New Dimensions in Land

Seismic Technology

Advanced seismic acquisition and processing technology has come onshore.

A high-fidelity, high-resolution, integrated single-sensor system is now available
for use on land. This technology marks a significant step forward for exploration,
field development and production.

Malik Ait-Messaoud
Mohamed-Zerrouk Boulegroun
Aziza Gribi
Rachid Kasmi
Mahieddine Touami
Sonatrach
Algiers, Algeria
Boff Anderson
Peter Van Baaren
WesternGeco
Dubai, UAE
Adel El-Emam
Ghassan Rached
Kuwait Oil Company
Kuwait
Andreas Laake
Stephen Pickering
WesternGeco
Gatwick, England
Nick Moldoveanu
WesternGeco
Houston, Texas, USA
Ali zbek
Cambridge, England
For help in preparation of this article, thanks to Mark Daly,
Jean-Michel Pascal Gehenn, Will Grace, Dominic Lowden
and Tony McGlue, Gatwick, England; Mark Egan and
Norm Pedersen, Houston, Texas; Zied Ben Hamad, Lagos,
Nigeria; Mahmoud Korba, Algiers, Algeria; and Andrew
Smart, Kuwait.
DSI (Dipole Shear Sonic Imager), Q-Borehole and
VSI (Versatile Seismic Imager) are marks of Schlumberger.
Omega2, Q-Land, Q-Marine, VIVID and Well-Driven Seismic
are marks of WesternGeco.

42

Seismic technology has achieved amazing feats

in exploration and production activities in the
past few decades. The advance to threedimensional (3D) seismic acquisition and
imaging of the subsurface, introduced in the
1980s, was perhaps the most important step.1
Another was development of four-dimensional
(4D), or time-lapse, seismic data to monitor how
reservoir properties such as fluids, temperature
and pressure change during the productive life of
a field.2 Introduction of multicomponent seismic
data acquisition with the recording of shear wave
signals, in addition to compressional wave data,
provided a tool for rock characterization and
identification of pore-fluid types.3
With the worlds ever-growing demand for oil
and gas, the emphasis in the oil and gas industry
has shifted to exploring deeper, more complex
reservoirs and to enhancing production from
existing assets. Field life can be extended by
delineating bypassed oil and gas and by placing
production and injection wells optimally. The
proactive monitoring of reservoir fluid
behaviorsaturation and pressureover time,
allows remedial actions to be implemented
before production is affected.
For all these applications, the geophysicist,
geologist and reservoir engineer require reliable
and repeatable data of exceptional resolution
that can be fine-tuned to a specific reservoir
objective. Exceptional data resolution means
having data with increased frequency bandwidth
and low coherent and noncoherent noise, while
preserving signal fidelity.4

For decades, the battle between signal and

noise has driven the seismic industry to seek
ways to suppress noise and to enhance signal.
The signal is a true representation of the actual
reflection that corresponds to changes in rock
characteristics such as lithology, porosity and
subsurface structure. Both noise, which can be
coherent or noncoherent, and absorption of higher
frequencies by the Earth obscure the true nature
of the signal.
This article examines a new, integrated singlesensor acquisition and processing system that
delivers measurements that were previously
unobtainable with conventional recording of
seismic data. Examples from producing assets in
Kuwait and Algeria illustrate the superior quality
of these data in terms of signal fidelity and
frequency bandwidth in comparison with data
acquired with conventional methods.
Challenges in Conventional Land Acquisition
Single-sensor seismic recording has been
available since the early days of seismic
exploration. The principle is simple. An impulse
source such as dynamite or a controlledfrequency source such as a vibrating plate on a
truck sends acoustic energy into the Earth.5 This
energy propagates in many different directions.
Downward traveling energy reflects and refracts
when it encounters boundaries between two
materials with different acoustic properties.
Sensors or geophones placed on the surface
measure the reflected acoustic energy,

Oilfield Review

Digital Group
Forming

Hard Disk/
Processing

Field
Tape

Conventional Data

Q-Land Data

converting it into an electrical signal that is

displayed as a seismic trace.6
A complication in land acquisition is that,
unlike marine data, a seismic line is rarely shot
in a straight line because of the presence of
natural and man-made obstructions such as
lakes, buildings and roads. More importantly,
variation in ground elevation causes sound waves

to reach the recording geophones with different

traveltimes. The Earths near-surface layer may
also vary greatly in composition, from soft
alluvial sediments to hard rocks. This means that
the velocity of sound waves transmitted through
this surface layer may be highly variable. Static
correctionsa bulk time shift applied to a
seismic traceare typically used in seismic

processing to compensate for these differences

in the elevations of sources and receivers and
near-surface velocity variations.7
Another major problem in land acquisition is
that land sources typically generate energy that
travels horizontally near the surface, also known
as airwaves and ground-roll noise. Conventional
sensor arrays comprising strings of geophones

