Beirut Arab University Spring 2015

Faculty of Engineering
Petroleum department

Ch. 3
Elements of
seismic surveying
Dr. Rami HARKOUSS
Petroleum & Petrochemical Eng.
Drilling and Production Petroleum Eng.
Introduction
In seismic surveying, seismic waves are created by a
controlled source and propagate through the subsurface.
Some waves will return to the surface after refraction or
reflection at geological boundaries within the subsurface.
Instruments distributed along the surface detect the
ground motion caused by these returning waves and hence
measure the arrival times of the waves at different ranges
from the source. These travel times may be converted into
depth values and, hence, the distribution of subsurface
geological interfaces may be systematically mapped.
Seismic survey represents the single most important
geophysical surveying method in terms of the amount of
survey activity and the very wide range of its applications.

It is concerned with the structure of the Earth down to

tens of kilometres and uses artificial seismic sources, such
as explosions, whose location, timing and source
characteristics are under the direct control of the
geophysicist.

Seismic surveying also uses specialized recording systems

and associated data processing and interpretation
techniques.
They are widely applied to exploration problems involving
the detection and mapping of subsurface boundaries. They
also identify significant physical properties of each
subsurface unit and are therefore widely used in the search
for oil and gas.

Seismic surveying can be carried out on land or at sea and

is used extensively in offshore geological surveys and the
exploration for offshore resources.

To understand the different types of seismic wave that

propagate through the ground away from a seismic source,
some elementary concepts of stress and strain need to be
considered.
Stress and strain
In general, when external forces are applied to a body,
balanced internal forces are set up within it.
Stress is a measure of the intensity of these balanced
internal forces. The stress may be resolved into a
component of normal stress perpendicular to the surface
and a component of shearing stress in the plane of the
surface.
A body subjected to stress undergoes a change of
shape and/or size known as strain. Up to a certain
limiting value of stress, known as the yield strength of a
material, the strain is directly proportional to the
applied stress (Hookes Law).

This elastic strain is reversible so that removal of stress

leads to a removal of strain. If the yield strength is
exceeded the strain becomes non-linear and partly
irreversible (i.e. permanent strain results), and this is
known as plastic or ductile strain. If the stress is
increased still further the body fails by fracture.
A typical stressstrain curve for a solid body
(a) Youngs modulus (c) Shear modulus
(b) Bulk modulus (d) Axial modulus
 Seismic waves
Seismic waves are amounts of elastic strain energy that
propagate outwards from a seismic source such as an
earthquake or an explosion. Sources suitable for seismic
surveying usually generate short-lived wave trains, known
as pulses, that typically contain a wide range of
frequencies.

The strains associated with the passage of a seismic pulse

may be assumed to be elastic. On this assumption, the
propagation velocities of seismic pulses are determined by
the elastic moduli and densities of the materials through
which they pass. There are two groups of seismic waves,
body waves and surface waves.
Body waves
Body waves can propagate through the internal volume
of an elastic solid and may be of two types.

Compressional waves (the longitudinal, primary or P-

waves of earthquake seismology) propagate by
compressional and dilatational uniaxial strains in the
direction of wave travel.

Shear waves (the transverse, secondary or S-waves of

earthquake seismology) propagate by a pure shear strain
in a direction perpendicular to the direction of wave
travel.
The velocity of propagation of any body wave in any
homogeneous, isotropic material is given by:

= 1.7
 Surface waves
They can propagate along the boundary of the solid.
Rayleigh waves propagate along a free surface, or along
the boundary between two dissimilar solid media, the
associated particle motions being elliptical in a plane
perpendicular to the surface and containing the
direction of propagation.

Rayleigh waves
The amplitude of
Rayleigh waves
decreases exponentially
with distance below the
surface. They have a
propagation velocity
lower than that of
shear body waves.
Seismic wave velocities of rocks
By virtue of their various compositions, textures (grain
shape and size), porosities and contained pore fluids, rocks
differ in their elastic moduli and densities and, hence, in
their seismic velocities.

