VSP Designed

See discussions, stats, and author profiles for this publication at: https://www.researchgate.
net/publication/313882908
Optimizing the design of vertical seismic proﬁling (VSP) for imaging fracture
zones over hardrock basement geothermal environments
Article in Journal of Applied Geophysics · February 2017

DOI: 10.1016/j.jappgeo.2017.02.023
CITATIONS READS
3 173
5 authors, including:
Fabienne Reiser Hansruedi Maurer

ETH Zurich ETH Zurich
17 PUBLICATIONS 54 CITATIONS 218 PUBLICATIONS 3,276 CITATIONS
SEE PROFILE SEE PROFILE
Stewart Greenhalgh
ETH Zurich
322 PUBLICATIONS 2,935 CITATIONS
SEE PROFILE
Some of the authors of this publication are also working on these related projects:
The Galperin Source View project
Furggwanghorn Rock Glacier View project
All content following this page was uploaded by Cedric Schmelzbach on 10 November 2017.
The user has requested enhancement of the downloaded file.

Journal of Applied Geophysics
1 Optimizing the design of vertical seismic profiling (VSP) for
2 imaging fracture zones over hardrock basement geothermal
3 environments
5 Fabienne Reiser1, Cedric Schmelzbach1, Hansruedi Maurer1, Stewart Greenhalgh1,2, Olaf
6 Hellwig3
7 1
Institute of Geophysics, ETH Zurich, Switzerland. Email: fabienne.reiser@erdw.ethz.ch,
8 cedric.schmelzbach@erdw.ethz.ch, hansruedi.maurer@erdw.ethz.ch
9 2
Department of Geosciences, King Fahd University of Petroleum and Minerals, Dhahran,
10 Saudi Arabia, greenhalgh@kfupm.edu.sa
11 3
TU Bergakademie Freiberg, Germany. Email: olaf.hellwig@geophysik.tu-freiberg.de
12
13
14
15
16 ABSTRACT
17 A primary focus of geothermal seismic imaging is to map dipping faults and fracture
18 zones that control rock permeability and fluid flow. Vertical seismic profiling (VSP) is
19 therefore a most valuable means to image the immediate surroundings of an existing borehole
20 to guide, for example, the placing of new boreholes to optimize production from known faults
21 and fractures. We simulated 2D and 3D acoustic synthetic seismic data and processed it
22 through to pre-stack depth migration to optimize VSP survey layouts for mapping moderately
23 to steeply dipping fracture zones within possible basement geothermal reservoirs. Our VSP
24 survey optimization procedure for sequentially selecting source locations to define the area
25 where source points are best located for optimal imaging makes use of a cross-correlation
26 statistic, by which a subset of migrated shot gathers is compared with a target or reference
27 image from a comprehensive set of source gathers. In geothermal exploration at established
28 sites, it is reasonable to assume that sufficient à priori information is available to construct
29 such a target image. We generally obtained good results with a relatively small number of
30 optimally chosen source positions distributed over an ideal source location area for different
31 fracture zone scenarios (different dips, azimuths, and distances from the surveying borehole).
32 Adding further sources outside the optimal source area did not necessarily improve the
33 results, but rather resulted in image distortions. It was found that fracture zones located at
34 borehole-receiver depths and laterally offset from the borehole by 300 m can be imaged
35 reliably for a range of the different dips, but more source positions and large offsets between
36 sources and the borehole are required for imaging steeply dipping interfaces. When such
37 features cross-cut the borehole, they are particularly difficult to image. For fracture zones with
38 different azimuths, 3D effects are observed. Far offset source positions contribute less to the
39 image quality as fracture zone azimuth increases. Our optimization methodology is best suited
40 for designing future field surveys with a favorable benefit-cost ratio in areas with significant à
41 priori knowledge. Moreover, our optimization workflow is valuable for selecting useful
42 subsets of acquired data for optimum target-oriented processing.
43 1. Introduction
44 Geothermal energy is a promising sustainable energy resource, but it has not yet
45 reached its full potential. Generally, the distinction can be made between two different types
46 of geothermal systems, namely hydrothermal systems and petrothermal systems (the latter
47 being more recently referred to as enhanced geothermal systems or EGS). Hydrothermal
48 systems are characterized by high heat flow at shallow to moderate depth, a naturally
49 occurring permeable layer and an appreciable amount of fluid that can circulate in the
50 subsurface. The water is heated through direct contact as well as by convective transport from
51 the hot crustal rocks and the high enthalpy fluids (liquid and steam) can then be extracted to
52 produce electricity. Examples of operational hydrothermal systems are Lardarello in Italy
53 (Brogi et al., 2003), several reservoirs in Iceland (Arnórsson, 1995) and Unterhaching in
54 Germany (Wolfgramm et al., 2007).
55 In this study we will focus on EGS but our workflow can readily be adopted to
56 hydrothermal systems as well. EGS have their maximum potential in crystalline rock at
57 depths of at least a few kilometers, where temperatures are sufficiently high. Either a pre-
58 existing fault system exists and needs to have its permeability enhanced or a fracture network
59 is created by artificial means (engineered fracking) to circulate hot fluid that can then be
60 extracted for electricity production (e.g. Barbier, 2002). Therefore, a primary focus in
61 hardrock geothermal exploration is to map faults and fracture zones, which control
62 permeability and fluid flow.