1. Beckett C, Brooks T, Parker G, Bjoroy R, Pajot D, Taylor P,

Deitz D, Flaten T, Jaarvik LJ, Jack I, Nunn K, Strudley A
and Walker R: Reducing 3D Seismic Turnaround,
Oilfield Review 7, no. 1 (January 1995): 2337.
2. Aronsen HA, Osdal B, Dahl T, Eiken O, Goto R,
Khazanehdari J, Pickering S and Smith P: Time Will Tell:
New Insights from Time-Lapse Seismic Data, Oilfield
Review 16, no. 2 (Summer 2004): 615.
3. Barkved O, Bartman B, Compani B, Gaiser J, Van Dok R,
Johns T, Kristiansen P, Probert T and Thompson M:
The Many Facets of Multicomponent Seismic Data,
Oilfield Review 16, no. 2 (Summer 2004): 4256.
4. Coherent noise is unwanted seismic energy that shows
consistent phase from one seismic trace to another. This
may consist of waves that travel through the air at very
low velocities such as airwaves or air blast, and ground
roll that travels through the top of the surface layer, also
known as the weathering layer. The energy trapped

within a layer, also known as multiples, is another form

of coherent energy. Noncoherent energy is typically
nonseismic-generated noise, such as noise from wind,
moving vehicles, overhead power line or high-voltage
pickup, gas flares and water injection plants.
5. A vibrator source sends a controlled-frequency sweep
into the Earth. The recorded data are then convolved
with the original sweep to produce a usable signal.
6. Each trace consists of one recording corresponding to a
single source-receiver pair. In practice, traces from one
source are simultaneously recorded at several receivers.
Then, sources and receivers are moved along the survey
line and another set of recordings is made. When a
seismic wave travels from a source to a reflector and
then back to the receiver, the elapsed time is the twoway traveltime. The common depth point (CDP) is the
halfway point of the path; it is situated vertically below
the common midpoint. Sorting of traces by collecting
traces that have the same subsurface midpoint is called

a common-midpoint (CMP) gather. The number of traces

summed or stacked is called a fold. For instance, in
24-fold data, every stacked trace represents the average
of 24 traces. In the case of dipping beds, there is no
common depth point shared by multiple sources and
receivers, so dip-moveout (DMO) processing becomes
necessary to reduce smearing or inappropriate mixing of
data. For more on seismic recording: Farmer P, Gray S,
Whitmore D, Hodgkiss G, Pieprzak A, Ratcliff D and
Whitcombe D: Structural Imaging: Toward a Sharper
Subsurface View, Oilfield Review 5, no. 1 (January
1993): 2841.
Ashton CP, Bacon B, Mann A, Moldoveanu N,
Dplant C, Ireson D, Sinclair T and Redekop G:
3D Seismic Survey Design, Oilfield Review 6, no. 2
(April 1994): 1932.
7. Ongkiehong L and Askin HJ: Towards the Universal
Seismic Acquisition Technique, First Break 6, no. 2
(1988): 4663.

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43

Seismic
source

Receiver array

Receiver array length: 45.76 m

7m

Geophone

2.08 m

4.16 m

> Conventional acquisition onshore. Seismic energy recorded at the receivers

arrives at different times because of elevation differences and near-surface
velocity variations (top). In conventional acquisition, strings of geophones
hard-wired together average the individual sensor measurements and deliver
one output trace, whose location is denoted by the center of gravity of the
array, indicated by the red dot (bottom). The resulting output trace has a
generally lower frequency than each of the input signals, and the amplitude is
smaller than the sum of the individual amplitudes, a phenomenon known as
the array effect.

t
sampling
rate

Undersampled seismic signal

Properly sampled seismic signal

> Aliasing effect. Sampling at a frequency lower than the highest frequency
present in the signal (red curve) results in insufficient samples to capture all
the peaks and troughs present in the data. Not only will inadequate sampling
miss the information on higher frequencies but the signal will be incorrectly
defined (blue curve).

44

are based on the assumption that the upward

traveling energy, or the reflected wave, arrives at
the array essentially vertically and simultaneously,
while the surface-wave noise arrives mainly
horizontally and sequentially. To cancel this
source-generated noise, spatially distributed
receiver groupsarraysare summed.8 Ideally,
this process results in an attenuation of the noise
and an improvement of the signal.
However, there are problems associated with
conventional arrays. In reality, the sensor array is
often not located on flat and homogeneous
ground, so local changes in elevation and surface
geology lead to fluctuations in the signal arrival
time (left). These fluctuations are called intraarray perturbations. The hard-wired sensor array
instantaneously sums all traces, and in the case
of intra-array perturbations, this would lead to a
partial cancellation of signal. The resulting
output trace would then be at a lower frequency
than each of the input signals, and the amplitude
would be smaller than the sum of the individual
amplitudes, a phenomenon known as the
array effect.
Aliasing is a well-known problem that arises
when the sampling rate of a signal is inadequate
to capture the higher frequencies in the signal.9
Not only is the information contained in higher
frequencies lost, it is incorrectly represented
(below left). Aliasing is a consideration for
spatial sampling too, not just temporal sampling.
Ground roll typically contains many different
wavelengthsrelated to the distance between
successive peaks in a waveformthat are
shorter than the typical group interval or the
distance between receiver array centers of
gravity in a conventional survey. Due to
undersampling of ground-roll energy, this energy
is aliased and passed on to the signal bandwidth,
causing ambiguity between signal and noise.
8. Newman P and Mahoney JT: PatternsWith a Pinch of
Salt, Geophysical Prospecting 21, no. 2 (1973): 197219.
9. Aliasing is the ambiguity that arises because of
insufficient sampling. It occurs when the signal is
sampled less than twice the cycle. The highest
frequency defined by a sampling interval is termed the
Nyquist frequency and is equal to inverse of 2t, where
t is the sampling interval. Frequencies higher than the
Nyquist frequency will be folded back or wrapped
back. This condition can be observed in video or motion
pictures: the spoke wheels on horse-drawn wagons
sometimes appear to be turning backward instead of
forward. Aliasing can be avoided by a finer spatial
sampling that is at least twice the Nyquist frequency of
the waveform.
10. El-Emam A, Moore I and Shabrawi A: Interbed Multiple
Prediction and Attenuation: Case History from Kuwait,
presented at the 2005 SEG International Exposition and
75th Annual Meeting, Houston, (November 611, 2005).
11. Roden R and Latimer R: An IntroductionRock
Geophysics/AVO, The Leading Edge 22, no. 10
(October 2003): 987.

