Special thanks to Prof.

Dr: Maher mesbah

Seismic Methods
History of Seismic Methods
• When? Seismic surveying was first carried out in the early 1920s.
• Idea? The travel times of earthquake waves recorded at seismological
observatories are used to derive information on the internal structure of the
Earth.

Earthquake Seismology & Seismic Methods

Importance of it:
• Earthquake seismology provides information on the gross internal layering of the
Earth,
• Measurement of the velocity of earthquake waves through the various Earth
layers provides information about their physical properties and composition.
Differences and similarities between them
• Many of the principles of earthquake seismology are applicable to seismic
surveying.
• Artificial seismic sources, such as explosions, whose location, timing and source
characteristics are, unlike earthquakes, under the direct control of the
geophysicist
• In the same way, but on a smaller scale, seismic surveying can provide a clear
and detailed picture of subsurface geology

Seismic Waves
Intro
• Seismic energy propagates in the form of waves
• The seismic wave is the basic measuring component used in seismic prospecting.
• Seismic methods depend on the differences in the velocity of transmission of
these waves through different rock formations.

Seismic Waves:
It's an example of mechanical waves

What is a wave?
• A wave is a disturbance or variation that transfers energy progressively from
point to point in a medium
Examples of waves
• Sound wave is a variation of pressure in the air,
• Radio wave is a variation of EM intensity
• Water wave is a variation of water surface.
• However, some waves like the EM wave do not need a medium to propagate.

Wave Terminology
• The physical laws applicable to seismic waves are comparable to the well-known
laws relating to light waves
• As a wave, seismic wave has its own characteristics which involve:
– Speed
– Wavelength
– Frequency
– Period
– Amplitude

Wave Speed
• It is the speed by which the wave travels.
• It is dependent on the properties of the medium; i.e., it is a material property.

Examples on the wave speed

• The sound wave speed in dry air is: v = 331 + 0.6 T (m/s)
– T is temperature in Celsius
• The seismic wave speeds in rocks: 1 to 10 km/s, depending mainly upon
temperature, pressure, and composition

Wavelength of the Wave

• The wavelength (λ) of a wave is the horizontal distance of one wave cycle (e.g.,
peak to peak or trough to trough)
Frequency of the Wave
• f of a wave is the number of cycles passing a point per unit time (“cycles per
second” or “Hertz”).

Period of the Wave

• T of a wave is the time interval required for the wave to travel one wavelength.

Amplitude of the Wave

• (A) of a wave is a measure of the height of the wave (peal to peak);
• Or it is the vertical distance from its rest to its maximum deflection.

Wave Terms Relationship

• λ, f and T of the wave are interrelated as:
λ = v*T = v/f
– Where: V is the velocity of wave in m/s. Then,
–v = λ. f
Two other quantities,
1. The wave number k
The number of cycles per unit distance k=1/ λ
2. The angular frequency:

Wave Propagation (Ray paths & Huygens’s principle)

How a wave propagates from source?
• If a point source emits sound waves and the medium is uniform, the waves move at
the same speed in all directions radially away from the source; this is a spherical
wave.
• Each arc or circle represents a surface of constant phase
• For example, the surface could pass through the crests of all waves.
Wavefront
• We call such a surface of constant
phase a wave front.
• It includes adjacent points that have
the same phase.
• The distance between adjacent
wavefronts equals the wavelength

Huygens’ Principle:
• Each point at a wave front acts as a secondary source.
• The new wave front can be constructed from the envelope of these secondary
source wave fronts

Amplitude and Energy Decay

• Some sources of decay:
–spreading, or transmission.
–absorption,
–scattering,
Spreading loss (spherical divergence):
• When a seismic wave expands outward from a source (shot), the energy per unit area
decreases as follows:
2
–E α 1/r
• However, Amplitude A α E Then, A α 1/r,

The Absorption Loss

• Some energy is absorbed when the seismic waves propagate through the
subsurface. Why?
– Because the earth is not perfectly elastic medium.
• Energy loss = loss of amplitude.
• Practically, absorption usually causes an amplitude decrease of 10% to 20% per
second

Spreading loss Vs Absorption Loss

• For low frequencies and short distances from the source.
– The losses by spreading are more important than losses by absorption
• As the frequency and distance increase,
– Absorption losses increase and eventually become dominant.

The scattering loss

• Specular reflection,
• Where the reflected rays are all parallel to each other
• No loss

• Diffuse reflection,
• Where the reflected rays travel in random directions.
• Scattering loss
 Body waves
Compressional Waves
• Mechanism:
o This pressure or ‘push’ wave, travels as a series of compressions and
rarefactions (dilations).
• Particle movement:
o The molecules oscillate backwards and forwards in the direction of
energy transport.
• Named as primary waves or simply P-wave

-
Spherical spreading of compressional pulse in plane through source at center of
expanding spheres. (Figure) Particle separations indicated by density of dots.

Shear waves
Particle movement
• When shear deformation propagates in an elastic solid, the motion of individual
particles is always perpendicular to the direction of wave propagation.
• Named as S-wave

• Shear motion, cause no volume change. It doesn’t exist in liquid.

