sectional area A, to which a uniform force F is applied to each end (a
tensional force in this case):
• Young's modulus, E, is given by
Poisson's Ratio
The rod will also contract in radius (because it is being extended). The radial strain is r/ r
Poisson's ratio is given by

Bulk modulus

• Consider an initial volume V which is subjected to a hydrostatic pressure (force per unit area is the same in
each direction).
• let V be the change in volume.

• The bulk modulus is

Shear modulus

• If we apply a force parallel to a surface the force per unit area is known as the shear stress τ
• Consider a rectangular cube. Application of shear stresses to the top and bottom interfaces produce a strain
proportional to
tan(Q).

• The shear modulus is

• Seismic waves are waves of energy that travel through the Earth's layers, and are a result of earthquakes, volcanic eruptions,
magma movement, large landslides and large
man-made explosions that give out low-frequency acoustic energy.
• Seismic waves are studied by geophysicists called seismologists.
• Seismic wave fields are recorded by a seismometer, hydrophone (in water), or accelerometer.
• The propagation velocity of the waves depends on density and elasticity of the medium.
• Velocity tends to increase with depth and ranges from approximately 2 to 8 km/s in the Earth's crust, up to 13 km/s in the
deep mantle
• Earthquakes create distinct types of waves with different velocities; when reaching seismic observatories, their different travel
times help scientists to locate the source of the hypocenter.
• In geophysics the refraction or reflection of seismic waves is used for research into the structure of the Earth's interior, and man-
made vibrations are often generated to investigate shallow, subsurface structures.

Elastic model for the Earth rocks

• Earth materials are elastic.
• The easiest way to obtain intuition is to think about rocks as being made up of a set of connected springs.
• Apply a force (stress) to any part and you will eventually get motion elsewhere.
• There are two general types of waves that can travel in the elastic material.
• Body waves which travel through materials
• Surface waves which travel only along boundaries between materials such as the ground / air boundary.
• Each wave type travels with a velocity that depends upon the elastic properties
Seismic body waves
• When a body wave reaches a distance r from its source in a homogeneous medium, the wavefront (defined as the surface in
which all particles vibrate with the same phase) has a spherical shape, and the wave is called a spherical wave.
• As the distance from the source increases, the curvature of the spherical wavefront decreases.
• At great distances from the source the wavefront is so flat that it can be considered to
be a plane and the seismic wave is called a plane wave.
• The direction perpendicular to the wavefront is called the seismic ray path
Body waves
• Body waves are seismic waves that travel through the body of the earth.

• Body waves travel through the interior of the Earth along paths controlled by the material properties in terms of
density and modulus (stiffness).
• The density and modulus, in turn, vary according to temperature, composition, and material phase.
Body waves
• Body waves are reflected and transmitted at interfaces where seismic velocity and/or density change, and they obey
Snell's law.
• This effect resembles the refraction of light waves.
• Two types of particle motion result in two types of body waves:
• Primary and
• Secondary waves
In the theory of elasticity that there are two principal types of elastic body waves:

• Longitudinal waves, also called compressional, dilational or irrotational waves.

• In seismology, they are also called P waves (primary waves), because they represent the first waves appearing on seismograms.
• P-waves has the greatest speed and these waves involve the compression and refraction of the material as the wave
passes through it, but not rotation.
• P-wave is transmitted by particle movement back and forth along the direction of propagation of the wave
• Every particle of the medium, through which the longitudinal wave is passing, vibrates about its equilibrium position in the
direction in which the wave is travelling
• Sound waves are examples of waves of this category

• 2) Transverse waves, also called shear, rotational or equivoluminal waves.

• In seismology, they are also called S waves (secondary waves).
• These waves involve shearing and rotation of the material as the wave passes through it, but no volume change.
• The particle motion is perpendicular to the direction
in which the wave is travelling
 This relation is frequently used in seismology.

• Both longitudinal and transverse elastic waves can propagate in solid media. However, only longitudinal waves can
propagate in liquids and gases; transverse waves cannot propagate in these media because µ = 0 and consequently β
=0
• Elastic body waves are reflected and transmitted at the discontinuities of elastic parameters.
• This increases the number of waves which are observed on seismogram
• S -waves have speeds less than P-waves, and appear on seismograms after P-waves.

Surface Waves
• Seismic surface waves travel along the Earth's surface. They can be classified as a form of mechanical
surface waves.
• They are called surface waves, as they diminish as they get further from the surface.
• They travel more slowly than seismic body waves (P and S).

• In large earthquakes, surface waves can have an amplitude of several centimeters.

• Only longitudinal and transverse waves can propagate in a homogeneous, isotropic and
unlimited medium.
• If the medium is bounded, surface waves, can be guided along the surface of the medium.
• These waves usually form the principal phase of seismograms.