Oilfield Review

Firs

32-m Array

t br

eak

0.5
Reflected w

ave
s

1.0

roll
und
Gro

Two-way traveltime, s

1.5

2.0

2.5

Autumn 2005

16-m Array

Point Sensors at 2 m

0.0

Airwav

Tests of varying array lengths have shown the

degradation in signal quality caused by
increasing the array size (right). For longer
offset receiver arrays, the arrival time of the
signal can vary significantly at either end of the
array, smearing the higher frequencies when
summed within the group. Therefore, just as
adequate temporal sampling of the recorded
trace is needed to successfully record a given
frequency, a sufficiently small group interval is
required to record a particular spatial frequency.
A problem common to all seismic acquisition
is energy trapped between subsurface layers,
known as interbed multiples, caused by a strong
velocity contrast between layers. This occurs
when the energy from the source reflects more
than once in its travel path. Interbed multiples
are analogous to a bouncing ball trapped between
two layers, which continues to bounce until it
loses its energy. Borehole seismic data, which are
acquired when sources are placed on the surface
and receivers are anchored in a borehole, help
identify the interfaces that generate these
interbed multiples. Recent developments in datadriven methods and the use of vertical seismic
profile (VSP) data to guide surface-seismic
multiple attenuation, such as Interbed Multiple
Prediction (IMP), seem promising.10
The quality of the raw seismic dataset is
fundamental to achieving superior frequency
resolution and high signal-to-noise ratio.
Amplitude and phase preservation of the input
signals is critical in all facets of stratigraphic
interpretation, including prestack seismic
inversion, amplitude variation with offset (AVO)
and amplitude variation with angle (AVA)
interpretation. An analysis of the variation in
reflection amplitudes with source-geophone
distance or offset gives some valuable insights
into reservoir properties such as lithology,
porosity and pore fluid.11
Because land data often exhibit poor signal-to
noise ratios arising from irregular geometries and
noise contamination, a fundamental change in
acquisition and processing methods was required.

3.0

3.5

4.0
0

200
Offset, m

400

200
Offset, m

400

200
Offset, m

400

First array
Second array
Third array

Group interval
Channel 1

Channel 2

Channel 3

> Signal degradation with an increase in array size. A point-source, point-receiver test was carried
out with single sensors spaced 2 m [6.6 ft] apart and a single vibrator source. A 16-m [53-ft] array
was formed by summing groups of nine consecutive geophones and assigning the summed signal
to a channel placed in the center of gravity of the array (bottom). The group interval is the distance
between consecutive channels. Similarly, a 32-m [105-ft] array was formed by summing groups of
17 consecutive geophones. By using 2-m sensor spacing, wave types were recorded without aliasing
(top left). As the sensors were grouped into arrays of increasing length of 16 m (top middle) and
32 m (top right), first the airwave, then the ground roll and finally the first breaks became aliased,
manifested as cross-banded signal areas in the shot domain. Aliasing also manifests as a wrap-around
of the noise energy in the frequency-wavenumber domain, not shown here. (Data courtesy of Shell.)

45

A Change in Acquisition Philosophy

In the early 1990s, WesternGeco began extensive
research on compressional wave (P-wave)
sensitivity that led to a fundamental change in
acquisition philosophy. Experiments conducted
on synthetic signals revealed the effects of
source and receiver statics, recording electronics
specifications, source phase distortion and
receiver sensitivity on P-waves (below).
Excluding coherent source-generated noise,
ambient noise and source frequency sweep, the
dominant effects on the signal-to-noise ratio are
due to perturbations that could not be corrected
for within an analog array. Factors such as source
and receiver statics, coupling of the geophone to
the ground, geophone position and tilt, source
positioning, and amplitude and phase distortion
in the sources were more important than
hardware changes in the geophone or the
recording system itself. A small error of 1 ms in
receiver statics results in the introduction of
-29 dB of noise relative to the signal. Such static
errors are commonly found within a conventional
analog receiver group.

System

Distortion
Gain tolerance
Synchronization

Receiver

Harmonic distortion
Geophone sensitivity
Natural frequency
Temperature
Coupling
Tilt
Sensor position

Source

Harmonic distortion
Amplitude
Phase
Source position

Statics

Perturbation

Receiver statics
Source statics

-10

-20

100

31.6

10

-30

3.16

Knowledge gained from these experiments

was used to design and build the Q-Land singlesensor land seismic system to reduce the effects
of these perturbations while addressing the issue
of coherent noise removal such as ground roll. A
receiver spacing that is half (or less) of the
ground-roll wavelength would be adequate to
sample ground-roll noise without aliasing. Just as
temporal aliasing arises from insufficient
sampling in time, a large receiver interval leads
to spatial aliasing.
The new Q-Land system digitizes each sensor
at the recording location (next page, top). To
achieve this fine spatial sampling, the recording
system requires a massive increase in the
number of live channels. A live channel means
that the receivers are connected to record
simultaneously. Compared with a typical high
channel-count conventional system, which may
have 4,000 to 5,000 channels that record live, the
new point-receiver acquisition system has 20,000
or more live channels. The Q-Land system is the
first to implement an integrated point-receiver
acquisition and processing methodology.