Surface Seismic Waves

Characteristics of surface waves
• Large amplitude,
• Long wavelength,
• Wide range of frequencies (large bandwidth),
• travel slowly
• Not produced by deep earthquakes.
Rayleigh waves
• Condition:
Rayleigh waves travel only along a free surface or along boundary between two
dissimilar media
Characteristics of Rayleigh waves
• The nature of the wave:
– are P and S types mixture.
• The particle motion:
– Always in a vertical plane to the surface
– is elliptical
– moving backward with respect to the direction of propagation.
The amplitude:
– Amplitude of the motion decreases exponentially with depth below the surface.
• The speed:
– is slower than for any body waves, (9/10) Vs in the same medium.
• The dispersion of it:
– Provide useful information on the layering in the earth's crust and upper mantle.
Love waves
Condition:
 Observed only when there is a low-speed layer overlying a higher-speed substratum.
Particle motion:
 Love waves are polarized shear waves
 particle motion parallel to the free surface(horizontal )and perpendicular(transverse)
to the direction of wave propagation
 they vibrate the ground from side-to-side with no vertical movement
Nature:
 are pure S-type surface waves

Seismic Waves and Earthquake Seismology

•measurement:
For seismological studies, stationary instruments, the seismographs, are installed
permanently at a place and the recording is done continuously round the clock.

Waves recorded
Primary waves
We notice that:
–the first arrival is characterized by:
• A sharp displacement
• Small amplitude for duration of few seconds
• This first arrival is the Primary (P) seismic waves and so it is always the first to
arrive.

Secondary waves
Sometime after the arrival of P waves, S waves can be noted.
• With slightly larger amplitudes than the P-waves,
• With the same or a slightly longer duration than that of the P-waves.
• Vs < VP
Surface waves
– great amplitude
– larger periods
– Much stronger displacements of the ground than indicated by both P and S
waves.
– their velocity is lower than that of the S-waves

Earthquake Parameters
• The epicenter and the focus.
Focus -
Location within the earth where fault rupture actually occurs
Epicenter -
Location on the surface above the focus.

Epicenter determination
 It can be determined by noting the time interval between the arrivals of the
longitudinal and the transverse waves of an earthquake recorded on the
seismogram.
 The seismogram of an earthquake recorded at one station can give only the
distance to the epicenter,
 To determine the exact position of the epicenter records from at least three
seismograph stations are necessary
 VELOCITIES OF SEISMIC WAVES IN ROCKS

VELOCITIES OF SEISMIC WAVES Relations

The velocity of propagation of anybody wave in any homogeneous, isotropic
material is given by:

The ratio Vp/vs in any material is determined solely by the value of Poisson’s ratio
(s) for that material

Ψ: axial modulus (like young's modulus but without lateral strain)

μ : shear modulus
σ: Poisson's ratio
ρ: density
K: bulk modulus
Effect of gas in sed. Rocks
The presence of gas in sedimentary rocks reduces the elastic moduli, Poisson's ratio
and the Vp/vs ratio.
Vp/vs ratios greater than 2.0 are characteristic of unconsolidated sand, whilst values
less than 2.0 may indicate either a consolidated sandstone or a gas-filled
unconsolidated sand.

VELOCITIES OF SEISMIC WAVES IN ROCKS

Effect of porosity
 Most igneous, metamorphic, massive limestone, dolomites, and evaporates
rocks have little or no porosity:
o Velocities of seismic waves depend mainly on the elastic properties of
the minerals making up the rock material itself.
 Velocities of seismic waves in sandstones, shales, and certain kinds of soft
limestone which have porosity
o is very much dependent on the porosity and on the material filling the
pores.

VELOCITIES OF SEISMIC WAVES IN IGNEOUS ROCKS

• Igneous rocks have seismic velocities of narrower range of variation than sed. or
met. Rocks.
• The average velocity for igneous rocks is higher than that for other types.
• Variation of velocity with depth, in laboratory, as the pressure was raised from 10
bars (only slightly more than atmospheric) to 10,000 bars (corresponding to an
115,000-ft depth of burial) the compressional velocity of three granite specimens
Increased less than 15 percent.

VELOCITIES OF SEISMIC WAVES IN SEDIMENTRY ROCKS

• The velocity characteristics of sedimentary rocks are quite different for different
types.
1- Most evaporates (e.g. rock salt and anhydrite) have velocities:
• In the same range as igneous rocks.
• show little variation in speed even for different depths.
2- Dolomites
 limited range of variation,
3- Velocities of limestone, sandstones, and shales
 Vary over a much wider range related to The density and (a closely
related quantity) porosity.
• The highest reported velocity in sedimentary rock is about 25,000 ft. /s in Canada.
Density and velocity relationship is not confined to sedimentary rocks. (The same
behavior with other rocks)
From figure: as density of sed rocks increases, velocity of waves increases

Depths of burial and the velocity of sedimentary rocks

• Variations in depths of burial mean variations in porosity

From figure: with decreasing porosity by increasing depth, velocity increases

 PROPERTIES OF ROCKS
They control the velocity of seismic waves in rocks
• Physical
• Mechanical

Physical Properties of Rocks

• Three important physical properties characterize the rocks.
– Porosity,
– Density
– Pressure

Porosity
• It is the ratio of void volume in a sample of rock, sediment, or filter back material is
Φ

The Effective Porosity

• It is a ratio of a part of volume through which fluids can travel in a porous material,
to the total volume.

Density
• It is defined as the mass of a substance per unit volume (ρ)

.
The bulk density of the rock
It's a function of:
1- Solid grain density (ρs)
2- Fluid density (ρf)
3- The porosity (Φ).
ρ is a weighted average:

The pore fluid density

It's a function of the densities of the constituent's fluids (e.g., water, oil, gas, etc.)
 From equation:
 The density increases with depth and it is inversely dependent on porosity.
 Since, the porosity is reduced by the compaction resulting from the rock
overburden abundant the pore pressure (normally, the hydrostatic head)

Density, Porosity and Velocity of Materials

1- This empirical relationship (velocity-density) is valid for sedimentary rocks

The “time-average equation”

2- It controls the effect of porosity on the propagation of seismic wave velocity
(V) through the aggregates of synthetic glass spheres and natural sandstones
 Mechanical Properties of Rocks
It's related to the elastic properties of the rock , so we first define elasticity
Elasticity:
 The property of resisting changes in size or shape and of returning to the
undeformed condition when the external forces are removed
 A perfectly elastic body is one that recovers completely after being deformed .

