Estimation of reflection coefficients from zero‐offset field data

Geophysics ◽  
1993 ◽  
Vol 58 (11) ◽  
pp. 1634-1645 ◽  
Author(s):  
Børge Arntsen ◽  
Bjørn Ursin

The classical one‐dimensional (1-D) inverse problem consists of estimating reflection coefficients from surface seismic data using the 1-D wave equation. Several authors have found stable solutions to this problem using least‐squares model‐fitting methods. We show that the application of these plane‐wave solutions to seismic data generated with a point source can lead to errors in estimating reflection coefficients. This difficulty is avoided by using a least‐squares model fitting scheme describing vertically traveling waves originating from a point source. It is shown that this method is roughly equivalent to deterministic deconvolution with built‐in multiple removal and compensation for spherical spreading. A true zero‐offset field data set from a specially designed seismic experiment is then used as input to estimate reflection coefficients. Stacking velocities from a conventional seismic survey were used to estimate spherical spreading. The resulting reflection coefficients are shown to correlate well with an available well log.

Geophysics ◽  
2010 ◽  
Vol 75 (6) ◽  
pp. U49-U60 ◽  
Author(s):  
Biondo Biondi

Migration velocity can be estimated from seismic data by analyzing, focusing, and defocusing of residual-migrated images. The accuracy of these velocity estimates is limited by the inherent ambiguity between velocity and reflector curvature. However, velocity resolution improves when reflectors with different curvatures are present. Image focusing is measured by evaluating coherency across structural dips, in addition to coherency across aperture/azimuth angles. The inherent ambiguity between velocity and reflector curvature is directly tackled by introducing a curvature correction into the computation of the semblance functional that estimates image coherency. The resulting velocity estimator provides velocity estimates that are (1) unbiased by reflector curvature and (2) consistent with the velocity information that is routinely obtained by measuring coherency over aperture/azimuth angles. Applications to a 2D synthetic prestack data set and a 2D field prestack data set confirm that the proposed method provides consistent and unbiased velocity information. They also suggest that velocity estimates based on the new image-focusing semblance may be more robust and have higher resolution than estimates based on conventional semblance functionals. Applying the proposed method to zero-offset field data recorded in New York Harbor yields a velocity function that is consistent with available geologic information and clearly improves the focusing of the reflectors.


Geophysics ◽  
2006 ◽  
Vol 71 (5) ◽  
pp. U67-U76 ◽  
Author(s):  
Robert J. Ferguson

The possibility of improving regularization/datuming of seismic data is investigated by treating wavefield extrapolation as an inversion problem. Weighted, damped least squares is then used to produce the regularized/datumed wavefield. Regularization/datuming is extremely costly because of computing the Hessian, so an efficient approximation is introduced. Approximation is achieved by computing a limited number of diagonals in the operators involved. Real and synthetic data examples demonstrate the utility of this approach. For synthetic data, regularization/datuming is demonstrated for large extrapolation distances using a highly irregular recording array. Without approximation, regularization/datuming returns a regularized wavefield with reduced operator artifacts when compared to a nonregularizing method such as generalized phase shift plus interpolation (PSPI). Approximate regularization/datuming returns a regularized wavefield for approximately two orders of magnitude less in cost; but it is dip limited, though in a controllable way, compared to the full method. The Foothills structural data set, a freely available data set from the Rocky Mountains of Canada, demonstrates application to real data. The data have highly irregular sampling along the shot coordinate, and they suffer from significant near-surface effects. Approximate regularization/datuming returns common receiver data that are superior in appearance compared to conventional datuming.


Author(s):  
A. Ogbamikhumi ◽  
T. Tralagba ◽  
E. E. Osagiede

Field ‘K’ is a mature field in the coastal swamp onshore Niger delta, which has been producing since 1960. As a huge producing field with some potential for further sustainable production, field monitoring is therefore important in the identification of areas of unproduced hydrocarbon. This can be achieved by comparing production data with the corresponding changes in acoustic impedance observed in the maps generated from base survey (initial 3D seismic) and monitor seismic survey (4D seismic) across the field. This will enable the 4D seismic data set to be used for mapping reservoir details such as advancing water front and un-swept zones. The availability of good quality onshore time-lapse seismic data for Field ‘K’ acquired in 1987 and 2002 provided the opportunity to evaluate the effect of changes in reservoir fluid saturations on time-lapse amplitudes. Rock physics modelling and fluid substitution studies on well logs were carried out, and acoustic impedance change in the reservoir was estimated to be in the range of 0.25% to about 8%. Changes in reservoir fluid saturations were confirmed with time-lapse amplitudes within the crest area of the reservoir structure where reservoir porosity is 0.25%. In this paper, we demonstrated the use of repeat Seismic to delineate swept zones and areas hit with water override in a producing onshore reservoir.


Geophysics ◽  
2009 ◽  
Vol 74 (4) ◽  
pp. V59-V67 ◽  
Author(s):  
Shoudong Huo ◽  
Yanghua Wang

In seismic multiple attenuation, once the multiple models have been built, the effectiveness of the processing depends on the subtraction step. Usually the primary energy is partially attenuated during the adaptive subtraction if an [Formula: see text]-norm matching filter is used to solve a least-squares problem. The expanded multichannel matching (EMCM) filter generally is effective, but conservative parameters adopted to preserve the primary could lead to some remaining multiples. We have managed to improve the multiple attenuation result through an iterative application of the EMCM filter to accumulate the effect of subtraction. A Butterworth-type masking filter based on the multiple model can be used to preserve most of the primary energy prior to subtraction, and then subtraction can be performed on the remaining part to better suppress the multiples without affecting the primaries. Meanwhile, subtraction can be performed according to the orders of the multiples, as a single subtraction window usually covers different-order multiples with different amplitudes. Theoretical analyses, and synthetic and real seismic data set demonstrations, proved that a combination of these three strategies is effective in improving the adaptive subtraction during seismic multiple attenuation.