• There are two types of surface elastic waves:

• Rayleigh waves
• Love waves

Rayleigh waves
• Rayleigh waves, also called ground roll, are surface waves that travel as ripples with motions that are similar to those
of waves on the surface of water
• They are slower than body waves
• In the layered medium (like the crust and upper mantle) the velocity of the Rayleigh waves depends on their
frequency and wavelength.
• Rayleigh waves travel only along the free surface of a solid material
• The amplitude of the motion decreases exponentially with depth below the surface
• For short wavelength, the speed is nine tenths of the shear velocity in the material comprising the surface layer
• For long wavelength, the speed is nine tenths the shear velocity in
substratum material
• For intermediate wavelength, the velocity falls between the extremes
• The variation of velocity with frequency or wavelength is known as dispersion
• In dispersive wave in which different wavelengths travel with different speeds
Love waves
• The particle motion in these waves is transverse and parallel to the surface
• As opposed to Rayleigh waves, Love waves cannot propagate in a homogeneous half-space.
• Love waves can propagate only if the S-wave velocity generally increases with the distance from the
surface of the medium.
• They usually travel slightly faster than Rayleigh waves, about 90% of the S wave velocity, and have the largest
amplitude.
• All love waves are dispersive, the velocity increasing with wavelength

• The love wave speed is equal to that of shear waves in the upper layer for every short wavelengths

Stoneley waves
• A Stoneley wave is a type of boundary wave (or interface wave) that propagates along a solid-fluid boundary or,
under specific conditions, also along a solid-solid boundary.
• Amplitudes of Stoneley waves have their maximum values at the boundary between the two contacting media and decay
exponentially towards the depth of each of them.
• These waves can be generated along the walls of a fluid-filled borehole

Seismic wave propagation

• A seismic disturbance is transmitted by periodic elastic displacements of the particles of a material.
• The progress of the seismic wave through a medium is determined by the advancement of the wavefront
• We now have to consider how the wave behaves at the boundary between two media. Historically, two
separate ways of handling this problem developed independently
• Huygens’ principle - describes the behavior of wavefronts;

• Fermat’s principle - handles the geometry of ray paths at the interface.

• eikonal equation establishes that these two methods of treating seismic wave propagation are equivalent.
• Reflection involves a change in direction of waves when they bounce off a barrier
• refraction of waves involves a change in the direction of waves as they pass from one medium to another
• diffraction involves a change in direction of waves as they pass through an opening or around a barrier in their pa
• Reflection, refraction and diffraction are all boundary behaviors of waves associated with the bending of the path of a
wave.
• Wavefront – imaginary surface representing corresponding points of a wave that vibrate in unison
• Wave – repeated periodic disturbance that moves through a medium from one location to another
• Wavelet- small wave that doesn’t last forever
• Wavelet – wave like oscillation with an amplitude that starts out at zero increases and then decreases back to
zero
• Huygens’ principle
• The passage of a wave through a medium and across interfaces between adjacent media was first
explained by Christiaan Huygens
• He formulated a principle for the propagation of light as a wave,rather than as the stream of particles visualized by Sir Isaac Newton
• Huygens’principle can be stated: “All points on a wavefront can be regarded as point sources for the production
of new spherical waves; the new wavefront is the tangential surface (or envelope) of the secondary wavelets.”

• According to his principle – imagine that each point on the wavefront acts a point source that emits spherical
wavelets.
• These wavelets travel with the velocity of light in the medium.

• The total wave front is the sum of all these wavelets

• The tangent line that joins the front surface of each of them

• Consider a plane P-wave travelling in a medium with seismic velocity a1 when it encounters the boundary to another
medium in which the P-wave velocity is a2
• At the boundary part of the energy of the incident wave is transferred to the second medium, and the
remainder is reflected back into the first medium.
• If the incident wave front AC first makes contact with the interface at A it agitates particles of the first medium
at A
• The vibrations of these particles set up secondary waves that travel away from A, back into the first medium as a reflected wave
with velocity a1
• By the time the incident wavefront reaches the interface at B all particles of the wavefront between A and B have
been agitated.
• Applying Huygens’principle,the wavefront of the reflected disturbance is the tangent plane to the secondary
wavelet in the first medium.
• this is represented by the tangent BD from B to the circle centered at A, the first point of contact with the boundary
• In the time t that elapses between the arrival of the plane wave at A and its arrival at B, the incident wavefront
travels a distance CB and the secondary wavelet from A travels the equal distance AD.
• The triangles ABC and ABD are congruent.

• It follows that the reflected wavefront makes the same angle with the interface as the incident wave.
• It is customary to describe the orientation of a plane by the direction of its normal.
• The angle between the normal to the interface and the normal to the incident wavefront is called the angle of
incidence (i);
• the angle between the normal to the interface and the normal to the reflected wavefront is called the angle of reflection (I’).
• This application of Huygens’ principle to plane seismic waves shows that the angle of reflection is equal to the
angle of incidence (I’).
• This is known as the law of reflection. Although initially developed for light-beams,it is also valid for the propagation of seismic
waves.
The law of refraction using Huygens’ principle
• The incident wave with the boundary can be extended to cover the part of the disturbance that travels
into the second medium
• This disturbance travels with the velocity a2 of the second medium.
• Let t be the time taken for the incident wavefront in the first medium to advance from C to B; then BC = a1t.
• In this time all particles of the second medium between A and B have been agitated and now act as sources for new
wavelets in the second medium.
• When the incident wave reaches B, the wavelet from A in the second medium has spread out to the point E, where AE = a2t.
The law of refraction using Huygens’ principle
• The wavefront in the second medium is the tangent BE from B to the circle centered at A.
• The angle of incidence (i) is defined as before;the angle between the normal to the interface and the normal to the
transmitted wavefront is called the angle of refraction (r).
• Comparison of the triangles ABC and ABE shows that BC=AB sin i,and AE=AB sinr.