Elasticity example
1. External forces can change the size &shape of solid body
2. Internal forces resist the changes in size & shape
• From 1&2, the body tends to return to its original condition when the external
forces are removed.

Materials have mechanical properties according to their phases. i.e.

 A fluid resists changes in size (volume) but not resists changes in shape.

Elastic characteristics of solids

• Stress and Strain
• The elastic modulus
• Young’s modulus,
• Shear modulus,
• Bulk modulus.
• Poisson’s ratio
• Lame's constant

Stress
• The stress is the external force acting on an object per unit cross-sectional area
• Pressure is a familiar form of stress, same units of pressure (Pascal's, bars, psi,
atmosphere, etc…)
• The object is said to be stressed:
– When an external force is applied perpendicular to its cross sectional area and the
internal forces in the object resist distortion (“stretching”), and at the equilibrium
Situation the final length of the object is greater than its initial length and the
external force is exactly balanced by internal forces
Hydrostatic Stress
 If the principal stresses are all of equal magnitude within a body the condition of
stress is said to be hydrostatic, occurs throughout a fluid body at rest.
 A fluid body cannot sustain shearing stresses (since a fluid has no shear strength),
hence there cannot be shear stresses in a body under hydrostatic stress
Shear stress
 If the principal stresses are unequal, shearing stresses exist along all surfaces
within the stressed body, except for the three orthogonal planes intersecting in
the principal axes.

Strain
• It is the response to stress
• It is a measure of the degree of deformation
The elastic modulus
• At very small stresses, strain is proportional to stress
– Proportionality = elastic modulus
• It depends on:
– The material being deformed
– The nature of the deformation
The elastic modulus is stress/strain ratio

Hook’s law
•describes the relationship between stress and strain for small stresses =elastic limit
(stress α strain)
• Elastic limit: the maximum applied stress to the substance before it becomes
permanently deformed
• As the stress is increased after the elastic limit---> the material breaks at the
breaking point.
Young’s modulus (Elasticity in Length)
Tensile stress
– The ratio of the magnitude of the external perpendicular force F to the cross-
sectional area A.
• Tensile strain
– The ratio of the change in length to the original length.
Definition
 The measure of the resistance of a solid object to a change in its length
(either tension or compression)
 It can be defined by a combination of the stress and the strain ratios:

What about liquids?

---> No Young’s modulus is given for liquids because a liquid does not sustain a
shearing stress or a tensile stress.

Shear Modulus (Elasticity of Shape)

 It measures the resistance to motion of parallel planes within a solid.
 No change in volume occurs with this deformation.
Forces are:
 Two equal forces (with opposite directions) on two parallel faces.
 The shear stress, (F/A), is the ratio of the tangential force to the area A of the
face being sheared.
 The shear strain Δx/h (i.e., Tangential), where Δx is the horizontal distance
that the sheared face moves and h is the height of the object

Rigidity
 It is the ability of the material to resist shear deformation (termed as μ).
 No fluids (liquid or gas) have any significant rigidity?
 (Because a liquid does not sustain a shearing stress).
Shear modulus μ
• The ratio of shearing stress (τ) to the resultant shear strain (tanθ)

Bulk Modulus (Volume Elasticity)

 The bulk modulus expresses the stress–strain ratio in the case of a simple
hydrostatic pressure P applied to a cubic element
 Bulk modulus measures the resistance of solids or liquids to changes in their
volume.
 Both solids and liquids have a bulk modulus.
 If a shearing (tensile) force is applied to a liquid, it will simply flow.
 The volume stress = the total force F/area A of the surface.
 The volume strain = the change in volume ΔV / initial volume Vi.
 The bulk modulus K= stress/strain that produces a change in volume

 -ve sign?
• K is a positive number,
• i.e., an increase in pressure (positive ΔP) decrease in volume (negative
ΔV) and vice versa.

Compressibility (C)
• It is the reciprocal of the bulk modulus.
• It is the ability of a material to be compressed

Gassmann Equation & Bulk modulus

 The Gassmann equation, first described by Fritz Gassmann, is used in
geophysics and its relations are receiving more attention as seismic data are
increasingly used for reservoir monitoring.
  The Gassmann equation is the most common way of performing a fluid
substitution model from one known parameter

Importance
 The Gassmann (1951) equation has been used for calculating the effect of
fluid substitution on seismic properties using the frame properties.
 It calculates the bulk modulus of a fluid saturated porous medium using the
known Bulk moduli of the solid matrix, the frame, and the pore fluid.
 The frame refers to the skeleton rock sample,

It can be used to predict changes in

1- The bulk modulus due to production induced changes in KD and KF.
And to compute:
2- The porosity
3- The bulk modulus of the solid grains (KS),
4- The dry bulk modulus of the rock frame (KD).
5- The bulk modulus of the fluid mixture occupying the pore space (KF) which is
a function of:
1. KL pore liquid incompressibility
2. KG gas incompressibility

KF is itself a function of the incompressibility of the pore liquid, K L and gas, KG

Poisson’s ratio
• The ratio of the lateral to the compressional strain
For example:
• As a body is elongated by a tensile stress, it will be shortened in a direction
perpendicular to that stress.
• As a body is shortened by a compressive stress, it will be elongated at right
angles to that stress.
 Poisson’s ratio is always positive, depending on porosity and weathering.
• The highly competent materials are generally the lower Poisson’s ratio,

In terms of P- and S-wave velocities

• Use the Poisson’s ratio in the following relations to compare between three rock
types, regarding the Fracturing (highly fractured, less fractured or compacted).