Information on the compressional and shear wave

velocities, vp and vs, of rock layers encountered by seismic
surveys is important for two main reasons:
1. It is necessary for the conversion of seismic wave travel
times into depths
2. It provides an indication of the lithology of a rock
(physical characteristics) or, in some cases, the nature
of the pore fluids contained within it.
 Rock lithology: For P-wave velocity:

Bulk, matrix and pore fluid densities

For S-wave velocity, the derivation of bulk velocity is more
complex since it will not travel through pore spaces at all.
This is an interesting point, since it suggests that the S-
wave velocity depends only on the matrix grain properties
and their texture, while the P-wave velocity is also
influenced by the pore fluids.

In principle, if both the P-wave and S-wave velocity of a

formation are known, it will be possible to detect
variations in pore fluid. This technique is used in the
hydrocarbon industry to detect gas-filled pore spaces in
underground hydrocarbon reservoirs.
The following empirical findings of velocity studies are
noteworthy:
1. Compressional wave velocity increases with pressure
(very rapidly over the first 100MPa).
2. Sandstone and shale velocities show an increase with
depth of burial and with age, due to the combined effects
of progressive compaction and cementation.
3. For a wide range of sedimentary rocks the compressional
wave velocity is related to density.

4. The presence of gas in sedimentary rocks reduces the

elastic moduli
Compressional wave velocities in Earth materials
Attenuation of seismic energy along ray paths

As a seismic pulse propagates in a homogeneous

material, the original energy E transmitted
outwards from the source becomes distributed over
a spherical shell (wavefront of expanding radius). If
the radius of the wavefront is r, the amount of
energy contained within a unit area of the shell is
E/4r2. With increasing distance along a ray path,
the energy contained in the ray falls off as r-2 due to
the effect of the geometrical spreading of the
energy.
A further cause of energy loss along a ray path arises
because the ground is imperfectly elastic in its response
to the passage of seismic waves. Elastic energy is
gradually absorbed into the medium by internal
frictional losses, leading eventually to the total
disappearance of the seismic disturbance

The progressive change of shape of a

wave during its propagation through the
ground due to the effects
of absorption.
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 reflection coefficient R is a
numerical measure of the effect
of an interface on wave
propagation:

The transmission coefficient T

is the ratio of the amplitude
A2 of the transmitted ray to
the amplitude A0 of the
incident ray and equal to:
Reflection and refraction of obliquely incident rays
When a P-wave ray is obliquely incident, reflected and
transmitted P-wave rays are generated as in the case of
normal incidence.
Additionally, some of the incident compressional energy is
converted into reflected and transmitted S-wave rays
In the case of oblique incidence, the transmitted P wave
ray travels through the lower layer with a changed
direction of propagation and is referred to as a refracted
ray.
 Critical refraction
When the velocity is higher in the underlying layer, there is
a particular angle of incidence, known as the critical angle
c, for which the angle of refraction is 90. This gives rise to
a critically refracted ray that travels along the interface at
the higher velocity v2.

The passage of the critically refracted ray along the top of

the lower layer causes a perturbation in the upper layer
that travels forward at the velocity v2, which is greater
than the seismic velocity v1 of that upper layer (similar to
a projectile)
This wave is known as a head wave and it passes up obliquely
through the upper layer towards the surface

By means of the head wave, seismic energy is returned

to the surface after critical refraction in an underlying
layer of higher velocity.
Diffraction
At unexpected and sudden discontinuities in interfaces,
the laws of reflection and refraction will be not longer
applied. Such phenomena give rise to a radial incident
seismic energy known as diffraction. Common sources of
diffraction in the ground include the edges of faulted
layers or small isolated objects, such as boulders (large
rock).

Diffracted phases are commonly observed in seismic

recordings and are sometimes difficult to discriminate
from reflected and refracted phases
Reflection and refraction surveying
Consider the simple geological section involving two
homogeneous layers of seismic velocities v1 and v2
separated by a horizontal interface at a depth z, the
compressional wave velocity being higher in the
underlying layer (i.e. v2 > v1).
From a near-surface seismic source S there are three
types of ray path by which energy reaches the surface at a
distance from the source, where it may be recorded by a
suitable detector as at D, a horizontal distance x from S.