63 Geophysical exploration of EGS systems often includes magnetotelluric
64 investigations, potential field measurements and local earthquake tomography (Geiermann
65 and Schill, 2010, Biasi and Preston, 2011). These methods are suitable for resolving gross
66 structures, but they offer only limited, low resolution information on individual fracture
67 zones. A useful option for obtaining high-resolution images of such features is controlled-
68 source seismic surveying (reflection and refraction imaging), but compared with oil and gas
69 exploration, this has been only sparingly applied for geothermal exploration (e.g.,
70 Schmelzbach et al., 2016).
71 Controlled-source seismic methods can generally be subdivided according to their
72 recording geometry into three surveying configurations: surface-based, surface-to-borehole
73 and borehole-to-borehole (or crosswell). In recent years, several surface-based seismic studies
74 in geothermal areas have been performed to image and characterize fracture zones over
75 hardrock environments. For example, Ahmed et al. (2015) and Hlousek et al. (2015)
76 investigated the fault system in a hardrock environment near Schneeberg, western Erzgebirge
77 (Germany) with 3D seismic data. They showed that even relatively steeply dipping fracture
78 zones can be imaged with 3D seismic data. Schreiter et al. (2015) further characterized the
79 fault system near Schneeberg by analyzing reflection amplitudes of different faults and
80 inferred the approximate extent and velocity structure of the faults.
81 Despite some successes, surface-based seismic reflection imaging investigations in
82 crystalline rocks have revealed that the task is a very challenging one for a variety of reasons
83 (e.g. Salisbury et al., 2003): (1) large impedance contrast between the sediments and the
84 underlying basement, such that little energy can penetrate into the basement; (2) small
85 impedance contrasts between lithological units within the basement and therefore low signal-
86 to-noise ratios; (3) reflectors are of limited lateral extent due to the complex and
87 discontinuous morphology; (4) high velocities in crystalline basement result in a loss of
88 resolution due to relatively long wavelengths; (5) obtaining the required velocity function
89 within basement is problematic; (6) often steeply dipping structures occur which are difficult
90 to image without very large aperture recording arrays.
91 If the imaging target is spatially confined, improved results can be expected, when the
92 area of interest can be more effectively illuminated, such as by means of crosswell
93 transmission tomography (e.g., Niitsuma et al., 1999) or surface-to-borehole methods (vertical
94 seismic profiling, VSP; e.g., Hardage, 2000). VSP data usually contain significantly higher
95 frequencies than surface-based seismic data because receivers are placed downhole whereas
96 shots fired on the surface, and the seismic waves travel only once through the absorbing
97 overburden (near-surface layers), thus suffering less from frequency-dependent attenuation
98 (e.g. Cosma et al., 2003). Therefore, VSP imaging can be used for high resolution imaging of
99 the lithological and other interfaces, such as fracture zones, either intersecting, beneath or
100 offset from the well. This is especially important for mapping dipping interfaces and is critical
101 for placing additional wells.
102 VSP surveys have been applied successfully in fractured carbonate reservoirs (Emsley
103 et al., 2007), as well as in crystalline rock for better understanding of seismic properties in the
104 crust (Carr et al., 1996; Rabbel et al., 2004). They have also been used effectively in mineral
105 exploration (Adam et al., 2003; Perron et al. 2003; Bellefleur et al., 2004) and in siting of
106 potential nuclear waste disposal sites (Cosma et al., 2001; Cosma et al., 2003). A few
107 examples exist, where VSP has been used to better characterize geothermal sites. For
108 example, Majer et al. (1988) performed a VSP pilot study in the Geyser steam bearing
109 geothermal field in northern California. They obtained fracture anisotropy information by
110 analyzing shear wave splitting on the VSP dataset. In a separate study, Nakagome et al.
111 (1998) analyzed VSP data in the Kakkonda geothermal field in Japan and concluded that the
112 VSP data contained more detailed structural information than the surface-based seismic data.
113 Thomas and Schulz (2007) found from their investigation a much better signal-to-noise ratio
114 of the VSP data compared to the surface seismic data at the Unterhaching geothermal site.
115 Several reflectors and fault systems could be mapped and interpreted in the sedimentary
116 hydrothermal system. Place et al. (2010, 2011) used VSP data acquired in 1988 and 1993 to
117 study the EGS site in Soultz-sous-Forêts. Several reflections resulting from fracture zones
118 within granitic basement were identified in the data. Synthetic modelling was used to compare
119 the observed reflection traveltimes with the calculated traveltimes to generate a fracture zone
120 model of the area.
121 All of these studies demonstrated that VSP techniques have a considerable potential
122 for characterizing steeply dipping fracture zones associated with EGS reservoirs in crystalline
123 host rocks, but they also showed that it can be quite challenging to process and interpret
124 existing VSP datasets. Tools of optimized experimental design (e.g., Maurer et al., 2010) may
125 allow designing cost-effective VSP surveys while taking the particularities of seismic
126 geothermal exploration explicitly into account. Successful experimental design critically
127 depends on à priori knowledge. At the stage in geothermal exploration when VSP surveys are
128 considered, it is reasonable to assume that some prior knowledge about the subsurface exists
129 from previous surface-based seismic surveys and/or existing boreholes. For example,
130 optimized experimental design will allow for the cost-effective acquisition of target-oriented
131 VSP’s to plan the placing of additional production boreholes at already established
132 geothermal sites.
133 Here, we describe a novel methodology whereby optimized field layouts can be
134 employed for VSP recording with a favorable benefit-cost ratio. We demonstrate our
135 workflow using realistic synthetic data because a comprehensive field dataset that would be
136 needed to illustrate the (unrealistic) maximum best possible acquisition setup was not
137 available to us. Initially, we employ a 2D setup for demonstrating the possibilities and
138 limitations of the method. By means of a pre-stack depth migration algorithm we examine the
139 fracture zone images that can be obtained using a relatively small number of suitably placed
140 surface source positions. Then, we extend our modelling study to 3D geometries for imaging
141 fracture zones with different azimuths.
142 2. Experimental setup
143 The basic idea of our experimental design approach is to define a setup including (i) a seismic
144 velocity model that mimics the geology of the host rock, (ii) a set of fracture zones, as they
145 might be found in the investigation area, (iii) the geometry of boreholes available and (iv)
146 receiver positions in the borehole. Furthermore, we define a large number of locations where
147 surface sources could be placed. All possible source-receiver combinations constitute a
148 comprehensive dataset. Our experimental design procedure then identifies an optimal subset
149 of source positions that provide subsurface images of comparable quality to those of the
150 comprehensive dataset.
151 For EGS in the Alpine foreland, faults and fractures of interest will typically be
152 located at a few kilometers depth within the crystalline basement below a thick sedimentary
153 column. Our modelling study is inspired by the borehole geometries and geological setting of
154 the geothermal site at Soultz-sous-Forêts (France) (Gérard et al. 2006), but our methodology
155 is flexible and can be applied to any other subsurface geology and borehole geometry. Most
156 of the boreholes at Soultz-sous-Forêts are inclined within the target depth range because this
157 increases the chance of intersecting dipping permeable zones. For our study, a borehole that is
158 inclined at 30 ° to the vertical was used, with 61 receivers placed at 20 m intervals over the
159 depth range of 3700-4900 m (Lubrano, 2013; Place et al., 2011). Seismic data were
160 simulated from 91 surface source positions straddling a distance of 9000 m and spaced at an
161 interval of 100 m. The velocity model employed as well as the source and receiver geometry
162 are illustrated in Fig. 1.
163
164 Fig. 1: Velocity model with receivers (black) and 91 source positions at the surface
165 (white). Insets show the different fracture zone configurations (white) used in this study.
166
167 2.1 Reflection point modelling and constant-velocity medium illumination maps
168 An advantage of VSP surveying over surface-based seismic measurements is the
169 improved capability of VSPs to image steeply dipping reflectors (Hardage, 2000). With the
170 motivation to study the illumination capabilities of the employed recording geometry under
171 simplified conditions, we carried out an initial investigation to assess the potential reflector
172 coverage (illumination) and computed the reflected wave amplitudes from a given reflector of
173 a particular dip for each subsurface point in a homogeneous medium. We defined our target
174 area to be located below the shallowest receiver. The reflected wave amplitudes for a given
175 dip are calculated for each possible source-receiver pair within the target area. This
176 illumination study was performed using a simple reflection travel time and raypath modelling
177 algorithm for a constant velocity medium following the approach of Schmelzbach et al.
178 (2007a). Rays were traced for the 91 surface source positions at 100 m spacing over the
179 9000 m wide model. We assumed that the reflection amplitudes depend only on spherical
180 wavefront spreading and are proportional to the inverse of the total travel time. The reflection
181 amplitudes were summed in 20 m x 20 m wide bins to provide a total signal-strength-
182 dependent measure of illumination. This procedure results in amplitude-dependent
183 illumination maps of the subsurface. Large illumination values show subsurface areas that can
184 be covered well with the given recording configuration. Hence, a higher quality image of a
185 fracture zone with the specific dip can be expected in these regions because the signal-to-
186 noise ratio will be proportional to the signal level for a constant noise background. Zero
187 values represent areas of no specular reflection and therefore define blind zones in this
188 simplified scheme.
189 Examples of illumination maps for fracture zone dips of 30 ° and 70 ° (dipping
190 towards the left and dip measured from the horizontal) are shown in Figs. 2a and b,
191 respectively. It can be seen that the given receiver configuration is well suited for imaging
192 30 ° dipping fracture zones around the borehole as well as below and to the right of the
193 borehole. For a steeply dipping interface, such as 70 °, the illuminated area shows overall
194 lower amplitude sums compared to the gently dipping fracture zone, since less reflection
195 points exist for the given configuration. The illuminated area is considerably smaller and no
196 reflection points below or to the left of the borehole are imaged. Far offset source positions
197 would be required to obtain an improved subsurface coverage and higher amplitude sums for
198 steeply dipping interfaces.
199
200 Fig. 2: (a) Illumination map for fracture zones dipping at 30 ° for the given source
201 and receiver positions in the target area (below the first receiver). (b) As for (a) but for
202 fracture zones dipping at 70 °. The dip of the fracture zone is indicated in white within the
203 white square at the bottom left. Note that there are considerably less specular reflection points
204 for the 70 ° dipping fracture zone, hence indicating that it is more challenging to map steeply
205 dipping than gently dipping interfaces.
206 For the given source and receiver positions it can be observed that an approximate
207 orthogonal relationship between the borehole and the fracture direction is optimal for
208 imaging. The sparse subsurface illumination for the 70 ° dipping fracture zone is an
209 indication that it is more challenging to image steeply dipping fracture zones compared to
210 gently dipping interfaces. Additionally, it can be observed that fracture zones dipping to the
211 left cannot be imaged to the left of the borehole with the exception of gently dipping
212 interfaces; they can be mapped only if they are located in the near-vicinity of the borehole.
213 2.2 Computation of synthetic VSP data
214 Reflection point modelling, as shown in Fig. 2, offers a good preliminary indication of
215 the general feasibility of mapping fracture zones, but strongly simplifying assumptions on the
216 subsurface structure and the nature of wave propagation are made. Furthermore, possible
217 artefacts that may arise during the processing of actual VSP data are not taken into account.
218 To overcome these limitations, we performed a more realistic survey-design study based on
219 acoustic synthetic seismic full waveform modelling with a 2D finite difference scheme
220 (SOFI2D) (Bohlen et al. 2003) and using the velocity model depicted in Fig. 1. The
221 background velocities increase continuously with depth, exhibiting a high vertical velocity
222 gradient in the overlying sedimentary section down to a depth of 1.4 km and a much lower
223 vertical velocity gradient in the underlying basement. To simulate a realistic degree of
224 heterogeneity, stochastic velocity fluctuations that show similar characteristics as the sonic
225 log data were superimposed (Goff and Holliger 2012). A vertically directed source having a
226 dominant frequency of 40 Hz was used in the simulations and the grid spacing set to 1 m.
227 For the survey-design study, four different fracture zones of different dips and offset
228 positions from the borehole were considered (configurations 1 to 4 in Fig. 1). The fracture
229 zones, schematically shown in Fig. 1, were assumed to have a thickness of 40 m and 15%
230 reduced seismic velocity and density compared to the host medium. We used the studies of
231 Juhlin and Palm (2003) and Juhlin and Stephens (2006) as guidelines in assigning velocities
232 to the fracture zones. They observed a seismic velocity reduction of about 15% for fracture
233 zones compared to the granitic host rock. Vertical and horizontal receiver component
234 common-source seismic gathers for all four fracture configurations were simulated for 91
235 surface source positions at 100 m intervals along the 9,000 m long model. Additionally,
236 Gaussian white noise was added to the resulting waveform data to simulate a realistic signal-
237 to-noise ratio of about 4 based on the average first arrival energy and maximum noise level.
238 2.3 Processing sequence
239 We applied a seismic processing sequence on the vertical and horizontal component
240 data for imaging the fracture zones, which consisted of geometrical spreading correction, tau-
241 p filtering to separate the direct (downgoing) and reflected (upgoing) wavefields, the
242 application of hand-picked top mute functions to remove any remaining direct wave energy,
243 Kirchhoff depth migration of each recording and stacking the migrated single-source gather
244 images (e.g., Hardage, 2000). An example source gather for fracture zone configuration 2
245 (indicated by source 14 in Fig. 1), before and after the tau-p filtering for wavefield separation
246 as well as the corresponding migrated gather, is shown in Fig. 3. On the migrated image in
247 Fig. 3c a reflector (R) as well as an artefact (A) can clearly be identified. The black dashed
248 line shows the exact location and extent of the fracture zone, which correlates well with the
249 imaged reflector. The migrated image of the seismic data from this one source position is
250 contaminated by an artefact (A). Furthermore, the location of the fracture zone is ambiguous,
251 since the reflector is imaged as a cone of specific dip around the borehole and therefore the
252 migration process cannot uniquely determine on which side of the borehole the reflector
253 occurs. To overcome this ambiguity, one could analyse the polarization of the arriving
254 wavefront to limit the image to a certain azimuth (Lüth et al., 2005) or acquire more source
255 positions to cancel out the artefact and reinforce the image of the fracture zone by
256 constructive interference. Fig. 4c shows the result of stacking the migrated recordings of all
257 91 source positions. Most of the artefacts have been effectively suppressed.
258
259 Fig. 3: Example source gather (x-component) at the position indicated by source 14 in
260 Fig. 2; (a) before and (b) after pre-processing. A top mute after the first breaks was
261 additionally applied to remove any remaining direct wave energy. The red arrow indicates the
262 fracture zone reflection. (c) Migrated source gather of preprocessed data in (b) with the
263 receiver locations shown in black. R indicates the reflector and A is a migration artefact.
264 3. Method to optimize VSP survey design
265 The overall goal of our survey-design study is to determine the optimal survey layout
266 for a given downhole receiver layout and assuming a particular fracture zone orientation. The
267 working principle of our survey design procedure is illustrated in Fig. 4 using fracture zone
268 configuration 2 (see also Fig. 1). First, we constructed a target image (desired optimum
269 image) based on the results obtained when processing the comprehensive dataset (all 91
270 source gathers; Fig. 4c. Since this image still contains minor artefacts that could not be
271 removed by the processing, we applied a tapered window and extracted only that part of the
272 migrated image as the reference solution which contained the desired features in the target
273 image (see dashed black line Fig. 4c enclosing the target). The goodness of any subsequently
274 derived test image (migration result obtained from subsets of the comprehensive dataset) was
275 quantified by the zero-lag 2D crosscorrelation coefficient of the test image with the target (or
276 reference) image.
277
278 Fig. 4: Illustration of the optimization procedure using fracture zone configuration 2
279 (see Fig. 2). a) Benefit-cost curves for optimized source location design (red) and regularly
280 spaced sources (green). (b) Locations of the optimized source positions (note that only
281 selected depth segments of the full model (see Fig. 2) are shown, i.e. the depth range between
282 1500 m and 3700 m was removed). (c) Migrated image obtained using the comprehensive
283 dataset including all 91 sources. (d) Migrated image obtained with 12 regularly spaced
284 sources. (e) Image obtained with 12 optimized sources (see (b) for source locations).
285
286 Apart from 2D crosscorrelation, other approaches such as root-mean-square error
287 (RMSE) and Structural Similarity Index (SSIM) (Wang et al., 2004) were also tested. The
288 crosscorrelation coefficient and RMSE yielded similar results, whereas SSIM was less stable
289 for noisy data. After careful consideration, the crosscorrelation coefficient was chosen as the
290 measure (or benefit statistic) for the optimization process.
291 When optimizing the survey geometry for a particular fracture zone orientation and
292 signal-to-noise ratio, 91 test images corresponding to 91 migrated single-source images were
293 produced. These test images were then individually crosscorrelated with the target image (see
294 Fig. 4c, and the single-source image with the largest crosscorrelation coefficient was selected.
295 Then, the most suitable add-on single-source image was determined by computing all possible
296 stacks of two single-source images (90 possible combinations with the initially selected
297 single-source image) and evaluating the crosscorrelation coefficients with the target image.
298 Further single-source images were subsequently added in an equivalent manner. This allowed
299 benefit-cost curves (benefit corresponding to the crosscorrelation coefficient, cost
300 corresponding to the number of single-sources images) to be constructed. The benefit-cost
301 curve does not reach a value of 1 for the image derived from the complete dataset since it is
302 crosscorrelated with the tapered comprehensive data image.
303 As shown in Fig 4a, the benefit-cost curve rapidly increases when combining only a
304 small number of sources, but flattens out with an ever increasing number of stacked single-
305 source images. When the increase of the crosscorrelation coefficient from one stack to the
306 next becomes smaller than 1%, the resulting stacked images were deemed to no longer
307 improve significantly. Hence this point of diminishing returns defines the optimal selection
308 of single-source images and corresponding source positions. For the example of fracture zone
309 configuration 2, the optimization procedure yielded an optimal subset size of 12 single-source
310 images. The corresponding source positions are shown in Fig. 4b.
311 The potency of our optimization method can be demonstrated by comparing the
312 optimized source-point distributions with a regularly spaced source-point distribution, where
313 the distance between consecutive sources is constant for the latter. As shown in Fig. 4a, the
314 benefit-cost curve corresponding to regularly spaced source positions (green) exhibits
315 considerably lower crosscorrelation coefficients, and furthermore the image obtained with 12
316 regularly spaced sources with constant offset of 750 m (Fig. 4d) is clearly inferior to that
317 obtained with the optimized 12 source point image (Fig. 4e).
318 We observed that the locations of the selected optimal source positions depend slightly
319 on the realizations of the stochastic velocity fluctuations and the simulated additive noise
320 when we used a different random-number realisation (Goff and Holliger 2012). However, the
321 spread of the optimized source configurations (horizontal red line in Fig. 4b) is fairly
322 consistent for different velocity fluctuations / noise realizations. We found that using the
323 optimal number of sources, but with a regular spacing within the optimal source-position
324 spread generally leads to a comparable migrated image with an only slightly lower
325 crosscorrelation value compared to the fully optimized experiment. Hence, we will focus on
326 the spread of the source points instead of the individual source positions in subsequent
327 discussion.
328 It is also noteworthy that the optimized benefit-cost curve in Fig. 4a decreases slightly
329 after its maximum is reached at about 42 sources. This indicates that some single-source
330 images in the comprehensive dataset contain no significant signal, but only noise such as
331 migration artefacts. The artefacts mainly result from diffraction hyperbolas that could not be
332 collapsed to their point of origin during the migration. Diffractions are only visible on a few
333 traces on the source gathers and show very little moveout. Hence, the diffraction is not
334 characterized well and artefacts appear after migration. The diffraction artefacts deteriorate
335 not only the quality of the images, but also affect the resulting crosscorrelation with the target
336 image. In other words, more data do not necessarily improve the image quality.
337 4. Results of 2D study
338 In the following, we summarize the results of applying our optimization procedure to a
339 series of 2D scenarios with different fracture zone geometries (locations, dips and
340 orientations) and varying noise levels.
341 4.1 Different fracture zone dips and distances from the borehole
342 We have applied our proposed survey design methodology to find optimum source
343 configurations for different fracture zone dips (30 °, 50 °, 70 °, 90 °) as well as lateral
344 distances between the midpoint of the fracture zone and the borehole (0 and 300 m). We
345 will limit the presentation of the results to just the four fracture zone configurations shown in
346 Fig. 1 (dips of 30 ° and 70 °, lateral distances 0 m and 300 m), although our findings are
347 supported by the full suite of fracture models. The results are summarized in Fig. 5. The
348 clearest fracture zone images were obtained for gentle dips (configurations 1 and 3). This is
349 not surprising, considering the higher amplitude values for the shallow gently dipping
350 interfaces in the illumination maps shown in Fig. 2. For the gentle dips, 7 to 8 sources are
351 required for imaging these fracture zones reliably. The 50° dipping fracture zone can also be
352 imaged reliably; however, more source positions are needed for the fracture zone crossing the
353 borehole.
354
355 Fig. 5: (a) Benefit-cost curves for fracture zone configurations 1 to 4 (see Fig. 2). (b)
356 Spread of the optimized source positions for fracture zone configurations 1 to 4 (note that
357 only selected depth segments of the full model (see Fig. 2) are shown, i.e. the depth range
358 between 1500 m and 3700 m was removed). (c) to (f) Optimized images for fracture zone
359 configurations 1 to 4, respectively.
360 From the experiment one can see that more source positions are required for imaging
361 steeply dipping targets, such as fracture zone configuration 2, because far offset sources are
362 required that suffer more from amplitude loss due to geometrical spreading. The optimum
363 spread of the sources depends strongly on the position of the fracture zone (Fig. 5b). Large
364 lateral distances between sources and receivers are required for steeply dipping interfaces,
365 especially for steep fracture zones cross-cutting the borehole (configuration 4). These
366 interfaces represent the most significant challenge for VSP imaging. Only a small segment of
367 the fracture zone can be imaged and hardly any information on the dip can be retrieved (Fig.
368 5f). The 90° dipping fracture zone cross-cutting the borehole can basically not be recovered at
369 all. Only far offset source gathers contain reflection energy, whereas the other source gathers
370 predominantly contain diffraction energy. The migration process does not manage to collapse
371 the diffraction hyperbolas, leading to migrated images contaminated by strong artefacts.
372 Therefore, the corresponding benefit-cost curve in Fig. 5a (dark blue) starts decreasing
373 already after a few sources. The migrated image using the optimal survey layout leads to a
374 low quality image, indicating that there is little hope to reliably image steeply dipping fracture
375 zones that are crossing the borehole.
376 4.2 Varying signal-to-noise ratios
377 Different signal-to-noise ratios (S/N) of the data were tested to examine the effect of
378 noise on the shape of the benefit-cost curves and the quality of the migrated images. Benefit-
379 cost curves for different noise levels give indications of how the number of optimal sources
380 must be adapted in order to obtain a migrated image that is comparable in quality to the noise
381 -free image. Fig. 6 shows an example of different benefit-cost curves for fracture zone
382 configuration 2 with various S/N ratios. The number of required sources increases
383 substantially for noisy data, e.g. 20 source positions for S/N = 2 compared to 10 for S/N = 6.
384 The source position spread moves slightly towards smaller lateral offsets for decreasing S/N,
385 omitting the far offset source positions that suffer more energy loss due to longer travel paths
386 (Fig. 6b). Hence, we can observe a trade-off between large offsets with higher illumination
387 and near offset with lower noise levels. However, the number of sources seems to have a
388 more pronounced effect on the quality of migrated images than the position of the spread. The
389 migrated images for the different noise levels using the optimal number of sources are shown
390 in Fig. 6c-f. It can be seen that the final migrated images exhibit a comparable quality.
391
392 Fig. 6: (a) Benefit-cost curves for fracture zone configuration 2 using data with
393 different S/N ratios. (b) Spread of the optimized source positions using different S/N ratios
394 (note that only selected depth segments of the full model (see Fig. 2) are shown, i.e. the depth
395 range between 1500 m and 3700 m was removed). (c) to (f) Optimized images using different
396 S/N ratios. Note that the number of optimal sources increases substantially for decreasing S/N
397 ratio, but comparable image quality is achieved.
398 4.3 Multiple fracture zones
399 In many realistic scenarios, several fracture zones may be present in the subsurface,
400 such as in the case of Soultz. Therefore, the optimization was tested for the case of multiple
401 interfaces with different dips to investigate if several fracture zones can be imaged reliably.
402 For that reason, the configuration, shown in Fig. 7a (50 ° and 90 ° dipping fracture zone
403 with a lateral distance of 300 m from the borehole), was used. First, the optimal source
404 positions based on a single fracture zone dipping with either 50 ° or 90 ° (Fig. 7b) were
405 used for the migration. Afterwards, the optimization for imaging both fracture zones together
406 was performed. The corresponding migrated images are shown in Fig 7c-e.
407
408 Fig. 7: (a) Velocity model with two crossing fracture zones plotted in white. (b)
409 Optimized source position spread. (c) to (e) Migrated images optimized for fracture zone dips
410 of 50°, 90° (individual) , and 50° and 90° combined, respectively. The quality of the migrated
411 image optimized for 90° in (d) is inferior compared to (c) and (e) due to the narrow source
412 position spread.