Signal error in dB
-60
-40
-50

0.32

0.1

-70

-80

-90

0.03

0.01

0.003

-100

Signal error, %, 95% confidence interval

> P-wave sensitivity chart for land acquisition. Experiments were conducted on synthetic signals to
understand the effect of perturbations such as source and receiver statics, recording electronics,
source phase distortion, and receiver sensitivity. The chart shows that hardware changes in the
receiver or the recording system have low signal error, as compared with other factors that cause a
significantly higher signal error. The ability to correct for these higher order perturbations allows for
the preservation of signal fidelity and bandwidth within the seismic data.

46

The same concept is applicable to the seismic

sources. The source array can be replaced by
point sources. In addition, to prevent aliasing in
the common midpoint domain, the source
interval should be small, ideally equal to the
receiver interval. The new point-source, pointreceiver recording technique replaces the
conventional method of using sensor and source
arrays to attenuate noise and to improve signalto-noise ratio.12 Recording seismic data through
point receivers rather than analog receiver
arrays has several potential advantages,
including better static solutions, velocity
estimation, amplitude preservation, bandwidth
retention and noise attenuation.
This point-source, point-receiver methodology
increases data volume by more than an order of
magnitude. Advances in data transmission and
computing power have enabled the development
and deployment of this cost-effective, high
channel-count recording system.
A New Integrated Acquisition
and Processing System
The new Q-Land system is a 20,000 live-channel
seismic acquisition and processing technology.
The typical sampling rate for the system is 2 ms.
However, the Q-Land system can record with
30,000 live channels when the sample rate is
changed to 4 ms. Digital recording of the
incoming wavefield at densely spaced receiver
positions ensures that the recorded signal
and noise are properly sampled and are
therefore unaliased.
In Q-Land acquisition geometry, one source
line and one receiver line that are orthogonal to
each other form a cross-spread. These are then
repeated spatially within the acquisition area.
Each source-receiver pair generates a trace that
corresponds to a subsurface midpoint. If the
midpoints corresponding to all source-receiver
pairs are binned, with a bin size equal to half the
receiver by half the source interval, every bin will
be one midpoint corresponding to single-fold
coverage. Thus, the cross-spreads provide singlefold subsets of the continuous wavefield, sampled
finely enough to prevent aliasing of the coherent
noise, through which a cross-spread volume is
generated (next page, bottom).
12. Ongkiehong and Askin, reference 7.
13. Christie P, Nichols D, zbek A, Curtis T, Larsen L,
Strudley A, Davis R and Svendsen M: Raising the
Standards of Seismic Data Quality, Oilfield Review 13,
no. 2 (Summer 2001): 1631.

Oilfield Review

Sophisticated algorithms are then applied in

a processing technique called digital group
forming (DGF). DGF comprises three main steps.
The first is correction to each geophone for intraarray perturbations such as amplitude, elevation
differences and near-surface velocity variations.
After the geophone outputs are grouped, the
result is a signal with a frequency bandwidth
similar to that of the individual traces and an
amplitude almost equal to the sum of the
individual amplitudes. This step is similar to the
one applied in the Q-Marine single-sensor
marine seismic system.13
Sensors

> The Q-Land acquisition and processing system. A line of

receivers is laid out perpendicular to a line of sources and
every source point is recorded by every receiver point. The
example shows 10 receiver lines that are 200 m [656 ft] apart,
with 1,824 point receivers per receiver line that result in
18,240 live receivers (top). In digital group forming using the
Omega2 software processing system, the seismic traces from
individual geophones have perturbation corrections made to
each geophone (bottom). Data-adaptive filters are then
applied over a number of traces to suppress coherent noise.
An output trace from a number of sensors can then be produced at the desired spatial sampling.

Sources

Receiver line

Digital signals
from individual
sensors

Source line

Source line

Receiver lines 200 m apart

1,824 receivers per line

Field
acquisition
system

Digital
group forming

Hard disk/
processing

Receive
r lin

Time

Area of
common
midpoint
coverage

Source line

Receiver line

> A three-dimensional (3D) display of the cross-spread volume. A cross-spread configuration is achieved by deploying receivers along a line in one
direction and placing sources along an orthogonal line (right). Each source-receiver pair generates information from a subsurface point that, for a flat
surface, is located at the midpoint between source and receiver (gray area). In this example of cross-spread configuration, with receiver sampling at 5 m
[16 ft] and source sampling at 20 m [66 ft], the subsurface coverage is single fold. A 3D view of the cross-spread volume shows that the ground-roll noise
is confined within a conical shape volume, making its removal or attenuation by 3D filters in the frequency-wavenumber domain more effective (left).