• The above equation is called the law of refraction for plane seismic waves.
• Its equivalent in optics is often called Snell’s law, in recognition of its discoverer, the Dutch
mathematician Willebrod Snellius (or Snell)
• Diffraction
• When a plane or spherical seismic wave encounters a pointed obstacle or discontinuous surface, it
experiences diffraction.
• This phenomenon allows the wave to bend around the obstacle, penetrating what otherwise would be a shadow zone
for the wave.
• It is the diffraction of sound waves, for example, that allows us to hear the voices of people who are still invisible to
us around a corner, or on the other side of a high fence.
Fermat’s principle
• Fermat’s principle states that, of the many possible paths between two points A and B,the seismic ray follows the path
that gives the shortest travel-time between the points
• It follows mathematically from Huygens' principle

• Snell's law (also known as the Snell–Descartes law and the law of refraction) is a formula used to describe the
relationship between the angles of incidence and refraction, when referring to light or other waves passing through a
boundary between two different isotropic media, such as water, glass, or air.
• Snell's law states that

• where n1 is the index of refraction of the medium in which the incident ray travels,
• θ1 is the angle, with respect to the normal at the refractive boundary, at which the incident ray strikes the
boundary
• n2 is the index of refraction of the medium in which the refracted ray travels
• θ2 is the angle, with respect to the normal at the refractive boundary, at which the refracted ray travels.

Reflection seismology
• Reflection seismology is directed primarily at finding the depths to reflecting surfaces and the seismic
velocities of subsurface rock layers
• A seismic signal (e.g., an explosion) is produced at a known place at a known time, and the echoes reflected from
the boundaries between rock layers with different seismic velocities and densities are recorded and analyzed.
• electromagnetic seismometers – called “geophones”in industrial usage – are spread in the region of subcritical
reflection, where no refracted arrivals are possible
• Within this distance the only signals received are the wave that travels directly from the shot-point to the geophones
and the waves reflected at subsurface interfaces.
• Surface waves are also recorded
• The travel-times recorded at the geophones along a profile are plotted as a two- dimensional cross-
section of the structure.
• In recent years, three-dimensional surveying, which covers the entire subsurface, has become more important.
• Seismic reflection uses field equipment similar to seismic refraction, but field and data processing procedures are
employed to maximize the energy reflected along near vertical ray paths by subsurface density contrasts
• Reflected seismic energy is never a first arrival, and therefore must be identified in a generally complex set of
overlapping seismic arrivals – generally by collecting and filtering multi-fold or highly redundant data from
numerous shot points per geophone placement.
• The field and processing time for a given seismic reflection survey are much greater than for seismic refraction.
• Seismic reflection uses field equipment similar to seismic refraction, but field and data processing procedures are
employed to maximize the energy reflected along near vertical ray paths by subsurface density contrasts
• Reflected seismic energy is never a first arrival, and therefore must be identified in a generally complex set of
overlapping seismic arrivals – generally by collecting and filtering multi-fold or highly redundant data from
numerous shot points per geophone placement.
• The field and processing time for a given seismic reflection survey are much greater than for seismic refraction.
• seismic reflection can be performed in the presence of low velocity zones
• The main limitations to seismic reflection are its higher cost than refraction and its practical limitation to depths
generally greater than approximately 50 feet.
• At depths less than approximately 50 feet, reflections from subsurface density contrasts arrive at geophones at nearly
the same time as the much higher amplitude ground roll (surface waves) and air blast (i.e. the sound of the shot).
• Reflections from greater depths arrive at geophones after the ground roll and air blast have passed, making these
deeper targets easier to detect and delineate.
• Seismic reflection is particularly suited to marine applications (e.g. lakes, rivers, oceans, etc.) where the inability of
water to transmit shear waves makes collection of high quality reflection data possible even at very shallow depths
that would be impractical to impossible on land
Refraction seismology
• Seismic refraction involves measuring the travel time of the component of seismic energy which travels down to the
top of rock (or other distinct density contrast), is refracted along the top of rock, and returns to the surface as a head
wave along a wave front similar to the bow wake of a ship
• The shock waves which return from the top of rock are refracted waves, and for geophones at a distance from the
shot point

• Seismic refraction involves measuring the travel time of the component of seismic energy which travels down to the
top of rock (or other distinct density contrast), is refracted along the top of rock, and returns to the surface as a head
 wave along a wave front similar to the bow wake of a ship
• The shock waves which return from the top of rock are refracted waves, and for geophones at a distance from the
shot point

• Seismic reflection generally has better resolution, but is considerably more expensive.
• The choice between seismic reflection and refraction becomes an economic decision.
• In other cases (e.g. very deep/small targets) only reflection can be expected to work.
• In still other cases, where boreholes or wells are accessible, neither refraction, nor reflection may be
recommended in favor of seismic tomography.
• Seismic refraction is governed by Snell's Law.
• seismic refraction traverses (seismic lines) are performed using a seismograph(s) and/or geophone(s), in
an array and an energy source.
• The seismic refraction method utilizes the refraction of seismic waves on geologic layers and rock/soil units in
order to characterize the subsurface geologic conditions and geologic structure.
• The methods depend on the fact that seismic waves have differing velocities in different types of soil (or rock): in
addition, the waves are refracted when they cross the boundary between different types (or conditions) of soil or rock.
• The methods enable the general soil types and the approximate depth to strata boundaries, or to bedrock, to be
determined.
Seismic source
• The traditional seismic source is a small charge of dynamite.