413 It can be observed that the two crossing fracture zones with different dips can be
414 imaged for all three cases. The migrated images in Fig. 7c and e are comparable in quality and
415 are both superior to the one in 7d. Since the latter is optimized only for the 90 ° dipping
416 interface, the 50 ° dipping interface shows artefacts in that its depth extension is too long.
417 The corresponding source position spread is limited to a very small area that is clearly not
418 enough to image the 50° dipping fracture zone reliably. The spread for the migrated image in
419 Fig. 7e lies somewhere in between the two other cases (Fig. 7b). Generally, we conclude that
420 the source position spread should not be restricted to a small area but rather cover a large
421 distance when multiple fracture zones with different dips may be present.
422 5. Results of 3D study
423 5.1 Different fracture zone azimuths
424 As a next step, we extended our survey-design strategy to optimize acquisition
425 geometries for fracture zones located out of the source receiver plane to study 3D effects on
426 2D imaging. In the previous sections we simulated the 2D case of a fracture zone with a strike
427 perpendicular to the source line, which is the ideal case. However, in reality, for logistical
428 reasons, it might not be possible to acquired data perpendicular to the fracture zone strike.
429 Hence, it is instructive to study how the survey can be optimized for fracture zones having
430 different azimuths in order to minimize à priori known 3D effects.
431 In a first experiment, we model source recordings for a straight source-point line and
432 different fracture-zone azimuths (0°, 30 °, 60 °, 90 ° from the source line), keeping
433 constant the depth and distance of the fracture zone from the borehole.. The size of the
434 fracture zone was set to 400 m x 400 m x 40 m. A conceptual model of the survey setup for
435 configuration 1 (azimuth 0°, which represents the ideal setup as in the 2D study) and
436 configuration 2 (azimuth 60°) are presented in Fig 8b as a top-view at constant depth and in
437 Fig. 8c, d as a 3D view. The projected fracture zone strike is indicated by the white box, with
438 the receivers shown in black and the sources in white.
439
440 Fig. 8: (a) Optimized source position spread for configurations 1) and 2) shown in the
441 conceptual models in (b-d). (e) Two cross sections through the middle of the fracture zone
442 that are used for the 3D optimization. The cross section perpendicular to the strike is shown in
443 magenta a-a’ and that parallel to the strike in green b-b’. The dashed line in magenta
444 represents the length and the dashed line in green the width of the fracture zone. The migrated
445 images for configurations 1) and 2) are shown in Fig. 9 for the two perpendicular cross
446 sections.
447 We applied the same processing sequence to the modelled source gathers as in the 2D
448 case, except using a 3D Kirchhoff migration algorithm (Buske 1999). Since we used a single
449 component migration algorithm, the three component data were rotated such that the energy
450 was maximized in one component. This was achieved by first modeling the experiment with
451 the algorithm described in section 2 to determine the reflected wave arrival direction for each
452 source receiver pair in a constant velocity medium. The amplitudes were then rotated into the
453 theoretical arrival directions. A similar approach was used by Place et al. (2010) and
454 Melanson et al. (2015), where a 3D conceptual model of the subsurface is created by
455 comparing recorded and synthetic data. Such a conceptual model can then be used to
456 determine the direction of the arriving reflection and to orientate the geophones into the
457 principal energy direction.
458 After 3D migration of the processed and rotated data, two vertical cross sections
459 through the middle of the fracture zone were extracted and analyzed. One is perpendicular to
460 the strike, which corresponds to the length of the fracture zone as in the 2D case (shown in
461 magenta in Fig. 8e and one parallel to the strike that describes the width of the fracture zone
462 (shown in green in Fig. 8e. The images of both cross sections were used during the
463 optimization procedure. The results of the experiment, where the fracture zone has an azimuth
464 of 0° (configuration 1) compared to an azimuth of 60° (configuration 2) are shown in Fig. 9
465 for both the comprehensive and the optimized dataset, respectively. For evaluating the quality
466 of the results, the exact length (magenta) and width (green) of the fracture zone are indicated
467 by the dashed lines. It can be observed that the optimized migrated image is of similar quality
468 to the migrated image of the comprehensive dataset.
469 The fracture zone can be imaged even if the azimuth between the source line and the
470 fracture zone strike is 60°. However, the migrated image clearly is of lower quality than the
471 migrated image for azimuth 0°. The fracture zone is more smeared out at the edges and the
472 dip is slightly too shallow (compare Fig. 9a and e, 9c and g). In the cross sections shown in
473 Fig. 9b, d, f, h, the width of the fracture zone is imaged. Comparing the migrated images with
474 the green dashed line (exact width of the fracture zone), it can be seen that the image quality
475 is rather low for both configurations and clearly decreases for increasing azimuth.
476
477 Fig. 9: Migrated images for configurations 1) and 2) for the comprehensive dataset and
478 the optimized dataset. The two different cross sections that are used for the optimization are
479 illustrated in the conceptual model in Fig. 8e. The dashed line in magenta represents the
480 length and the dashed line in green the width of the fracture zone. Note the decrease in quality
481 for configuration 2 (e-h) compared to configuration 1 (a-d).
482 The source position spread changes considerably for the two different configurations
483 (Fig. 8a). The experiment for configuration 2 requires near offset source positions and omits
484 the far offset positions completely, since no reflections occur for far offset shots. When
485 considering all the different azimuths (also 30° and 90° which are not displayed in Fig. 9) the
486 quality of the migrated images decreases for increasing azimuth. Clearly, the best possible
487 image can be obtained with a fracture zone azimuth perpendicular to the source line. The
488 optimal source position spread is highly sensitive to the fracture zone azimuth. Far offset
489 source positions contribute less to the image quality as fracture zone azimuth increases.
490 5.2 Different source line azimuth
491 To investigate whether a fracture zone can be better imaged when illuminated from
492 different angles, we simulated a multi-azimuth survey with the 6 source lines as shown in Fig.
493 10. The dip of the fracture zone is 70° and its strike is perpendicular to line L4 (fracture zone
494 is indicated in green in Fig. 10). In the optimization process we included all source positions
495 from the six different lines L1 to L6 to test which combination of source positions leads to an
496 optimal image.
497
498 Fig. 10: Multi-azimuth survey with the optimal source positions (red) and the strike of
499 the fracture zone (green). Most source positions are located on line 4, indicating that a narrow
500 azimuth perpendicular to the strike of the fracture zone is favorable to image a single fracture
501 zone.
502 As can be observed in Fig. 10, the optimal source positions (red points) lie mostly on
503 line 4 which is perpendicular to the strike of the fracture zone. Only two near offset source
504 positions from line 3 were chosen by the algorithm. Visual inspection of the migrated single
505 source gathers revealed that these two source gathers contain hardly any reflection energy due
506 to the near offsets and are probably included as optimal sources to reduce the artefacts around
507 the fracture zone. Hence, the optimization process favors source positions perpendicular to the
508 fracture zone strike since they contribute most to the image. These results highlight that
509 advanced geological à priori information on the azimuth of potential fracture zones is
510 essential for designing suitable VSP surveys.
511 6. Discussion
512 The optimized VSP design study was carried out under the acoustic assumption and
513 therefore no S-waves are present in the data. S-waves and coherent noise (e.g. tube waves)
514 further complicate the data, however, they could be suppressed largely with f-k or tau-p
515 filtering prior to migration. Additional complications when dealing with field data are
516 expected with regard to the fracture zone geometry. The fracture zone was modelled as a band
517 of finite thickness bounded by two plane interfaces whereas real fracture zones are expected
518 to have a more complex shape, to be rough and the impedance contrast can deviate from the
519 one that is modelled. Nevertheless, the simple fracture zone gives a good indication of how
520 well such a structure can be imaged under ideal conditions using an optimal number of
521 sources and an ideal source spread.
522 Other complications likely to be encountered in the field are source and receiver
523 coupling variations, malfunctioning of receivers or skipped source positions. Additionally, the
524 S/N ratio is not known before a survey. These effects add an element of uncertainty and need
525 to be considered when planning a survey. Due to the various approximations and
526 simplifications made it is advisable to use a slightly larger number of sources than that
527 determined by the optimization strategy alone. This provides an additional factor of safety and
528 diminishes the risk of inferior imaging.
529 Despite the simplifications, we regard our study as beneficial because it illustrates the
530 limitations and possibilities for VSP imaging of fracture zones within hardrock basement
531 environments under ideal conditions. A further advantage of our 3D optimization scheme is
532 that it can easily be adopted to any acquisition geometry, which allows optimizing crooked-
533 line acquisition and imaging geometries (e.g., Schmelzbach et al., 2007b). Furthermore, it
534 demonstrates how a VSP experiment can be optimized with a favorable benefit-cost ratio and
535 how seismic processing can be done to improve the image quality of a fault or fracture.
536 7. Conclusions
537 In this study a methodology to optimize VSP survey layouts for imaging fracture
538 zones within hardrock basement geothermal reservoirs is presented. Optimal survey layouts in
539 terms of ideal source spread and number of sources are shown for different fracture zone dips
540 and positions. We have shown that the optimal experimental design strongly depends on the
541 dip and location of the fracture zone. Therefore, à priori information on the expected
542 subsurface structures is essential for survey design. For all scenarios considered in this study
543 good results were obtained with a relatively small number of source positions. Adding more
544 shot gathers outside of the optimal spread did not improve the quality of the images, but rather
545 deteriorated the image quality. Therefore, our methodology will be not only useful for
546 designing future field surveys, but also for selecting useful subsets of acquired data for
547 optimum target-oriented processing.
548 Based on the synthetic data study we found that:
549 - More source positions and larger offsets are needed as fracture zone dip is increased.
550 - With decreasing S/N ratio more source positions and smaller offsets are required.
551 - Source positions should cover a large area when multiple fracture zones with different
552 dips are present.
553 - Far offset source positions contribute less to the image quality with increasing fracture
554 zone azimuth.
555 - Several source lines perpendicular to the different fracture zone strikes are ideal for
556 fracture zones with different azimuths.
557 In this study we have demonstrated the benefits of optimized survey design with 2D
558 and 3D acoustic data. The methodology could further be extended to the more realistic elastic
559 case. This would introduce new challenges in wavefield separation but also add additional
560 value because P-S, S-P and S-S migrated images could be obtained.
561 Acknowledgments
562 We thank Stefan Buske and his group at TU Freiberg for providing the 3D seismic
563 migration code and Heinrich Horstmeyer for advice on the use of our processing software. We
564 acknowledge support for this research by Landmark Graphics Corporation via the Landmark
565 University Grant Program (Landmark ProMax® software was used to process the seismic
566 data). The research leading to these results has received funding from the EC Seventh
567 Framework Programme under grant agreement No. 608553 (Project IMAGE). We wish to
568 thank the CARNEVAL consortium sponsors Nagra, OMV and Schlumberger Gould Research
569 for partial support of one of the co-authors of this paper.
570
571
572 References
573 Adam, E., Bohlen, T., Milkereit, B., 2003. Vertical seismic profiling at the Bell Allard
574 Orebody, Matagami, Québec. In D. W. Eaton, B. Milkereit, and M. H. Salisbury, eds.,
575 Hardrock Seismic Exploration: Society of Exploration Geophysicists, 181-193. doi:
576 10.1190/1.9781560802396.ch12
577 Ahmed, K. A., Schwarz B., Gajewski, D., 2015. Application of the 3D common-
578 reflection-surface stack workflow in a crystalline rock environment. Geophys. Prospect., 63,
579 no. 4, 990-998. doi: 10.1111/1365-2478.12282
580 Arnórsson, S., 1995, Geothermal systems in Iceland: structure and conceptual
581 models—I. High-temperature areas. Geothermics., 24, no. 5, 561-602. doi: 10.1016/0375-
582 6505(95)00025-9
583 Barbier, E., 2002, Geothermal energy technology and current status: an overview.
584 Renew. Sustain. Energy Rev., 6, no. 1, 3-65. doi: 10.1016/S1364-0321(02)00002-3
585 Bellefleur, G., Müller, C., Snyder, D., Matthews, L., 2004. Downhole seismic imaging
586 of a massive sulfide orebody with mode-converted waves, Halfmile Lake, New Brunswick,
587 Canada. Geophysics 69, no. 2, 318-329. doi: 10.1190/1.1707051
588 Biasi, G., Preston, L., 2011. Regional p-wave tomographic imaging with geothermal
589 application. GRC Trans., 35, 709-711.