Autumn 2005

47

An ideal filter would pass all the desired

frequencies in the pass band with no distortion,
and completely reject all frequencies outside the
range of interest, called the stop band. The ideal
spatial anti-alias filter response would also be
azimuthally isotropic, that is the array response
would be the same for energy arriving from all
angles. There are two problems associated with
anti-alias filter performance for conventional
data acquisition: imperfect rejection of
azimuthally varying levels of noise in the stop

0
-10

Magnitude, dB

0
-10
-20
-30
-40
0.10

-50
0.10

0.04
Wa
0.02
ve
nu
0
mb
er
k , -0.02
y 1
/m
-0.04
-0.06
-0.08
- 0.10

0.02
/m
,1
0
kx
r
be
-0.02
um
-0.04
en
v
a
W
-0.06
-0.08
-0.10

-30
-40
0.10
0.08
0.06

0.08

0.04

0.06

-20

0.10

0.06

0.08

band and an imperfect flat response in the pass

band (below). The Q-Land technique of forming
an orthogonal acquisition geometry into crossspreads is well suited to the application of threedimensional anti-alias filters. A filtering
technique based on the APOCS method
alternating projections onto convex setsis an
effective approach that works optimally on crossspread geometry.14

-50

0.08

0.04

0.06

dB

Magnitude, dB

The second step applies data-adaptive filters

for noise suppression. Noise attenuation can
include, but is not limited to, coherent and
ambient-noise attenuation, high-voltage power
line pickup cancellation, and airwave and flarenoise attenuation. There are different ways to
attenuate noise using digital filtering techniques.
However, the design of optimal 3D digital filters
is important to realize the potential of pointreceiver recording.

0
-10
-20
-30
-40
-50

0.04
Wa
0.02
ve
nu
0
mb
er
k , -0.02
y 1
/m
-0.04
-0.06
-0.08
- 0.10

0.02
/m
,1
0
kx
r
be
-0.02
um
-0.04
en
v
a
-0.06
W
-0.08
-0.10

> Three-dimensional spatial anti-alias filter response. The problem of unwanted noise contaminating the signal bandwidth area is illustrated. The spatial
anti-alias filter response displays amplitude on the vertical axis, and wavenumbers along the two horizontal axes, kx and ky, in x and y directions. The color
represents the magnitude in dB. An efficient filter would pass the signal that is at around k=0, and stop or reject any noise for all other directions for k 0.
For a conventional 16-m receiver array, noise leaks into the signal from almost all azimuths (left). In contrast, for point-receiver data, the anti-alias filter
using the APOCS filter design technique shows the effectiveness of the filter in rejecting noise (right).

14. A well-known mathematical technique, APOCS is an

iterative technique that derives filter parameters to
remove coherent noise. The algorithm, working in 3D
space, switches constantly between sample domain
with time on one axis and x and y on the other two
axesand frequency transform domainwith
frequency on one axis and wavenumber in x and y
directions, kx and ky, on the other two. Wavenumber is
the inverse of wavelength and represents the frequency
of the wave in space. For more on APOCS: zbek A,
Hoteit L and Dumitru G: 3-D Filter Design on a
Hexagonal Grid for Point-Receiver Land Acquisition,
EAGE Research Workshop, Advances in Seismic
Acquisition Technology, Rhodes, Greece,
September 2023, 2004.
Quigley J: An Integrated 3D Acquisition and Processing
Technique Using Point Sources and Point Receivers,
Expanded Abstracts, 2004 SEG International Exposition
and 74th Annual Meeting, Denver, (October 1015, 2004):
1720.

48

15. Shabrawi A, Smart A, Anderson B, Rached G and

El-Emam A: How Single-Sensor Seismic Improved
Image of Kuwaits Minagish Field, First Break 23, no. 2
(February 2005): 6369.
16. The Q-Borehole system optimizes all aspects of borehole
seismic services, from job planning through data
acquisition, processing and interpretation. Well logs,
VSP and surface-seismic data are combined to build a
property model of vertical velocities, frequency
attenuation factors, anisotropy related to vertical
variations in interval velocities and the multiples
wavefield. The model is then used for enhanced
surface-seismic processing and calibration in the
Well-Driven Seismic process.

17. A zero-offset VSP is acquired when a seismic source

is placed on the surface close to the wellhead and
receivers are positioned at different depths in a
borehole. In a walkaway VSP, an array of receivers
collects data for multiple source positions located along
a line that extends from the wellhead. For more on VSP
and walkaway VSPs: Arroyo JL, Breton P, Dijkerman H,
Dingwall S, Guerra R, Hope R, Hornby B, Williams M,
Jimenez RR, Lastennet T, Tulett J, Leaney S, Lim T,
Menkiti H, Puech J-C, Tcherkashnev S, Burg TT and
Verliac M: Superior Seismic Data from the Borehole,
Oilfield Review 15, no. 1 (Spring 2003): 223.

Oilfield Review

Autumn 2005

Four tightly grouped vibrators in a rectangle

of 12.5 m [41 ft] by 5 m [16.4 ft] vibrated in
synchrony at 60% of their peak force capability of
80,000 lbf [356 kN]. Driving at less than peak
force provided a low distortion in the seismic
source. The vibrators were set as close as
possible to resemble a point source while
maximizing energy input into the Earth. The
Q-Land system recorded 14,904 channels at a
2-ms sampling rate.15 Perturbation corrections
were made to each receiver and each source
prior to summation in the DGF process.
In addition, a Q-Borehole integrated borehole
seismic study was planned at the inception of the
Q-Land pilot program.16 A zero-offset VSP and
two walkaway VSPs recorded the data around the
center of the survey area.17 The integration of
surface seismic and borehole geophysical data
was vital to ensure that all steps in the
processing sequence, from digital group forming
through to the final migrated stack, were
optimally calibrated utilizing some of the latest