• Impact and vibratory sources are now more popular but explosives are still quite commonly used
• Hammers

• Explosives

• Impact sources

• A 4- or 6-pound sledgehammer provides a versatile source for small-scale surveys.

• The useful energy produced depends on ground conditions as well as on strength and skill.
• Hammers can nearly always be used in refraction work on spreads 10 to 20 m long but very seldom where energy
has to travel more than 50 m.
• The hammer is aimed at a flat plate
• Inch-thick aluminium or steel plates used to be favoured, but are now being replaced by thick rubber discs that last
longer and are less painfully noisy.
Seismic source – Hammers
  Weights of hundreds of kilograms can be raised by portable hoists or cranes and then dropped
• The minimum release height is about 4 m, even if a shorter drop would provide ample energy, since rebound of the
support when the weight is released creates its own seismic wave train
• A long drop allows these vibrations to die away before the impact occurs
• The weight drops down and is raised by a pulley system connected to the tractor power take-off.
• Vibration sources are widely used in large-scale reflection surveys but produce data that need extensive and complex processing.
Almost any type of (safe) explosive can be used for seismic work
• Cord explosives, used in quarry blasting
• Detonators are excellent sources for shallow reflection surveys
• Much of the energy delivered by an explosion is wasted in shattering rock near the shot point, and seismic waves
are produced much more efficiently by shots fired
• Explosives involve problems with safety, security and bureaucracy.
• They must be used in conformity with local regulations, which usually require separate secure and licensed
stores for detonators
• A variety of explosive-based methods are available which reduce the risks.
• Seismic waves can be generated by devices which fire lead slugs into the ground from shotgun-sized cartridges, but the energy
supplied is relatively small, and a firearms certificate may be needed
Large amounts of energy must be supplied to the ground if refractions are to be observed from depths of more than a few metres or reflections
from depths
• The dangers are greatest with explosives but nor is it safe to stand beneath a half- ton weight dropping from a height
of 4 m.
• Explosives should only be used by experienced (and properly licensed) personnel

• Experts in quarry blasting often lack experience in the special conditions of seismic surveys.
• Detonators are the commonest causes of accidents
 In any seismic survey, the time at which the seismic wave is initiated must be known
• In some instruments this appears on the record as a break in one of the traces (the shot break or time break)
• On most modern instruments it actually defines the start of the record
• Time-break pulses may be produced in many different ways.
• A geophone may be placed close to the source

• Time Breaks - The earliest arrival of energy propagated from the energy source at the surface to the geophone or the irst
indication of seismic energy on a trace
• Time-break pulses may be strong enough to produce interference on other channels(cross-talk)
• Trigger cables and circuits should therefore be kept well away from data lines.

Land Seismic detectors as hydrophones

• Geophones – referred to as the detector or the seismometer is the unit in direct contact with the earth that converts the
motion of the earth resulting from the shot into electric signals
• Geophones are usually positioned by pushing a spike screwed to the casing firmly into the ground
• Marine detectors as hydrophones

• Both convert mechanical energy into electrical signals

• Most of the geophones used on land are of the electromagnetic type

• A geophone consists of a coil wound on a high-permeability magnetic core and suspended by leaf springs in the field of a
permanent magnet
• If the coil moves relative to the magnet, voltages are induced and current will flow in any external circuit.
• The current is proportional to the velocity of the coil through the magnetic field, so that ground movements are recorded
• In most cases the coil is mounted so that it is free to vibrate vertically, since this gives the maximum sensitivity to P waves to
reflect and refract
• Geophone coils have resistances of the order of 400 ohms
• The relative motion between coil and casing is also influenced by the natural vibration frequency
• Although S waves are regarded as noise in most seismic work, there are occasions when S-wave information is
specifically sought
• both S- and P-wave velocities are required to determine elastic properties
• Normal geophones are rainproof rather than waterproof
• Geophones are also available that are completely enclosed and sealed into waterproof cases, for use in
swamps.
• These do not have external spikes but are shaped so that they can be easily pushed into mud
• Discrimination between P and S waves is not required since S waves cannot travel through fluids.

• Noise is inevitable and coherent noise is generated by the shot itself

• S waves, Love and Rayleigh waves and reflections from surface irregularities are all forms of
coherent noise
• Noise which is not generated by the shot is termed random

• Movements of traffic, animals and people all generate random noise and can, to varying extents, be controlled.
• Seismic signals are carried from geophones to recorders as varying electric currents, in cables
• Wires are necessarily packed very closely as external current carriers such as power and telephone cables induce
currents as a very strong signal in one wire can be passed inductively to all the other
• Cross-talk can be particularly severe from the strong signals produced by geophones close to the shot point, and it
may even be necessary to disconnect
• The amount of cross-talk generally increases with the age of the cable

• Eventually the cable has to be discarded.