590 Bohlen, T., Müller, C., Milkereit, B., 2003. Elastic seismic-wave scattering from
591 massive sulfide orebodies: On the role of composition and shape. In D. W. Eaton, B.
592 Milkereit, and M. H. Salisbury, eds., Hardrock Seismic Exploration. Society of Exploration
593 Geophysicists, 70-89. doi: 10.1190/1.9781560802396.ch5
594 Brogi, A., Lazzarotto, A., Liotta, D., Ranalli, G., 2003. Extensional shear zones as
595 imaged by reflection seismic lines: the Larderello geothermal field (central Italy).
596 Tectonophys., 363, no. 1, 127-139. doi: 10.1016/S0040-1951(02)00668-6
597 Buske, S., 1999. Three-dimensional pre-stack Kirchhoff migration of deep seismic
598 reflection data. Geophys. J. Int., 137, no. 1, 243-260. doi: 10.1046/j.1365-246x.1999.00789.x
599 Carr, B. J., Smithson, S. B., Kareav, N., Ronin, A., Garipov, V., Kristofferson, Y.,
600 Digranes, P., Smythe, D., Gillen, C., 1996. Vertical seismic profile results from the Kola
601 Superdeep Borehole, Russia. Tectonophys., 264, no. 1, 295-307. doi: 10.1016/S0040-
602 1951(96)00133-3
603 Cosma, C., Olsson, O., Keskinen, J., Heikkinen, P., 2001. Seismic characterization of
604 fracturing at the Äspö Hard Rock Laboratory, Sweden, from the kilometer scale to the meter
605 scale. Int. J. Rock Mech. & Min. Sci., 38, no. 6, 859-865. doi: 10.1016/S1365-
606 1609(01)00051-X
607 Cosma, C., Heikkinen, P., Keskinen, J., 2003. Multi-azimuth VSP for rock
608 characterization of deep nuclear waste disposal sites in Finland. In D. W. Eaton, B. Milkereit,
609 and M. H. Salisbury, eds., Hardrock Seismic Exploration. Society of Exploration
610 Geophysicists, 207-226.