Lame’s parameters (λ)

• It is an elastic modulus and relates σ and Young’s modulus (E) as:

Ray Paths
Ray Paths in Layered Media
Effect of layered medium on ray paths
• Difference in physical properties of a two layers causes a change of propagation
velocity at an interface between the two rock layers.
• Therefore, seismic pulse is partitioned into transmitted and reflected pulses.
 The relative amplitudes of the transmitted and reflected pulses depend on the
velocities and densities (called, acoustic impedance Z) of the two layers, and the
angle of incidence on the interface.
• The acoustic impedance of a rock is the product of its density (ρ) and its wave
velocity (v): Z=ρv
• generally, the harder a rock, the higher is its acoustic impedance

Reflection and transmission of normally incident seismic rays

 The total energy of the transmitted and reflected rays must equal the energy of
the incident ray.
 The relative proportions of energy transmitted and reflected are determined by
the contrast in acoustic impedance Z across the interface
 The smaller the contrast in acoustic impedance across a rock interface the
greater is the proportion of energy transmitted through the interface.
 However, more energy is reflected at greater contrast.
Reflection Coefficient R
• It is a numerical measure of the effect of an interface on wave propagation, and is
calculated as the ratio of the amplitude A1 of the reflected ray to the amplitudeA0 of
the incident ray
-1≤R≥1
For normally incident ray

Empirically
R=.625ln (v2/v1)
But be cautious

Transmission Coefficient T
• is the ratio of the amplitude A2 of the transmitted ray to
the amplitude A0 of the Incident ray

• For a normally incident ray

R&T
• If R = 0, all the incident energy is transmitted.
(When there is no contrast of acoustic impedance across an interface, even if the
density and velocity values are different in the two layers; i.e. Z1 = Z2).
• However, if R = +1 or -1, all the incident energy is reflected. As in the case of free
surface of a water layer
• Most of incident seismic energy on the rock interface is transmitted
Reflection
• Angle of reflection = angle of incidence
According to the law of reflection:
-The incident ray,- The reflected ray, and the normal all lie in the
same plane.

Refraction
• Part of the energy is reflected and part enters the second medium.
• The ray that enters the second medium is bent at the boundary and is said to be
refracted.

Seismic Waves Geometry

Geometry of reflection and refraction seismic waves

Seismic Waves Geometry

• Its basic relationships between points of refraction or reflections on the interface
• It forms the basics of geophysical & geological interpretation of seismic data
Reflection Geometry
• Seismic reflection methods based on the study of the arrival times of waves from
surface down to different layers, and are reflected back to the surface.
•
From figures
 The direct wave path SG<SP+PG,
 The travel time is tD = x/V and the curves are the straight lines SR and SL
passing through the origin with slopes of =1/V.
 At very large distance x, the difference between SG and SP+PG becomes
small, and consequently the reflection travel time approaches the direct-
wave travel time
 This zero-offset travel time is often called the two-way time (TWT) to the
reflector.
 The difference between t0 and the travel time at finite offset Δt is called
the normal moveout (NMO), denote by ΔtNMO.
Since, 2h >> than x, so we can use a binomial expansion as follows
MOVEOUT
Definition: The difference between t0 and the travel time at finite offset ΔT is called
the normal Moveout (NMO)
How to detect?
• Following the reflection signals from trace to trace, will reveal that the troughs
and Peaks are out of step i.e. show a moveout’,
• Each step differs from the adjacent one by a very little time.
• The reflection pulses line up across the record as a slightly slanting line.
No moveout case
• If all the detectors are placed at the same distance from the shot point, as for
instance on the circumference of a circle, with shot point at the center
• the reflected Waves from a horizontal bed will arrive at all the detectors at
exactly the same time
• If the velocity of the material above the reflecting bed is uniform In this case, the
reflection signal on all the traces in the record will line up perfectly and there will
be no ‘moveout’.

Derivation of normal move out law

From equation
 NMO α x2,
• NMO α 1/v2,
• NMO α 1/t,
• i.e., reflection curvature increases rapidly at more distant geophones.
• The curvature becomes less progress with increasing record time, i.e. at deeper
Strata.
Importance of NMO Elimination
•To determine the dip and before stacking common-midpoint records.
• By measuring x, t0, and ΔtNMO, V can be determined

The Importance of NMO

• It is the principal criterion for deciding whether an event observed on a seismic
record is a reflection or not.
• How?
– The reflection signals moveout a little from trace to trace.
– If the NMO differs from the value given by the following equation by more than the
allowable experimental error, the seismic event can't be considered as a reflection.

The extent of this moveout

Depends upon
1. The interval between the geophones,
2. The dip of the reflecting bed
3. The average velocity of the layer or layers above the reflecting bed.
Dipping Reflector;
Dip Moveout

From equation
• The travel time curve is a hyperbola, (as in the horizontal reflector)
• The axis of symmetry is the line x=-2hsinα, (instead of the t-axis)
• i.e., t has different values for geophones symmetrically placed on opposite sides
of the source point.
Determination of the depth to the dip reflector
• As in the case of horizontal reflector, h can be determined by measuring to.
i.e., at x equal to 0.
• N.B. h is not measured vertically as in the case of horizontal interface but vertical to
the reflector
Determination of the dip (α)
• By solving eq. (*) (assume that 2h>x and expanding as before:

The simplest method of finding α

• From the difference in travel times for:
–Two geophones equally distant from and on opposite sides of the source.

Assume x have the values:

– +Δx for the down dip geophone and
– -Δx for the up dip geophone and
– The equivalent travel times are t1 and t2, then
(Δtd/Δx) is called the dip moveout.
• Note that dimensionally,
– Dip moveout is time/distance,
– whereas normal moveout is time).

