			Home About us Contact

Shear-wave Splitting (shear-wave + splitting)

Distribution by Scientific Domains

Earth and Environmental Science	100%

Selected Abstracts

The Geysers geothermal field: results from shear-wave splitting analysis in a fractured reservoir

GEOPHYSICAL JOURNAL INTERNATIONAL, Issue 3 2005
Maya Elkibbi
SUMMARY Clear shear-wave splitting (SWS) is observed in 1757 high signal-to-noise ratio microearthquake seismograms recorded by two high density seismic arrays in the NW and the SE Geysers geothermal fields in California. The Geysers reservoir rocks within the study area are largely composed of lithic, low-grade metamorphism, well-fractured metagraywackes which commonly lack schistosity, warranting the general assumption that shear-wave splitting here is induced solely by stress-aligned fracturing in an otherwise isotropic medium. The high quality of observed shear-wave splitting parameters (fast shear-wave polarization directions and time delays) and the generally good data spatial coverage provide an unprecedented opportunity to demonstrate the applicability and limitations of the shear-wave splitting approach to successfully detect fracture systems in the shallow crust based on SWS field observations from a geothermal reservoir. Results from borehole stations in the NW Geysers indicate that polarization orientations range between N and N60E; while in the SE Geysers, ground surface stations show polarization directions that are generally N5E, N35E-to-N60E, N75E-to-N85E, and N20W-to-N55W. Crack orientations obtained from observed polarization orientations are in good agreement with independent field evidence, such as cracks in geological core data, tracer tests, locally mapped fractures, and the regional tectonic setting. Time delays range typically between 8 and 40 ms km,1, indicating crack densities well within the norm of fractured reservoirs. The sizeable collection of high resolution shear-wave splitting parameters shows evidence of prevalent vertical to nearly vertical fracture patterns in The Geysers field. At some locations, however, strong variations of SWS parameters with ray azimuth and incident angle within the shear-wave window of seismic stations indicate the presence of more complex fracture patterns in the subsurface. [source]

Processing, modelling and predicting time-lapse effects of overpressured fluid-injection in a fractured reservoir

GEOPHYSICAL JOURNAL INTERNATIONAL, Issue 2 2002
Erika Angerer
Summary Time-lapse seismology is important for monitoring subsurface pressure changes and fluid movements in producing hydrocarbon reservoirs. We analyse two 4-D, 3C onshore surveys from Vacuum Field, New Mexico, USA, where the reservoir of interest is a fractured dolomite. In Phase VI, a time-lapse survey was acquired before and after a pilot tertiary-recovery programme of overpressured CO2 injection, which altered the fluid composition and the pore-fluid pressure. Phase VII was a similar time-lapse survey in the same location but with a different lower-pressure injection regime. Applying a processing sequence to the Phase VI data preserving normal-incidence shear-wave anisotropy (time-delays and polarization) and maximizing repeatability, interval-time analysis of the reservoir interval shows a significant 10 per cent change in shear-wave velocity anisotropy and 3 per cent decrease in the P -wave interval velocities. A 1-D model incorporating both saturation and pressure changes is matched to the data. The saturation changes have little effect on the seismic velocities. There are two main causes of the time-lapse changes. Any change in pore-fluid pressures modifies crack aspect ratios. Additionally, when there are overpressures, as there are in Phase VI, there is a 90° change in maximum impedance directions, and the leading faster split shear wave, instead of being parallel to the crack face as it is for low pore-fluid pressures, becomes orthogonal to the crack face. The anisotropic poro-elasticity (APE) model of the evolution of microcracked rock, calculates the evolution of cracked rock to changing conditions. APE modelling shows that at high overburden pressures only nearly vertical cracks, to which normal incidence P waves are less sensitive than S waves, remain open as the pore-fluid pressure increases. APE modelling matches the observed time-lapse effects almost exactly demonstrating that shear-wave anisotropy is a highly sensitive diagnostic of pore-fluid pressure changes in fractured reservoirs. In this comparatively limited analysis, APE modelling of fluid-injection at known pressure correctly predicted the changes in seismic response, particularly the shear-wave splitting, induced by the high-pressure CO2 injection. In the Phase VII survey, APE modelling also successfully predicted the response to the lower-pressure injection using the same Phase VI model of the cracked reservoir. The underlying reason for this remarkable predictability of fluid-saturated reservoir rocks is the critical nature and high crack density of the fluid-saturated cracks and microcracks in the reservoir rock, which makes cracked reservoirs critical systems. [source]

Controlled sources for shear-wave surveys in mines

GEOPHYSICAL PROSPECTING, Issue 3 2000
Gordon M. Holmes
The ability to analyse shear-wave anisotropy in a mine environment is greatly aided by using multiple source orientations of a reproducible, impulsive shear-wave source. The analysis of what is probably the first controlled source shear-wave experiment in a mine environment demonstrates clearly that shear-wave polarizations and time delays between split shear-wave arrivals are reliably measured because of the use of multiple source orientations rather than a single shear-wave source. Reliability is further aided by modelling the shear-wave source radiation pattern, which allows for the unequivocal discrimination between seismic raypaths where shear-wave splitting did and did not occur. The analysis also demonstrates the great importance of high reproducibility of the seismic source for the use of shear waves in time-lapse surveys to monitor changes in a rockmass. [source]

Seismic anisotropy in granite at the Underground Research Laboratory, Manitoba

GEOPHYSICAL PROSPECTING, Issue 3 2000
Gordon M. Holmes
The Shear-Wave Experiment at Atomic Energy of Canada Limited's Underground Research Laboratory was probably the first controlled-source shear-wave survey in a mine environment. Taking place in conjunction with the excavation of the Mine-by test tunnel at 420 m depth, the shear-wave experiment was designed to measure the in situ anisotropy of the rockmass and to use shear waves to observe excavation effects using the greatest variety of raypath directions of any in situ shear-wave survey to date. Inversion of the shear-wave polarizations shows that the anisotropy of the in situ rockmass is consistent with hexagonal symmetry with an approximate fabric orientation of strike 023° and dip 35°. The in situ anisotropy is probably due to microcracks with orientations governed by the in situ stress field and to mineral alignment within the weak gneissic layering. However, there is no unique interpretation as to the cause of the in situ anisotropy as the fabric orientation agrees approximately with both the orientation expected from extensive-dilatancy anisotropy and that of the gneissic layering. Eight raypaths with shear waves propagating wholly or almost wholly through granodiorite, rather than granite, do not show the expected shear-wave splitting and indicate a lower in situ anisotropy, which may be due to the finer grain size and/or the absence of gneissic layering within the granodiorite. These results suggest that shear waves may be used to determine crack and mineral orientations and for remote monitoring of a rockmass. This has potential applications in mining and waste monitoring. [source]