• Cables and plugs are the most vulnerable parts of a seismic system and are most at risk where they join
• Most cables are double-ended, allowing either end to be connected to the receiver
• Instruments that record seismic signals are known as seismographs
• They range from timers which record only single events to complex units which digitize, filter and store signals from a
number of detectors simultaneously.
• The seismograph consists of a receiver and a recorder.

• The ground vibration is detected and amplified by a sensor, called the seismometer or, in exploration
seismology, the geophone.
• In modern instruments the vibration is amplified and filtered electronically.

• The amplified ground motion is converted to a visible record, called the seismogram.
• The seismometer makes use of the principle of inertia
• If a heavy mass is loosely coupled to the ground (for example, by suspending it from a wire like a pendulum),the
motion of the Earth caused by a seismic wave is only partly transferred to the mass.
• While the ground vibrates, the inertia of the heavy mass assures that it does not move as much
• The seismometer amplifies and records the relative motion between the mass and the ground.
• The amount of energy recorded by one geophone is small.

• Therefore several geophones are grouped together in an array around the central receiver position and this is
called a channel
• The geophone in an array is analog summed to form the output signal going into the central receiver
• This represents one channel going to the recording truck

• Seismic traces are data recorded from one shot point at one
receiver position.
• Seismic traces are recorded as a function of time

• As this time represents the time taken for the acoustic energy to travel into the earth, reflect, and then return to the surface, it
is called two way time
• It is measured in seconds or milliseconds

• The resultant collection of traces recorded from one shot point is generally recorded together and it is referred to as seismic
field record
• Marine seismic surveys are conducted using specially equipped vessels that tow one or more cables containing a series of
hydrophones at constant intervals
• Three seismic vessels can sometimes be used in marine seismic survey.

• One of these vessels is used as the main shooting, recording, and processing vessel.
• The other two vessels towed additional streamers for increased coverage.

• These two other vessels record seismic signal but are not involved in the shooting or processing of the data.
• The streamers locations are accurately positioned by the aid of Global Positioning System (GPS).
• Air guns are used as sources of seismic energy in the acquisition of marine seismic data.
• This air gun releases a blast of highly compressed air into the surrounding water.
• Air guns are also used in water-filled pits on land as an energy source during acquisition of vertical
seismic profiles
• The hydrophone detects changes in pressure that are created as sound waves from the air guns bounce off
geological strata beneath the seafloor
• Hydrophones used in marine recording use a pressure-sensitive device to record the incoming energy
• Hydrophones are connected together in groups in the streamer and may be placed 6 m apart
• Complex electronics within the streamer filters the incoming signal from a whole group of hydrophones and then converts
the resultant voltage into a digital format
• The numbers corresponding to the values for all of the groups at any one time are interleaved in a process called
multiplexing and then sent digitally down just a few wires to the recording instruments.
• The resultant digital recordings are eventually sent to the processing center (which may also be on the vessel).

• In 2D seismic survey, shot and receivers are in the same line and the next line is spaced kilometers away.
• 2D seismic data are acquired individually
• 2D seismic data only cover thin slice of the sub-surface.
• In 3D survey, shot is within the grid of multiple lines of receivers and the next line is spaced tens of metres away.
• In other words, a 3D seismic volume is created by shooting a closely spaced grid of 2D lines and interpolating between the
lines to create a ‘three-dimensional volume’ of data that is also referred to as a cube
• 3D seismic method often improves data density
• Resolves many of the problems found in 2D sections
• 3D seismic data provide detail information about fault distribution and the sub-surface structure unlike 2D
• 3D seismic method provides a cube of data that represent a volume of the earth, it allows us to examine data in
many different ways
• The results are an improved understanding of structures and nature of the earth beneath us and enhance probability
of finding recoverable reserves of hydrocarbon
.

• 4D seismic survey is a three-dimensional (3D) seismic data acquired at different times over the same area to assess changes in a
producing hydrocarbon reservoir with time.
• Changes may be observed in fluid movement and saturation, pressure, and temperature
• The oil and gas industry uses 3D-time-lapse seismic survey to monitor the way fluids flow through a reservoir during production, by
carrying out a baseline (pre-production) seismic survey and then repeat surveys over the production lifetime of the reservoir
• When 3D surveys are repeated in this way, they are often referred to as 4D seismic
• 4D seismic data are processed by subtracting the data from the baseline 3D survey from the data from the monitor 3D survey.
• The amount of change in the reservoir is defined by the difference between the two.

• If no change has occurred over the time period, the result will be zero.
• The end result of such a survey will be enhanced recovery of hydrocarbon from the field
• 4D survey provides information for efficient management of oil and gas field
• It also provides a baseline for the development of other oil and gas fields that have been identified in the vicinity.
• 4D survey can help to locate untapped pocket of oil and gas in a reservoir.
• Multi-channel seismic data recording is the process of recording the reflections from a single seismic shot with multiple channels (that
is, groups of geophone in a string) at the surface.
• The first issue is that as soon as the seismic shot is fired all of the receiver groups will be receiving data simultaneously.