Seismic Data Acquisition

Methods of Seismic Data Acquisition
1. Land data-acquisition method.
2. Marine data-acquisition method.
3. transition-zone data-acquisition method (A hybrid of the above two methods).
(Because the environments differ so, each method requires unique technology &
terminology)

Receiver types
What Is a Geophone?
 VERY high precision sensor
 VERY sensitive instrument
 Very rugged construction
 The essence of seismic surveys
 Only one principle

Requirements for receiving signal

1. All geophones have identical coupling with the earth,
2. The phones are all positioned at the same elevation,
3. There are no errors in horizontal positioning.
• This is never so in practice, which means that actual field arrays never reach the
theoretically expected performance.
• The energy detected at the surface contains useful signal but also unwanted
noise.

Land Receiver Systems (Geophones and Cables)

»Theory
 Faraday law :the relative motion of a conductor through a magnetic field
induces an electromotive force (EMF)
 A current to flow through the conductor if the conductor is an element of an
electrical circuit.
Co
mp
on
ent
s of
a
ge
op
ho
ne
• In
addition to the case that houses the geophone, they are:
1. A permanent magnet,
2. A conductor,
3. A spring,
The magnet: with north and south poles; the lines of force pass between the two
poles.
• The conductor: is a mass (coil or element) passing between the poles; it is
connected to an external electrical load by the resistor at each end of the conductor.
• The spring: positions the conductor in the magnetic field space.
• The coil and magnet are often called the Element
Operation of a geophone
• As the earth moves upward, the magnet and case are also moves. Why?
– They are in rigid contact with the earth.
• However, the mass will try to remain in the same place?
– Because of its inertia or move down with respect to the upward- moving magnet
and frame.
• Then the spring will exert an upward force on the mass, making it move upward.
So on ….
• Thus, the initial motion of the case causes the mass to oscillate between the two
springs, in a simple harmonic motion (SHM).
• The conductor's motion through the magnetic field, according to Faraday's Law,
causes an EMF to be induced that is proportional to the velocity of the earth's
motion.
• Hence, such a geophone is called a velocity phone. Why?
١

Natural frequency ranges of geophones

• 1-60 Hz,
• 4-15 Hz for oil exploration reflection work.
• 100 Hz and 400 Hz for shallow reflection work,
• 1-10 Hz in refraction work.
Electrical Characteristics
1. Sensitivity
2. Tolerances

1. Sensitivity •
• Geophones are available with a wide range of sensitivities. For example,
– 0.1 V output for a 2.5 cm/s (1 inch/s) velocity, or
– 0.4 mV output for a tiny movement of 2.5 x 10-8 m/s (10-8 inch/s).
2. Tolerances
• Natural frequency within ±0.5 Hz of the manufacturer's stated value
• Natural frequency distortion < 20 tilt, ±0.1 Hz
o

• Sensitivity within ±5% of the stated value

Physical Components
• A geophone couples with the ground through a spike screwed into its case.
• Case
• Spike

Case
Types
• The land case has wiring connections on each side for ease of handling and
stability.
• The marsh case has top wiring connections and a slim vertical case for deeper
planting, with a broad spike for soft spongy material.

Spike
Conditions
1) must be long enough for good coupling in hard ground
2) But short enough to allow the case body to touch the ground.
3) The longer spike improved amplitude response
Solutions to spike problems
• Flat bases are used when it is too hard to put spikes in the ground, but such poor
ground coupling gives bad data quality.
• A gimballed geophones are used in bay and shallow marine areas and also in
snow-covered terrain where obstacles prevent the case from sitting upright

Physical Characteristics
1. Reliability
2. Harmonic Distortion
3. Noise

1. Reliability
• Geophones do not give their specified output when:
– They lie on their side,
– have open or faulty circuit, or
• Failure rates may be as high as 10% per month.
• Rugged use increases wear and tear on mechanical moving parts that can affect a
geophone's output frequency and phase response.
2. Harmonic Distortion
• Geophones have nonlinear characteristics. Why?
– Due to faults in the mechanical and electrical components.
• For examples,
1) The relative motion of the coil in the magnetic field is not a straight-line as a
result of irregular spring forces.
2) The electrical distortion prevails during extreme or rapid coil displacements.
• Geophones are designed to reduce such distortion.
• The supplier should indicate the geophone driving frequency, velocity and the
value of total harmonic distortion.
• For example,
– One commercially available geophone has less than 0.1% total harmonic distortion
at resonant frequency with a velocity of 118 cm/s (0.7 inch/s) per second

3. Noise
• Noise sources:
1- External:
• wind, traffic, vibration
2- Internal:
• thermal noise as a result of coil resistance,
• Brownian particle movement within the case body.
• Thus, the element should be designed to minimize such noise
3- Background: known as electrical pickup, (external influences) as:
• electromagnetic fields (power lines),
• Earth ground systems,
• cathodic protection of pipelines,
• thunderstorms,
• charged fences,
• shot blasters, and radios

2.1.4. Special Geophones

Introduction
 A geophone will give an output only when it has undergone motion along the
axis of its element; i.e., a phone will not give an output when motion is
horizontal to it.
 A geophone on its side will not respond to vertical waves.
1- Thus, shear (S-wave) geophones are built for the purpose of recording horizontal
particle motion. A level bubble aids horizontal placement.
 A shear-wave geophone that is gimballed in a lubricating fluid so it will perform
well at tilt angles up to 30
2- A three-component geophone uses a bubble level indication of ground
positioning
• Such geophones having elements mounted at right angles may be used where
both S- and P-waves are to be recorded, in the field,
• It must have the bubble centered to ensure all three components are correctly
aligned horizontally and vertically.
3- There is a geophone operates irrespective of tilt, i.e., may be used for either S- or
P-wave study.