The direct ray travels along a straight line through the top
layer from source to detector at velocity v1.

The reflected ray is obliquely incident on the interface

and is reflected back through the top layer to the
detector, travelling along its entire path at the top layer
velocity v1.
The refracted ray travels obliquely down to the interface at
velocity v1, along a segment of the interface at the higher
velocity v2, and back up through the upper layer at v1.

The travel time of a direct ray is given simply by

which defines a straight line of slope 1/v1 passing

through the timedistance origin.

The travel time of a reflected ray is given by this

hyperbola:
The travel time of a refracted ray (straight line):

which is the equation of a straight line having a slope

of 1/v2 and an intercept on the time axis of:

Travel-time curves for

direct, reflected and
refracted rays in the
case of a simple two-
layer model
Seismogram showing the output traces of 24
geophones distributed along the Earths surface
as a function of time.
Seismic data acquisition systems

The fundamental purpose of seismic surveys is accurately

to record the ground motion caused by a known source in
a known location. The record of ground motion with time
constitutes a seismogram and is the basic information
used for interpretation through either modelling or
imaging.

The essential instrumental requirements are to:

generate a seismic pulse with a suitable source
detect the seismic waves in the ground with a suitable
transducer
record and display the seismic waveforms on a suitable
seismograph.
The pulse width is determined by both the maximum
frequency and the frequency bandwidth of the recorded
signal.

Since Earth materials absorb seismic energy in a

frequency-selective way, the optimum waveform will be
specific to each survey.

It is an important characteristic of all geophysical

surveys, and particularly seismic ones, that they must be
designed individually for each specific case.
 Seismic sources and the seismic/acoustic spectrum

A seismic source is a localized region within which the

sudden release of energy leads to a rapid stressing of the
surrounding medium (such as an explosion).

Explosive sources

On land, explosives are normally detonated in shallow shot

holes to improve the coupling of the energy source with
the ground and to minimize surface damage. However, for
modern surveys, their use is steadily declining and limited
to locations where alternative sources cannot be used.
Non-explosive land sources

Vibroseis is the most common non-explosive source used

for reflection surveying. It uses truck-mounted vibrators
to pass into the ground an extended vibration of low
amplitude and continuously varying frequency, known as
a sweep signal. A typical sweep signal lasts from several
seconds up to a few tens of seconds and varies
progressively in frequency between limits of about 10
and 80 Hz.

The Vibroseis source is quick and convenient to use and

produces a precisely known and repeatable signal
Cross-correlation of a Vibroseis seismogram with the input sweep
signal to locate the positions of occurrence of reflected arrivals.
 Marine sources

Air guns are pneumatic sources in which a chamber is

charged with very high-pressure (typically 1015
MPa) compressed air fed through a hose from a
shipboard compressor. The air is released, by
electrical device, through vents into the water in the
form of a high-pressure bubble. A wide range of
chamber volumes are available, leading to different
energy outputs and frequency characteristics.
Water guns are an adaptation of air guns to avoid the
bubble pulse problem. The compressed air, rather than
being released into the water layer, is used to drive a piston
that ejects a water jet into the surrounding water.
Seismic recording systems

Recording a seismogram is a very difficult technical

operation from at least three key aspects:

1. The recording must be timed accurately relative to the

seismic source.

2. Seismograms must be recorded with multiple

transducers simultaneously, so that the speed and
direction of travel of seismic waves can be interpreted.

3. The electrical signals must be stored for future use.

In order to determine the subsurface path of the seismic
energy, the direction from which the wave arrives at the
surface must be determined. This is achieved by having
many transducers on the surface, and measuring the
small changes of arrival time as the waves move across
them.
At the end, seismic signals from the transducer
must be amplified, filtered if necessary, digitized
then stored with appropriate index information.

International standards produced by the Society

of Exploration Geophysicists (SEG 1997) are used
for the format of seismic data storage, these data
stored in modern computer systems of high
capacity.