611 Emsley, S. J., Shiner, P., Enescu, N., Beccacini, A., Cosma C., 2007. Using VSP
612 surveys to bridge the scale gap between well and seismic data. Geol. Soc., London, Special
613 Publ., 270, no. 1, 83-91. doi: 10.1144/GSL.SP.2007.270.01.06
614 Geiermann, J., Schill, E., 2010. 2-D Magnetotellurics at the geothermal site at Soultz-
615 sous-Forêts: Resistivity distribution to about 3000m depth. Comptes Rendus Geosci., 342, no.
616 7, 587-599. doi: 10.1016/j.crte.2010.04.001
617 Gérard, A., Genter, A., Kohl, T., Lutz, P., Rose, P., Rummel, F., 2006. The deep EGS
618 (enhanced geothermal system) project at Soultz-sous-Forêts (Alsace, France). Geothermics,
619 35, no. 5, 473-483. doi: 10.1016/j.geothermics.2006.12.001
620 Goff, J. A., Holliger, K., 2012. Heterogeneity in the crust and upper mantle: nature,
621 scaling, and seismic properties. Kluwer Academic/Plenum Publishers.
622 Hardage, B. A., 2000. Vertical seismic profiling: principles. Handbook of geophysical
623 exploration, Seismic exploration, 14, Pergamon.
624 Hloušek, F., Hellwig, O., Buske, S., 2015. Three-dimensional focused seismic
625 imaging for geothermal exploration in crystalline rock near Schneeberg, Germany. Geophys.
626 Prospect., 63, no. 4, 999-1014. doi: 10.1111/1365-2478.12239
627 Juhlin, C., Palm, H., 2003. Experiences from Shallow Reflection Seismics over
628 Granitic Rocks in Sweden. Hardrock Seismic Exploration. In D. W. Eaton, B. Milkereit, and
629 M. H. Salisbury, eds., Hardrock Seismic Exploration: Society of Exploration Geophysicists,
630 93-109. doi: 10.1190/1.9781560802396.ch6