Transition-Zone Phones
• What are the transition zones?
• They are areas where the sea meets the land such as:
– Shallow water coasts,
– Beaches,
– Shallow reefs,
– Or river estuaries.
• Data acquisition is very difficult in these areas.
• One approach adopted for recording data is the use of thick-skinned cables
(marine cables built using multiple cable skins).

Reflection Field Methods

Is different according to:
• Environment:
–land
–marine
• Depending on:
–the nature of the geologic problem,
–the accessibility of the area.
• Sequence of phases during measurements is essential to avoid delays (i.e., to
control data costs)

Field methods for the acquisition of seismic reflection

I. Basic considerations
II. Field operations for land surveys
III. Field layouts

I. Basic considerations
1. Data acquisition
2. Crew organization
3. Environmental and safety considerations
4. Conduct of a field survey

I.1. Data acquisition

• By: geophysical contractors,
• For: oil (75 to 80%) or gas (25 to 20%) - company clients
• Acquisition methods became standard in all companies, thus their competitions
are cost dependent
Crew organization
• Size
–2 to 3 persons for a shallow land survey for engineering objectives
–>> a hundred of people for deep reflection surveys in jungle areas

Supervisor (party chief)

• has the overall responsibility for a field crew
• assisted by:
An administrator or office manager (responsible for field operations) and
other field personnel report to him
• He is responsible for:
1- obtaining maximum production and adequate quality at reasonable cost, i.e.
optimization (main target)
2- Safety,
3- Equipment maintenance,
4- maintaining adequate supplies,
5- paying bills, and
6- Operation of the field camp where required.

The surveyor
• As the advance man on the ground he has the responsibility:
1- locating survey points in their proper places
2- predicting difficulties and problems that the survey will encounter and seeks to
avoid or resolve them.
3- investigating alternatives to do survey objectives at minimum cost
4- determines the best access routes for subsequent units
Assisted by:
1- permit ma (contacts land owners and tenants and secures permissions to
conduct the survey)
2- Rodmen (help with measurements)
He may also supervise:
Brush cutters and bulldozer operators who clear the way.

The Observer
• is next after the party manager in field authority.
• is responsible for:
– The actual field layouts and data acquisition (operation and instruments)
• assisted by:
– A junior observer
– A crew of jug hustlers (layout the cable and geophones)
• And may assisted by:
– Drillers: to help drill
– A shooter: to detonate explosive at the proper time & to clean up the shot hole at
the proper time
– Cooks and mechanics out of field camps.
I.3. Environmental and safety considerations
A seismic crew is not only responsible for any damages from its operations, but also
for environmental considerations and safety.
• To minimize the environmental impact of their operations.
In operation:
– Every accident should be studied so that the causes may be rectified in order to
avoid similar accidents in the future.
Or outdoor dangers:
– E.g. falls, cuts, infections, insect bites, and poisonous plants, and any work with
machinery involves hazards.
I.4. Conduct of a field survey
• Seismic survey are operated by contractors who acquire the data for client oil
companies.
• The contractor estimates
– Costs,
– suggests modification of specifications, and
– prepares a bid.

• The contractor begins

– Equipment preparation
– sends an advance group to the field to arrange for office space and personnel
accommodations, communications permits, supply, storage, and repair facilities,
initiates permitting operations, and recruits local labor.
II. Field operations for land surveys
• II.1 The program
• II.2 Permitting
• II.3 laying out the line
• II.4 Field procedures

II.1 The survey program

• Is dictated by the clients, and the work is conducted by the contractor
• However: Acquisition procedures are developed in meetings between company
and contractor geophysicists.
• Birddog: a representative of the client company "Birddog” is attached to the field
crew while the work is being done to monitor the work and alter the program in the
light of results.
Before Beginning a Survey Program
• “Is it probable that the proposed work will provide the required information?”
• Good practice is to 'shoot the program on paper”
– estimating what the data are likely to show,
– anticipating problems that may occur,
– asking what alternatives are available and how data might be obtained that will
distinguish between alternative interpretations.
From shooting the program on paper to reality
– Problems that may occur:
• Data migration may require that lines be relocated
• Crestal areas: may be so extensively faulted that lines across them may be non-
definitive. The structures investigated may be beyond seismic resolving power.
• Lines may cross features such as faults so obliquely that their evidences are not
readily interpretable.
• Lack of cross control may result in features located below the seismic line being
confused by features to the side of the line.
Near-surface variations along a proposed line may be so large that the data are
difficult to interpret, whereas moving the seismic line a short distance may improve
data quality.
• Obstructions along a proposed line may increase difficulties unnecessarily,
whereas moving the line slightly may achieve the same objectives at reduced cost.
“Where the dip is considerable, merely running a seismic line to a wellhead may
not tie the Seismic data to the well data”.
• Lines may not extend sufficiently beyond faults and other features to establish the
existence of such features unambiguously or to determine fault displacements.
• In general, lines should extend with full coverage beyond the area of interest to a
distance equal to the target depth
II.2 Permitting
• Once the seismic program has been decided, it is necessary to meet with the
owners and/or leasors of the land to be traversed to take permission to enter the
land. It is advantageous to explain the nature of impending operations
• Permission involve:
– A payment, sometimes regarded as advance payment “for damages that may be
incurred:’
– A seismic crew is responsible for damages resulting from their actions whether or
not it is included in the permission.