Geophysics ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 83 (4) ◽  
pp. V243-V252
Author(s):  
Wail A. Mousa

A stable explicit depth wavefield extrapolation is obtained using [Formula: see text] iterative reweighted least-squares (IRLS) frequency-space ([Formula: see text]-[Formula: see text]) finite-impulse response digital filters. The problem of designing such filters to obtain stable images of challenging seismic data is formulated as an [Formula: see text] IRLS minimization. Prestack depth imaging of the challenging Marmousi model data set was then performed using the explicit depth wavefield extrapolation with the proposed [Formula: see text] IRLS-based algorithm. Considering the extrapolation filter design accuracy, the [Formula: see text] IRLS minimization method resulted in an image with higher quality when compared with the weighted least-squares method. The method can, therefore, be used to design high-accuracy extrapolation filters.


2020 ◽  
Vol 8 (2) ◽  
pp. T217-T229
Author(s):  
Yang Mu ◽  
John Castagna ◽  
Gabriel Gil

Sparse-layer reflectivity inversion decomposes a seismic trace into a limited number of simple layer responses and their corresponding reflection coefficients for top and base reflections. In contrast to sparse-spike inversion, the applied sparsity constraint is less biased against layer thickness and can thus better resolve thin subtuning layers. Application to a 3D seismic data set in Southern Alberta produces inverted impedances that have better temporal resolution and lateral stability and a less blocky appearance than sparse-spike inversion. Bandwidth extension harmonically extrapolated the frequency spectra of the inverted layers and nearly doubled the usable bandwidth. Although the prospective glauconitic sand tunes at approximately 37 m, bandwidth extension reduced the tuning thickness to 22 m. Bandwidth-extended data indicate a higher correlation with synthetic traces than the original seismic data and reveal features below the original tuning thickness. After bandwidth extension, the channel top and base are more evident on inline and crossline profiles. Lateral facies changes interpreted from the inverted acoustic impedance of the bandwidth-extended data are consistent with observations in wells.


Geophysics ◽  
1993 ◽  
Vol 58 (2) ◽  
pp. 240-256 ◽  
Author(s):  
Xiang‐Yang Li ◽  
Stuart Crampin

Most published techniques for analyzing shear‐wave splitting tend to be computing intensive, and make assumptions, such as the orthogonality of the two split shear waves, which are not necessarily correct. We present a fast linear‐transform technique for analyzing shear‐wave splitting in four‐component (two sources/ two receivers) seismic data, which is flexible and widely applicable. We transform the four‐component data by simple linear transforms so that the complicated shear‐wave motion is linearized in a wide variety of circumstances. This allows various attributes to be measured, including the polarizations of faster split shear waves and the time delays between faster and slower split shear waves, as well as allowing the time series of the faster and slower split shear waves to be separated deterministically. In addition, with minimal assumptions, the geophone orientations can be estimated for zero‐offset verticle seismic profiles (VSPs), and the polarizations of the slower split shear waves can be measured for offset VSPs. The time series of the split shear‐waves can be separated before stack for reflection surveys. The technique has been successfully applied to a number of field VSPs and reflection data sets. Applications to a zero‐offset VSP, an offset VSP, and a reflection data set will be presented to illustrate the technique.


Geophysics ◽  
2010 ◽  
Vol 75 (4) ◽  
pp. V51-V60 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ramesh (Neelsh) Neelamani ◽  
Anatoly Baumstein ◽  
Warren S. Ross

We propose a complex-valued curvelet transform-based (CCT-based) algorithm that adaptively subtracts from seismic data those noises for which an approximate template is available. The CCT decomposes a geophysical data set in terms of small reflection pieces, with each piece having a different characteristic frequency, location, and dip. One can precisely change the amplitude and shift the location of each seismic reflection piece in a template by controlling the amplitude and phase of the template's CCT coefficients. Based on these insights, our approach uses the phase and amplitude of the data's and template's CCT coefficients to correct misalignment and amplitude errors in the noise template, thereby matching the adapted template with the actual noise in the seismic data, reflection event-by-event. We also extend our approach to subtract noises that require several templates to be approximated. By itself, the method can only correct small misalignment errors ([Formula: see text] in [Formula: see text] data) in the template; it relies on conventional least-squares (LS) adaptation to correct large-scale misalignment errors, such as wavelet mismatches and bulk shifts. Synthetic and real-data results illustrate that the CCT-based approach improves upon the LS approach and a curvelet-based approach described by Herrmann and Verschuur.


2016 ◽  
Vol 4 (4) ◽  
pp. T577-T589 ◽  
Author(s):  
Haitham Hamid ◽  
Adam Pidlisecky

In complex geology, the presence of highly dipping structures can complicate impedance inversion. We have developed a structurally constrained inversion in which a computationally well-behaved objective function is minimized subject to structural constraints. This approach allows the objective function to incorporate structural orientation in the form of dips into our inversion algorithm. Our method involves a multitrace impedance inversion and a rotation of an orthogonal system of derivative operators. Local dips used to constrain the derivative operators were estimated from migrated seismic data. In addition to imposing structural constraints on the inversion model, this algorithm allows for the inclusion of a priori knowledge from boreholes. We investigated this algorithm on a complex synthetic 2D model as well as a seismic field data set. We compared the result obtained with this approach with the results from single trace-based inversion and laterally constrained inversion. The inversion carried out using dip information produces a model that has higher resolution that is more geologically realistic compared with other methods.


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