631 Juhlin, C., Stephens, M. B., 2006. Gently dipping fracture zones in Paleoproterozoic
632 metagranite, Sweden: Evidence from reflection seismic and cored borehole data and
633 implications for the disposal of nuclear waste. J. Geophys. Res.: Solid Earth, 111, Nr. B9. doi:
634 10.1029/2005JB003887
635 Lubrano Lavadera, P., 2013. Traitement des données de sismique de puits acquises en
636 2007 sur le site de Soultz-sous-Forêts pour la caractérisation de la fracturation du réservoir
637 géothermique. Doctoral dissertation, Strasbourg.
638 Lüth, S., Buske, S., Giese, R., Goertz, A., 2005. Fresnel volume migration of
639 multicomponent data. Geophysics, 70, no. 6, S121-S129. doi: 10.1190/1.2127114
640 Majer, E. L., McEvilly, T. V., Eastwood, F. S., Myer, L. R., 1988. Fracture detection
641 using P-wave and S-wave vertical seismic profiling at The Geysers. Geophysics, 53, no. 1,
642 76-84. doi: 10.1190/1.1442401
643 Maurer, H., Curtis, A., Boerner, D. E., 2010. Recent advances in optimized
644 geophysical survey design. Geophysics, 75, no. 5, A177-A194. doi: 10.1190/1.3484194
645 Melanson, D. M., White, D. J., Samson, C., Bellefleur, G., Schetselaar, E., Schmitt, D.
646 R., 2015. Mode-converted volcanogenic massive sulphide ore lens reflections in vertical
647 seismic profiles from Flin Flon, Manitoba, Canada. Geophys. Prospect., 63, no. 4, 849-860.
648 doi: 10.1111/1365-2478.12267