• If these data are recorded on tape as soon as it is available, the data on tape will be in the wrong order.
• This order is not appropriate for later processing of the data.
• The geophysicists will have all data at one time sample, followed by all data at the next sample – the data are ordered by time, not
as seismic traces.
• This type of recording format is known as multiplexed recording.
• Second issue is that the collection of data is done in time-sequential order
• The first sample of channel 1 is collected followed by the first sample of channel 2, then the first sample of channel 3, etc., until the
first sample of all the channels are collected.
• Then the second sample of channel 1 is collected and then followed by the second sample of channel 2, etc.
• There is a slight time difference between the samples of the channels, as data from later channels are recorded later than data from
earlier channels
• Seismic data are physical observations, measurements, or estimates about seismic sources, seismic waves, and
their propagating media.
• The form of seismic data varies, and can include analog graphs, digital time series, maps, text, or even ideas in
some cases.
• Alteration of seismic data to suppress noise, enhance signal and migrate seismic events to the appropriate location in
space is termed as seismic processing
• It facilitates better interpretation because subsurface structures and reflection geometries are more apparent
• The aim of seismic data acquisition is to obtain data that contain only primary reflected waves
• But this is not possible because the generation of unwanted waves is inevitable during seismic data acquisition.
 • Any rays in a seismic record other than primary reflections are called noise
• There are two kinds of noises found in seismic data: random noise and source- generated noise

Random noise
• Random noise is noise generated by activities in the environment where seismic acquisition work is being
carried out
• In a land acquisition, random noise can be created by the acquisition truck, vehicles, and people working in the
survey area, wind, electrical powerlines, and animal movement
• This noise appears in a seismic record as spikes

• In a marine acquisition, random noise can be created by ship props, drilling, other seismic boats, and wind/tidal waves

• Radom noises in seismic data are recognized principally by the absence of coherency
• coherent noise is consistent from trace to trace

• Random noise can be reduced or removed from data by stacking the traces filtering during processing or using
arrays of geophones during acquisition.

Source-generated noise
• Source-generated noise is created by the seismic source
• Source-generated noises are coherent noise trains and they exist in an organized form from trace to trace and
contain no geologic information
• Source-generated noises are in the form of surface wave which exhibit strong coherency and essentially obscure the
entire desired primary reflection.
• Source generated noises noticed in seismic records are ground roll, direct rays, ghost reflections, and multiple reflections
Surface Waves
• Ground roll (Rayleigh wave) is a type of coherent noise observed in seismic field record
• Ground roll occurs as a set of dispersed wave trains with low velocity, low frequency, and high amplitude.
• Ground roll can obscure the primary reflected events and degrade overall data quality
• Longer wavelength components of the ground roll penetrate more deeply in the surface layer than the shorter
wavelengths and thus see higher velocities.
• Longer wavelength means lower frequency.

Ghost Reflections
• Ghost reflections are produced when the seismic shot
first reverberates upwards from the shallow subsurface
and reflects downwards and travel a similar path to the
normal shot ray from the shot to the reflector.
 • When ghost reflections are formed, the original signal detected by the receiver will undergo interference from the ghost
signal.
• Depending on the frequency of the signal and the relative distances travelled by the two signals, the effect of the interference
will vary.
• Note that interference is the effect produced when two waves of the same frequency, amplitude, and wavelength travelling in the
same direction in a medium are superposed– as they simultaneously pass through a given point.

Source-generated noise
Multiple Reflections
• Multiple reflections are produced when energy from the seismic shot travels down to the seabed, then up to the surface, reflecting
multiple times before travelling a similar path from the shot to the reflector.
• The ray returning from the reflector does exactly the same thing at the receiver

• The water layer is one of the primary causes of multiple reflections and any layer with sufficiently strong acoustic impedance
contrast can become a source of multiple reflections on both land and marine data.
Objectives
• The objective of seismic data processing is to remove all noise and distortions introduced by the seismic acquisition method
and produce a seismic section as close as possible to the subsurface image of the earth that can be interpreted

Seismic data processing

• Seismic processing is the alteration of the acquired data to suppress noise, enhance the recorded seismic trace and migrate
the seismic trace to its correct location in space and time.
• Processing steps include static corrections, deconvolution, normal moveout, velocities analysis, dip move-out, CMP/CDP stacking
and migration, which can be performed before or after stacking

The data/information required to extract the subsurface image (geologic section of the earth) from the acquired seismic data are as
follows:
1. Field seismic data in SEG-D format – it does not contain coordinate information of each shot and geophone group (channel).
2. The (X, Y, Z) coordinates for each shot and geophone group and this is obtained using global positioning system (GPS).
3. The GPS allows the surveyor to produce an accurate map showing every shot and geophone position in the surveyed area.
4. wrong shot and geophone group coordinates will lead to mispositioning and distortion of the final seismic image
(migrated image)
5. Accurate elevation information of every shot and geophone groups (for land data). The geophone group is also known as
geophone station
6. Information on which geophone groups are live for each shot
Transcription
• Transcription is the process whereby all of the field data are converted into the
company’s internal storage format in the initial stage of seismic data processing
• The acquired field data are stored in SEG-D or SEG-Y
• A field record consists of all trace samples recorded in a single shot