16-m Array

50

50

40

30

20

30

20

10

0
-30

40
Frequency, Hz

Aliased noise

60

Usable bandwidth

Point Sensors at 2 m

60

Usable
bandwidth

Pioneering New Technologies in Kuwait

The Minagish field in southwestern Kuwait was
selected for a Q-Land pilot study in 2004, to
address several development and exploration
objectives. One goal was to provide a detailed
image of multiple reservoir intervals within the
Cretaceous for fluid-front monitoring.
Discovered in 1959, the Minagish field is one
of the countrys main producers, with production
primarily from carbonate rocks, including the
Minagish oolites. A waterflood program resulted
in water influx overriding oil in layers with
high permeabilities.
A previous 3D seismic survey in 1996, with
source and receiver arrays of 50-m [165-ft]
spacing, provided poor imaging of deeper
prospects and limited the vertical and lateral
resolution at principal reservoir zones.
Characterizing fracture density and orientation,
necessary to optimally place horizontal wells and
maximize production, was also a problem. Noise
arising from gas flares and water injection plants,
coupled with seismic-generated noise such as air
blast, ground roll and multiples, caused extreme
distortions in the seismic data.

In addition, the Minagish field posed an

unusual operational hazard. The area was strewn
with unexploded cluster bombs and mines from
earlier military activity.
A detailed understanding of the internal
reservoir structure was essential for a planned
water injection scheme to work. Forward seismic
modeling using rock properties from core
samples and logs has shown that a 5 to 95%
change in water saturation could result in a 5%
difference in acoustic impedancea product of
velocity and density of the rock. However, a
previous 4D study in 1998 shows the inability to
detect these small changes due to the
background noise level in conventional seismic
data. Some of the limiting factors were frequency
resolution, inferior noise attenuation and a low
signal-to-noise ratio. To allow monitoring of
minute changes in reservoir behavior, it was
obvious that a step change in acquisition
methodology was necessary to reduce noncoherent
signal and coherent noise.

Frequency, Hz

The last step is spatial resampling of the

output data according to the desired group
interval. Analog arrays, once laid out in the field,
have almost no flexibility to adjust the outputsampling interval, whereas with digital group
forming, any output sampling is possible down to
the granularity of the individual sensors.
While data from conventional arrays may
provide reasonable results for structural
interpretation, detailed reservoir analysis using
seismic inversion or AVO techniques is limited to
a narrow frequency band because of aliased
noise wrapping back in the frequency range of
interest (below right). With such reduced
bandwidth, AVO and inversion are unlikely to
produce meaningful results. The densely spaced
point receivers employed by Q-Land methodology
provide alias-free data, and hence, a more
complete bandwidth for AVO interpretation.
In complex geological settings where conventional array data are unable to deliver the
required results, single-sensor data provide
significant improvement in signal fidelity and
frequency bandwidth. This improvement enables
interpretation of subtle stratigraphic features
and increased vertical and lateral resolution of
the seismic response as demonstrated in the
following two examples from Kuwait and Algeria.

-20

-10
0
10
Wavenumber, 1/km

20

30

10

0
-200

-100
0
100
Wavenumber, 1/km

200

> Impact of aliasing on frequency bandwidth. A test conducted with a 16-m receiver array displays
aliasing of ground roll and airwave because of the wrap-around effect seen in the frequencywavenumber (fk) domain (left). The airwave (solid black line) is completely aliased. However, the
ground-roll noise (dashed black line) is folded back into the signal frequency band above the
frequency where the dashed lines intersect. The signal, which is expected to dominate the central
area of the fk plot as k approaches zero, becomes contaminated. This means that data-adaptive
spatial filtering can no longer remove the coherent noise without damage to the signal. The usable
frequency bandwidth for AVO processing, for example, is substantially reduced for conventional array
data because aliasing distorts the higher frequencies in both amplitude and phase. In contrast to this,
point-receiver data clearly show an unaliased response that permits processing of the entire useful
frequency range without coherent noise contamination (right). (Data courtesy of Shell.)

49

Conventional 3D Data

Q-Land Data

Two-way traveltime, ms

1,400

1,500

1,600

1,700

1,800

> Comparison of conventional 3D seismic data and Q-Land data in the Minagish field, Kuwait. The Q-Land data (right) show a much higher lateral and
vertical resolution as compared with conventional seismic data (left). The Minagish target reservoir appears at about 1,500 ms.

developments in the Well-Driven Seismic

process.18 Restoration of true amplitude
and phase, effective multiple suppression
and compensation for frequency absorption
with depth provided superior imaging and
resolution (above).
The zero-offset VSPs at two control wells, an
injector and a producer, resolved seven intrareservoir zones. Conventional seismic data, with
a frequency bandwidth of 10 to 45 Hz, showed
only three of these events, which led to a flawed
interpretation that there were no obstructions
between the two wells and injected fluids could
flow freely between two wells. The Q-Land
volume imaged the same seven intrareservoir
zones seen on the VSPs. The enhanced resolution
from Q-Land data, with a frequency bandwidth of
6 to 70 Hz, enabled the seismic interpreters to
map stratigraphic features. Also identified were
tar mats at the injector well that act as baffles
and inhibit fluid movement. In addition, minor
faults and deeper gas targets obscured by
interbed multiples energy were now imaged.19
18. The Well-Driven Seismic process uses borehole seismic
data for true amplitude and phase recovery, velocity
analysis, multiple attenuation, anisotropic migration and
angle-based muting. For more on the Well-Driven
Seismic technique: Morice SP, Anderson J,
Boulegroun M and Decombes O: Integrated Borehole
and Surface Seismic: New Technologies for Acquisition,
Processing and Reservoir Characterization; Hassi
Messaoud Field, presented at the 13th SPE Middle East
Oil and Gas Show and Conference (MEOS), Bahrain,
June 912, 2003.
19. El-Emam et al, reference 10.