649 Nakagome, O., Toshihiro, U., Takamasa, H., 1998. Seismic reflection and VSP in the
650 Kakkonda geothermal field, Japan: fractured reservoir characterization. Geothermics, 27, no.
651 5, 535-552. doi: 10.1016/s0375-6505(98)00032-7
652 Niitsuma, H., Fehler, M., Jones, R., Wilson, S., Albright, J., Green, A., Baria, R.,
653 Hayashi, K., Kaieda, H., Tezuka, K., Jupe, A., Wallroth, T., Cornet, F., Asanuma, H., Moriya,
654 H., Nagano, K., Phillips, W. S., Rutledge, J., House, L., Beauce, A., Alde, D., Aster, R., 1999.
655 Current status of seismic and borehole measurements for HDR/HWR development.
656 Geothermics, 28, no. 4, 475-490. doi: 10.1016/S0375-6505(99)00024-3
657 Perron, G., Eaton, D.W., Elliot, B., Schmitt, D., 2003. Application of downhole
658 seismic imaging to map near-vertical structures: Normétal (Abitibi Greenstone Belt), Québec
659 in D. W. Eaton, B. Milkereit, and M. H. Salisbury, eds., Hardrock Seismic Exploration.
660 Society of Exploration Geophysicists, 194-206. doi: 10.1190/1.9781560802396.ch13
661 Place, J., Diraison, M., Naville, C., Géraud, Y., Schaming, M., Dezayes, C., 2010.
662 Decoupling of deformation in the Upper Rhine Graben sediments. Seismic reflection and
663 diffraction on 3-component Vertical Seismic Profiling (Soultz-sous-Forêts area). Comptes
664 Rendus Geosci., 342, no. 7, 575-586. doi: 10.1016/j.crte.2010.01.001
665 Place, J., Sausse, J., Marthelot, J. M., Diraison, M., Géraud, Y., Naville, C., 2011. 3-D
666 mapping of permeable structures affecting a deep granite basement using isotropic 3C VSP
667 data. Geophys. J. Int., 186, no. 1, 245-263. doi: 10.1111/j.1365-246X.2011.05012.x
668 Rabbel, W., Beilecke, T., Bohlen, T., Fischer, D., Frank, A., Hasenclever, J., Borm,
669 G., Kück, J., Bram, K., Druivenga, G., Lüschen, E., Gebrande, H., Pujol, J., Smithson, S.,
670 2004. Superdeep vertical seismic profiling at the KTB deep drill hole (Germany): Seismic
671 close-up view of a major thrust zone down to 8.5 km depth. J. Geophys. Res.: Solid Earth,
672 109, B09309. doi: 10.1029/2004JB002975
673 Salisbury, M. H., Harvey, C. W., Matthews, L., 2003. The acoustic properties of ores
674 and host rocks in hardrock terranes. In D. W. Eaton, B. Milkereit, and M. H. Salisbury, eds.,
675 Hardrock Seismic Exploration. Society of Exploration Geophysicists, 9-19.
676 doi: 10.1190/1.9781560802396.ch1
677 Schmelzbach, C., Horstmeyer, H., Juhlin, C., 2007a. Shallow 3D seismic-reflection
678 imaging of fracture zones in crystalline rock. Geophysics, 72, no. 6, B149-B160. doi:
679 10.1190/1.2787336
680 Schmelzbach, C., Juhlin, C., Carbonell, R., and Simancas, J. F., 2007b. Prestack and
681 poststack migration of crooked-line seismic reflection data: A case study from the South
682 Portuguese Zone fold belt, southwestern Iberia: Geophysics, 72, no. 2, B9–B18, doi:
683 10.1190/1.2407267.
684 Schmelzbach, C., Greenhalgh, S., Reiser, F., Girard, J.-F., Bretaudeau, F., Capar, L.,
685 Bitri, A., 2016. Advanced seismic processing/imaging techniques and their potential for
686 geothermal exploration: Interpretation, 4, no 4, SR1-SR18, doi: 10.1190/INT-2016-0017.1
687 Schreiter, L., Hloušek, F., Hellwig, O., Buske, S., 2015. Characterization of seismic
688 reflections from faults in a crystalline environment, Schneeberg, Germany. Geophys.
689 Prospec., 63, no. 4, 1015-1032. doi: 10.1111/1365-2478.12255