• After de-multiplexing the geophysicists check to ensure that every trace of every shot has been read correctly

Observer log
• The observer log contains information about the acquired seismic field data
• The geophysicists usually compare the list of shots read from the tape against those listed in the observer logs
• A field record number may be used which is designated to match the shot-point number
• A scan error may occur
• A scan error is when one multiplex scan of the channels gets out of “sync”
• This means that the shot will have to be omitted from any processing, but the geophysicists usually look at the data as soon as
possible to confirm this
• The geophysicist checks this initial stage to ensure that every trace of every shot has been read correctly
Spherical Divergence
• As the acoustic wave emitted by the seismic source travel through the subsurface, its energy expands in all direction like a sphere
• All the energy initially contained in the seismic source is spread out over a wider area as time increases.
• This causes loss of energy in the seismic signal and resulted to decrease in the amplitude of the source wavelet and is referred to as
spherical divergence
• By definition - spherical divergence is the apparent loss of energy from a source wavelet as it propagates through the
subsurface.
• Spherical divergence decreases energy with the square of the distance
• In a constant velocity medium, amplitude losses caused by geometrical spreading (spherical divergence) can be corrected for by
multiplying by time t
• But rock velocities are not constant and the rate at which seismic energy
expands depends on the velocity of the rock through which it is passing through.
• In order to balance the seismic data and remove these amplitude effects, a general amplitude modification process is applied to balance
the data at all time and it is called gain function.
• True amplitude processing are the steps used in seismic processing to compensate for attenuation, spherical divergence and other effects
by adjusting the amplitude of the data.
Spherical Divergence

Automatic Gain Control (AGC)

AGC is a system that controls the increase in the amplitude of an electrical signal from the original input to the amplified output,
automatically.
AGC is used in data processing to improve the visibility of seismic data in which attenuation or spherical divergence has caused amplitude
decay
Refraction Statics
• Seismic data recorded on land do not follow regular pattern.
• Due to the elevation and topography of the surface, it may be impossible to arrange the shots and geophones in a
straight line
• If shots and geophones are not in the same elevation, then the line-up of reflections will be distorted.
• The arrival of the reflected wave will be delayed when the wave has to travel through more rocks
• So the geophysicists need accurate elevation information of every shot and geophone groups for correct processing of
the acquired seismic data.
• These variations which cause reflection times variations must be corrected for.

Statics Correction
• Statics correction is a bulk time shift applied to the recorded seismic trace during data processing
• Static corrections are applied to remove the effect of variation in the weathered layer and any changes in the near surface
that causes trace-to-trace time difference
• In other to calculate the time corrections (statics) for every shot and geophone stations (geophone groups), it is necessary to look at
ray paths, which occur, in the weathered layer.
Datum And Floating Datum
• In seismic data, the term datum refers to an arbitrary planar surface to which corrections are made and on which
sources and receivers are assumed to lie to minimize the effects of topography and near-surface zones of low
velocity.
• By definition, the datum level is the depth level at which the shots and geophone groups would have been
positioned if there is no elevation and topography effect.
• A datum is a reference surface
 • For land data, the shots and geophone groups can be at any depth; therefore, a floating datum is used which is a smooth
line that follows the general elevation trends along the line
• The floating datum may be above or below the shot or geophone position and the resultant statics may be positive or negative

• For marine data, the datum is the shot (airgun) and receiver (streamer) position, just below the sea.

Noise Attenuation
• The recorded seismic trace from each shot will be at identical position in space and time, and only random noise will
differ from shot to shot.
• For each shot the geophysicists will get a separate record and the noise is different for each record
• If the geophysicist adds the record of several shots together, this will enhance the signal and reduce random noise.
• This process is called vertical stack or vertical summing.
• Recording several shots into a single geophone, each of the recorded traces will have the different noises.
• This is because the recordings are made at different times
 • But in the case of a single shot into different geophones the noise in the traces is different because the geophones are in
different position.

Common Midpoint Stack

• Stacking is the process whereby traces are summed to improve the signal-to-noise ratio, reduce noise and improve
seismic data quality
• Traces from different shot records with a common reflection point, such as common midpoint (CMP) data, are
stacked to form a single trace during seismic processing.
• Stacking reduces the amount of data by a factor called the fold

• In CMP stack, noise is attenuated by adding all the geophones output with the same reflections’ point but
different random noises.
• The shots to geophones distances are different; therefore, the reflection path lengths are different as well.