50

Encouraged by the results of this Q-Land pilot

study, the operator is in the process of planning a
full-field survey using the Q-Land system. Plans
to reevaluate pore pressure and fracture
characterization incorporating the new Q-Land
data are also under consideration.
The Seismic Challenge in Algeria
An oil field in Algeria, known to be one of the
most seismically challenging fields in the world,
was selected for a Q-land study. Since the
discovery of this field in the 1950s, many wells
have been drilled. Oil and gas production is
mainly from Cambro-Ordovician fluviomarine,
clastic reservoirs. Despite the large number of
wells drilled, abrupt changes in lithology and
fault compartmentalization have made full-field
reservoir characterization from well data alone
difficult. Few seismic surveys have been
attempted in the past because of a poor seismic
response and failure to image the reservoir
zones. As a result, reservoir zones were identified
from petrophysical and pressure data. In
addition, a weak correlation between well
log and core permeability indicated that
the permeability could be strongly influenced
by fractures.

There are several geophysical and geological

challenges. The main producing reservoir, a
braided-channel fluvial system, has a highly
heterogeneous distribution of sand and shale.
The oil field has also been affected by multiple
episodes of fault deformation and reactivation,
resulting in complex fault and fracture patterns
that are difficult to image. Added to these
problems, a small velocity and density contrast at
the top of the reservoir and within the reservoir
units makes detection of reservoir units difficult.
In addition, the influence of strong interbed
multiples obscures the signal, and the presence
of a thick evaporite layer above the reservoir
causes severe attenuation of higher frequencies,
resulting in a poor signal-to-noise ratio. All these
problems lead to a poor tie to wells, making it
extremely difficult to map the interwell region.
Typically, the maximum usable frequency
obtained from the target reservoir has been
around 35 to 40 Hz. This translates into a
maximum vertical resolution of 40 m [131 ft].
However, mapping the reservoir units with any
degree of confidence requires a vertical
resolution of less than 20 m and much lower
noise levels.

Oilfield Review

A pilot survey with the Q-Land system was

initiated to address these geophysical and
geological challenges. Integration of boreholeseismic data and surface-seismic data was
planned at the onset of the project, and the
acquisition parameters were optimized through
presurvey planning and testing.
Q-Land seismic data were acquired over an
area covering 44 km2 [17 mi2], with a dense grid
of sensors, equating to a density of 20,000 sensors

per km2. Borehole geophysical data included

measurements of zero-offset VSP, a twodimensional (2D) walkaway VSP using the VSI
Versatile Seismic Imager with 154 geophone
positions in the borehole, and sonic measurements using the DSI Dipole Shear Sonic Imager.
The Q-Borehole seismic system aided in
Well-Driven Seismic processing.
The surface-seismic processing results were
compared with well data at key stages in the

processing sequence, so that the processing

parameters were optimized to tie the final
seismic data to the wells. The bandwidth
obtained ranged from 6 Hz to 80 Hz, nearly
double the previously recorded high-resolution
2D seismic results. For the first time, the
frequency resolution obtained from surface
seismic data matched that obtained from a VSP,
providing an excellent well tie (below).

High-Resolution 2D Data

Q-Land Data

Distance

Distance

X,500

Two-way traveltime, ms

X,600
X,700
X,800
X,900
Y,000
Y,100

VSP
X.4

Two-way traveltime, s

X.5

X.6

X.7

Distance

Power, dB

X.8

0
-5
-10
-15
-20
-25
-30
-35
-40

Signal

20

40

60
80
Frequency, Hz

100

120

> A Q-Land example from Algeria. Exceptional resolution (frequencies above 80 Hz) was obtained with the Q-Land survey (top right), in which the frequency
bandwidth has nearly doubled in comparison to a high-resolution 2D survey (top left). In addition, the excellent match between the vertical seismic profile
(VSP) data (shown within the red box, bottom) and Q-Land data will permit advanced reservoir characterization studies. (Data courtesy of Sonatrach.)

Autumn 2005

51

Well Acoustic
Impedance

Depth, ft

XX,000

Y.0

High

33 to 49 ft

Y.1

Reservoir section

Two-way traveltime, s

Normalized acoustic impedance

Low

X.9

XY,000

Distance

> Acoustic Impedance (AI) cross section. The Hercynian unconformity forms the top of the reservoir
zone (dashed line). The vertical thickness of the low AI interval within the reservoir section indicates
a thickness in the range of 10 to 15 m [33 to 49 ft]. (Data courtesy of Sonatrach.)