II.3 laying out the line

• The survey crew lays out the lines by a transit-and-chain survey
• The transit-and-chain determines the positions and elevations of both the source
points and the centers of geophone groups.
• The chain is a wire equal in length to the geophone group interval.
• Each geophone group center is marked in a conspicuous manner by means of
brightly colored plastic ribbon called flagging
• The transit is used to keep the line straight and to obtain the elevation of each
group center by sighting on a rod carried by the lead chainman.
 The survey may be tied to points that have been surveyed in with higher
precision, to avoid accumulating errors, and side shots are made to relate nearby
structures, streams, roads, fences, and other features to the line location.
• Radio-positioning systems are sometimes used for horizontal control, in marsh
and shallow-water areas where elevation control can be obtained from the water
level.
• In areas of difficult terrain or heavy vegetation, trailbuilding or trail-clearing
crews may be required. ”these are often under the direct supervision of the
surveyor”.

II.4. Field procedures

• Shooting
• Recording

Shooting
• Sources
• Preparation for shooting
• Check out before shooting

Sources
1) Hammer
2) Vibroseis
3) Explosives
4) Marine source (Air gun)
Preparation for Shooting (1)
• In case of explosive energy sources:
• The surveyor is followed by shothole drillers
A seismic crew may have from 1 to 10 drilling crews
Depending on:
• The number and depth of holes
• The ease of drilling which based on the nature of the environment.
Preparation for Shooting (2)
• In case of surface-energy sources:
There is of course no shothole drilling.
The sources consisting of four to five truck-mounted units, move into position and
await instructions from the recording crew.
Even so, terms such as “shot” and “shotpoint” are still sometimes used;
• Often “vibrator point” is used with Vibroseis
Check up before shooting
• After the cables and geophones are laid out and tested,
• The observer checks that:
– All geophones are connected,
– The amplifiers and other units of the recording system are properly adjusted,
– Everything is ready for a recording.
• Then the shooter fire the shot
Recording
• The recording crew can be divided into three units:
1. The source unit for:
A. positioning and activating the surface-energy sources or
B. loading (when required) and firing the explosives;
2. The jug hustlers who:
A. place the geophones in their proper locations, and connect them to the cables
B. lay out the cables,
C. pick up the geophones and cables
3. The recording unit that does the actual recording of the signals.

At recording
• A geophysicist would examine each record immediately after it was acquired to
decide on changes in recording conditions.
• He would vary:
– Explosive size and depth,
– Field layout, and
– Instrument settings in an effort to improve the record.
• Several shots were generally taken in each borehole, drillers sometimes standing
by to redrill a hole that might be lost.
After Recording
• When finished with the recording at one source location the proper elements are
connected (sometimes by the instrument software) for the next record and the
source crew moves on.
 III. Field layouts
Surveying operations
• The reflection signals to be recorded are usually of a higher frequency than those
of refraction.
Consists of
– Shooting
– Detectors
– Seismic units
Operational steps
• Marks out the shot points and the detector spread positions in advance.
• determining the surface levels at all these points
• Drill the shot holes at the points previously marked.
• Preparing explosives like dynamite, gelatine or other explosives.
• If non- explosive techniques are employed, drilling of shot hole is not necessary;
the seismic waves are produced by other devices.
 Plant the geophones at the various spots marked for the spread, and establish
connections to the recording truck.
• Test the performance of the recording system thoroughly by adjusting the filters
and amplifiers.
• the operational area be quiet
 when all is set ready,  shooting  Recording

Elimination or minimizing the noise level

1. Grouping of detectors
2. Mixing of channels
3. Common Depth Point Method (C.D.P.)

1- Grouping of detectors
• The procedure adopted to avoid the noise or interference known as ‘ground
roll’, is to use a group of detectors for each trace in such a manner as to cancel
the surface waves which are coming horizontally.
• Multiple geophones for each trace improves also the quality of the reflections.
• The number of geophones and their grouping pattern are controlled by the
nature of the interfering noises in the area under investigation. Reflection pulses
will be averaged in each trace, while the surface waves which are coming in
horizontally are eliminated
2- Mixing of channels
• It is often necessary to mix the channels carrying the filtered and amplified pulses
of one group of detectors with those of an adjacent group of detectors.

Mixing can be done by:

• Combination of two adjacent channels:
E.g. mixing channels 1 and 2 to form trace 1 on the record, channels 2 and 3 to from
trace 2, and so on.
• Diminish the pulses of one channel relative to another:
E.g. For instance,
• trace 2= ½ ch1 inputs+ ch2 inputs+ ½ ch3 inputs
• trace 3= ½ ch2 inputs+ ch3 inputs+ ½ ch4 inputs
• trace 4= ½ ch3 inputs+ ch4 inputs+ ½ ch5 inputs
And so on.

3- Common Depth Point Method (C.D.P.)

• SINGLE COVERAGE
• MULTIPLE COVERAGE

SINGLE COVERAGE
• This technique may mask the details of the subsurface structure, especially when
the detector arrays become larger

MULTIPLE COVERAGE OR CDP

• To overcome the above limitation, CDP technique is used
• In this technique, a number of shot points and detector locations are selected in
such a way that they have a common depth point, but with several off-set distances.
• The channels representing common depth points are recorded and combined or
‘stacked’.
• Each reflecting point is recorded from a number of different shot points into a
number of receivers.
• After normal move out correction, the traces are added.
Seismic Arrays
• Generally, seismic refraction surveys employ more than one geophone

1-
 2-

3-

4- fan- shooting
• geophones are arranged in an arc around the source so that they are all the
same Distance from it.
• This array can be used to determine the presence of subsurface discontinuities.
• If a subsurface cavity such as a cave is present, the waves which travel through
the cave will be slowed down and will arrive later at some geophones
• It is necessary to repeat the procedure but with a different orientation,
Reciprocity in a seismic array
• In seismic refraction surveys, it is possible to interchange the position of seismic
sources and geophones and the travel times for the refracted wave in either
direction is the same as the same paths are travelled