• During seismic data processing, the reflection times are adjusted to compensate for the different path lengths.
Trace Editing
• Trace editing includes de-spiking (eliminating of high-amplitude anomalies), polarity reversal (change to correct polarity)
and trace zeroing (set trace amplitudes to zero if average amplitude is outside amplitude thresholds).
• Land data contain noise train from the shot itself.
• This noise, which travels along the near surface, is usually referred to as ground roll.
• The traces that contain the noise train and spikes will be muted out (that is,replace with zero)

Main Processing
• The data recorded from a seismic survey is originally in its “raw” or “unprocessed” form. Before it can be used it must go
through a series of computerized processes. These processes – filtering, stacking, migrating and other computer analysis, make
the data useable and require powerful computers and sophisticated computer programs.
• It Includes three major steps

1. Deconvolution

2. Stacking

3. Migration

Main Processing
• Processing of data can be very expensive and time-consuming, depending on the size of the area surveyed and the amount of
data acquire. Processing of data from one 3D survey may take six months or more and cost hundreds of thousands of dollars.
 • Convolution is the process by which a wavelet combines with a series of reflection events to produce the seismogram that is
recorded in a seismic survey.
• Deconvolution is the inverse and filtering process that removes the effect of the wavelet from the seismogram(removes a
wavelet from the recorded seismic trace)
• Deconvolution attempts to compress the wavelet, thereby increasing the resolution of the seismic data.
• Another goal of deconvolution is to produce a wavelet with a simple phase
character, ideally a zero-phase wavelet, which is the same for every trace in the
seismic dataset.

Comparison of land
seismic data with and without
wavelet processing.
 The convolutional model for deconvolution
• The earth is made up of horizontal layers of constant velocity

• The source generates a compressional wave that layer boundaries

• The source wave form does not change as it travels in the surface
• The noise component is zero

• The source waveform is known

• Reflectivity is at random series

• Seismic wavelet is minimum phase

There are two general types of deconvolution

• Where the wavelet is known or measured, which is called deterministic deconvolution and the other
where the wavelet is not known, which is called statistical deconvolution
• Deterministic deconvolution can be used to remove the effects of the recording system, if the system characteristics are
known.
• This type also can be used to remove the ringing that results from waves undergoing multiple bounces in the water layer, if the
travel time in the water layer and the reflectivity of the seafloor are known.
statistical deconvolution
• A statistical deconvolution need to derive information about the wavelet from the data itself where no information is available about
any component of the model
• It is applied without prior application of deterministic deconvolution in the case of land data taken with an explosive source
• Certain assumptions are made about the data which justifies the statistical approach

Predictive deconvolution suppresses multiple reflections and alters the spectrum of the input data to increase resolution.
• It is almost always applied at least once to marine seismic data.

Spiking or whitening deconvolution

• Reduces the source wavelet to a spike. The filter that best achieves this is called a Wiener filter
• The process by which the seismic wavelet is compressed into a zero lag spike is called spiking deconvolution

Deghosting
• In marine work a source is detonated slightly below the water surface. The primary seismic wavelet propagates downward but
there is an upward propagating wave that reflects from the water surface and then propagates downward.
• The latter reflection is referred to as a 'ghost".
• A seismic wavelet is composed of the original wavelet plus a closely spaced reflection.
• The essence of seismic data processing is simple:
• Sort into CMP gathers
• Correct for NMO
• Stack
 Velocity analysis
• Velocity analysis can be done on either common shot gathered data or common midpoint data.
• Subsurface interval and root mean square (RMS) velocities can be determined sequentially for the shallowest through
deepest reflectors on the basis of the analysis of their respective hyperbolic travel time curves.

Normal moveout corrections

• Normal move out (NMO) corrections are applied to common midpoint data. Primary reflected energy is
horizontally aligned on NMO corrected gathers
• In areas of complex subsurface structure Dip move out (DMO) corrections may be applied.
• normal move out (NMO) describes the effect that the distance between a seismic source and a receiver (the offset) has
on the arrival time of a reflection in the form of an increase of time with offset

Stacking
All of the traces in each NMO corrected common midpoint (CMP) gather are summed together, and output as a
single trace
• The simplest data collection imaginable is one in which data is recorded by a receiver, whose location is the same
as that of the source.
• This form of data collection is referred to as zero-offset gathers
• Data collection in the form of zero-offset gathers is impractical

• Seismic data is always collected in common shot gathers, i.e. multiple receivers are recording the signal originating
from a single shot.
 Common Shot Gathers

• Common shot gathers correspond to all

traces recorded from a single shot

Dynamic Correction
• Dynamic correction is a time-variant operation performed on a seismic trace.
 Multiple reflections
• Multiple reflections occur whenever the energy from the shot reflects more than once in any layer
• Layers with strong acoustic impedance contrast can cause multiple reflections to occur

• Water layers also generate multiple reflections

• These multiples obscure the primary reflections and make interpretation of the final seismic section very difficult,
though primary reflections and multiple reflections appear as distinct events on a seismic section.
• The energy repeatedly bounces between the seabed and the sea surface.

Multiple reflections
Migration Velocity
• Migration is used to reposition the data from their apparent reflection point to their true reflection point in both space
and time.
• Migration velocity is defined as the velocity that optimizes the repositioning of the reflected energy to the correct
locations
• if the data are migrated with a velocity that is too low, the data will be under migrated and if the data are migrated
with a velocity that is too high the data will be over migrated.
Seismic Data Interpretation

• The interpretation of seismic data in geologic term is the objective and end product of seismic work
• Siesmic data are usually intrepretated by geophysicts or geologists

• To extract all available subsurface information from the processed seismic data.
• This includes structure, stratigraphy, subsurface rock properties, velocity, stress and perhaps reservoir fluid
changes in time and space
• A good knowledge of geologic history of the area to be studied is important in making quality decisions
during interpretation of the seismic data.
• Structural interpretations are best done on migrated seismic data if available