Seismic amplitude was inverted to compute

absolute acoustic impedance (AI) volume (above).
Low AI correlates reasonably well with highporosity sands. At 80-Hz frequency, for an interval
velocity of about 4,500 m/s [14,765 ft/s], this low AI
zone equates to a thickness resolution of about
14 m [46 ft]. This degree of resolution has never
been achieved in this geological environment.
To assess the relationship between permeability and fault proximity, which is generally
associated with higher fracture density, several
seismic attributes were computed.
Extraction of fractures and faults from the
seismic data involved several steps. Seismic
attribute cubes that enhance discontinuities
in the data, also known as edge-enhancing
attributes, were computed. The edge-detection
seismic volumes include variance, dip and
deviation. The ant-tracking algorithm was then
applied to the edge-detection cube to highlight

the discontinuities in the seismic data, and to

map faults and fractures.20 Distance to fault
(DTF) attributes were then generated from
filtered sets of faults from the ant-track cube and
mapped into the 3D geocellular grid (next page).
The DTF attribute helps identify zones that
are highly fractured. A crossplot between
permeability and DTF confirms the trend: higher
well log permeability when close to faults. A
strong inverse relationship between core
permeability and DTF was observed on about 70%
of wells.
However, to answer questions about whether
those fractures and small-scale faults enhance or
degrade permeability, grid cells were extracted
in the vicinity of seismic faults with greater
length, that is, those that intercept both
basement and the overlying Hercynian
unconformity. Seismic acoustic impedance was
then mapped into these cells to discriminate

20. The ant-tracking algorithm delineates discontinuities in a

seismic cube and maps faults and fractures. The
algorithm tracks discontinuities built upon previous
knowledge, mimicking the behavior of ants when they
find the shortest path between their nest and their food
source. The ants communicate using pheromones, a
chemical substance that attracts other ants. Therefore,
the shortest path to the food source will be marked with
more pheromones than the longest path, so the next ant
is more likely to choose the shortest route, and so on.
The idea is to distribute a large number of these
electronic ants in a seismic volume. Ants deployed

along a fault should be able to trace the fault surface for

some distance before being terminated. The algorithm
then automatically extracts the result as a set of faultpatches, a highly detailed mapping of discontinuities.
Fault discrimination is based on the size of the fault, its
orientation, and on the amplitude of vertical
displacement. For more on ant tracking: Pedersen SI,
Randen T, Snneland L and Steen : Automatic Fault
Extraction Using Artificial Ants, Expanded Abstracts,
2002 SEG International Exposition and 72nd Annual
Meeting, Salt Lake City, Utah, USA (October 611, 2002):
512515.

52

between sealing and draining faults. A high cellaverage acoustic impedance in the vicinity of a
fault suggests that the fractures act as flow
barriers, because the fractures were cemented
with pyrite or shale. Conversely, a low acoustic
impedance in the vicinity of a fault suggests a
higher proportion of open, fluid-filled fractures,
which have lower density than rock. This may
suggest that tectonically induced fractures
enhance draining of hydrocarbon.
Wells are continually being drilled in this
area, and additional drilling is planned in 2006
guided by the interpretation results of the
Q-Land data.
Toward Fit-For-Purpose Seismic Data
The fundamentally improved measurements
delivered by Q-Land technology radically expand
the potential of seismic data. With the lower noise
associated with single-sensor acquisition and
processing, and the ability to correct for
perturbations within a group, array design and
fold are no longer the dominant factors in
improving signal-to-noise ratio. Rather, sensor
spacing and a requirement to adequately sample
coherent noise become the main drivers in
designing the acquisition geometry. Since it is
now possible to recover a signal more faithfully,
the vibrator source can also be reevaluated,
making it possible to record shorter, single
sweeps of frequency with a better sampling of
the wavefield.
These design considerations now offer the
possibility of acquiring point-source and pointreceiver exploration surveys with a lower field
effort, compared with equivalent surveys using
conventional source and receiver arrays. The
Q-Land surveys acquired to date suggest that the
use of smaller groups of vibrators can provide
data that are equal to or better than larger arrays
of vibrators and geophones. Smaller groups of
vibrators allow for more efficient operation.
The Q-Land VIVID imaging services enhance
the value of seismic data recorded throughout
the life of a field. In the exploration phase, the
low-noise Q-Land data make it possible to
acquire high-quality seismic surveys with wider
line spacing and lower fold than a survey
acquired with conventional technology and still
meet or exceed the imaging expectations. In
subsequent surveys for appraisal or development,
it is possible to acquire the data by interleaving
lines between the previous surveys to build up
the fold. The data from the original surveys and
the current survey are processed together using

Oilfield Review

Combined Acoustic Impedance and Distance to Fault Attributes

High Acoustic Impedance Along Faults

Low Acoustic Impedance Along Faults

Flow barriers
Fractures enhancing permeability

> Relationship between seismic acoustic impedance and permeability. Seismic acoustic impedance (AI) and distance to fault (DTF)
attributes are combined and mapped onto a geocellular volume (top). A dual filter based on proximity to fault and seismic AI threshold
value is applied to the volume. The filtering assumes that fractures that are open and fluid-saturated have lower velocity and density,
and therefore lower AI (bottom right). These are discriminated against faults that are cemented, with higher AI caused by silicification
or pyrite filling (bottom left). (Data courtesy of Sonatrach.)

the required group interval to image the target

correctly. This is the concept of uncommitted
seismic data for the life of a field.
Exploration leads can be pursued during the
same survey. This results in a lower cumulative
environmental footprint of the overall seismic

Autumn 2005

program, in addition to reduced development

time. As the data have a high signal-to-noise ratio
and fidelity, they can be reused at each stage of a
fields development, ensuring that the exploration investment is not lost.

With unsurpassed seismic data quality and a

versatile approach to acquisition geometry and
innovations in processing, the Q-Land acquisition and processing system will have a major
impact on the life of the field, in exploration,
development and reservoir monitoring. RG

53