Data Processing steps

• Some important steps:
1. Receiving field tapes at a processing center.
2. Format verification and Editing (control of field values)
3. Demultiplexing (lines  columns)
4. Muting
5. Static correction (topography, overburden layers)
6. Linear filters and convolution
7. Deconvolution
8. Moveout
9. Stacking (summation of singular seismograms)
10. Migration

1 & 2 steps
• Processing that is optimal for one set of objectives may not be optimal for another
set.
1. Receiving field tapes at a processing center.
2. Format verification.
This involves dumping (displaying the tape’s magnetic pattern on a printout) the
First few (possibly 10) records and comparing

3. Demultiplexing
(Multiplexing)
• Field data are usually time-sequential, (by a multiplexer)
– i.e., the first sample for each channel is recorded before the second sample for any
channel,
• The signal consists of a series of amplitude values, spaced and recorded at specific
sampling interval
• The usually sampling interval:
– = 4ms in marine work,
– = 2ms in land or high resolution work
Whereas most processing requires trace sequential data,
– i.e., all the data for the first channel before the data for the second channel
approaching vertically.
• A multiplexer connects the different channels sequentially to the digitizer
– i.e., only one channel to the digital tape recorder.
Demultiplexing
• To reverse the multiplexing process through a demulteplexer.
• To re-order the data so as to reconstitute the signal for each receiver-shot
combination
4. Muting
• The editing of unwanted arrivals by zeroing each trace before a certain time, which
increases with increasing offset.
• used to avoid the forming of bands of noise especially in the shallower part of the
section.

5. Statics
• Causes of near-surface time delays (in the case of land data):
–elevation changes along the line
–strong velocity variations in the near surface.(weathering effect)
Correction is used to correct travel-times by assuming if all our shots and Receivers
had been on a horizontal datum plane.

6.1-Linear filters and convolution

• It is the operation of replacing each element of an input function with an output
function scaled according to the magnitude of the input element, and then
superimposing the outputs.
Primary and multiple reflections. The red and purple events are primaries; they have
single reflection along the ray-path.
• The green event has multiple reflections and in this case is the first-order multiple
of the purple event. The timing of the green event may be similar to underlying
Primaries, and if it is not removed it may obscure the deeper reflectivity.

6.2. Deconvolution
• It is the process of undoing the effect of convolution, i.e. removing something that
has been convolved.
• A digital operator is designed for each trace that is convolved with the noisy trace
to remove the unwanted one.
• It is a process that sharpens the wavelet and removes any short period multiples.
7. MOVEOUT
• Following the reflection signals from trace to trace, will reveal that the troughs and
Peaks are out of step i.e. show a ‘moveout’,
• Each step differs from the adjacent one by a very little time.
• The reflection pulses line up across the record as a slightly slanting line.
Figure: Gather showing primary and multiple events, illustrating moveout differences
Between the two. In this example the primary NMO velocity has been used to flatten
The primary events. The multiples, in this case from a deep seabed, are dipping from
Top left to bottom right. This example shows the removal of the multiple by the
Radon transform technique, where events with moveout on the farthest offset
greater than 100 ms and less than 1500 ms were removed

8. Stacking
• It is the mixing of traces
• i.e., summation of singular seismograms

9. Migration
• It is the step which attempts to move the recorded data so that events lie in their
Correct spatial location rather than their recorded location.
• With algorithms as: Kirchhoff, finite difference, finite elements, FK, phase shift, etc.
During seismic data recording the reflection from point A will be recorded by a
coincident source and receiver at location B. It will be plotted on a stacked section as
a point A* vertically below B with distance given by length AB. Migration moves the
Point back to its subsurface reflection point and plots it vertically below point C, thus
giving a section that looks more like a cross section through the earth.

Some criteria for reflection interpretation

Amount reflected (amplitude of reflection) will depend on the relative

Difference in physical properties across the interface

Reflection coefficient (RC)

– Positive or negative (-1 to 1)
 not all changes in lithology associated with change in AI (Z).
 Changes in fluid content in a single lithology can give rise to reflections
 Different combinations of layers lithologies can have the same RC, i.e. Seismic
“non -unique

Seismic Resolution
• Each interface produces a distinct reflection.
• If reflections are widely enough spaced, each will be recognizable.
• Once reflections start to get closer, they start to interfere with each other.
• At some point adjacent reflections could be so close that they completely cancel
each other out.
– Use wedge model to investigate resolution
– When bed is thick enough, reflections from top and base of gas sand are
separate
– And peak/trough distance provides a reliable indicator of bed thickness

As bed thickness decreases to ¼ λ, peak/trough distance remains a reliable indicator

of bed thickness, although reflections from top and base interfere
Below ¼ λ peak/trough distance no longer changes, i.e. it is no longer an indicator of
bed thickness.
• The ¼ λ criterion defines the resolution of the seismic data
Tuning thickness
Beds of thicknesses ¼ λ are known as “seismic thin beds”
• This thickness is called Tuning thickness
• Many reservoirs are seismic thin beds
Detectability & Resolution
Note that beds less than ¼ λ still produce reflections
• They can be “detected” even if they cannot be “resolved”
• There is a subtle difference between “detectability” and “resolution”
• Limit of detectability depends on signal-to noise ratio, etc.
– 1/16 λ sometimes used as a limit of detectability
Example 1:
V = 6,000 m/s
f = 40 Hz
λ = 150 m
Tuning thickness = 150/4 = 37.5 m
Detectability = 150/16 ≈ 9.4 m
Example 2:
V = 3,600 m/s
f = 45 Hz
λ = 80 m
Tuning thickness = 80/4 = 20 m
Detectability = 80/16 = 5 m