690 Thomas, R., Schulz, R., 2007. Facies differentiation of the Malm by interpretation of
691 reflection seismic profiles and a moving source VSP experiment. Proceedings European
692 Geothermal Congress 2007, paper 275.
693 Wang, Z., Bovik, A. C., Sheikh, H. R., Simoncelli, E. P., 2004. Image quality
694 assessment: from error visibility to structural similarity. IEEE Trans. on Image Process., 13,
695 no. 4, 600-612. doi: 10.1109/TIP.2003.819861
696 Wolfgramm, M., Bartels, J., Hoffmann, F., Kittl, G., Lenz, G., Seibt, P., Schulz, R.
697 Thomas, R., Unger, H. J., 2007. Unterhaching geothermal well doublet: structural and
698 hydrodynamic reservoir characteristic; Bavaria (Germany). Proceedings European
699 Geothermal Congress 2007, paper 47.
700
View publication stats

VSP Designed

Hochgeladen von

Dokumentinformationen

Originaltitel

Copyright

Verfügbare Formate

Dieses Dokument teilen

Dokument teilen oder einbetten

Freigabeoptionen

Stufen Sie dieses Dokument als nützlich ein?

Sind diese Inhalte unangemessen?

Copyright:

Verfügbare Formate

VSP Designed

Hochgeladen von

Copyright:

Verfügbare Formate

See discussions, stats, and author profiles for this publication at: https://www.researchgate.

Article in Journal of Applied Geophysics · February 2017

Fabienne Reiser Hansruedi Maurer

SEE PROFILE SEE PROFILE

The Galperin Source View project

Furggwanghorn Rock Glacier View project

The user has requested enhancement of the downloaded file.

1 Optimizing the design of vertical seismic profiling (VSP) for

2 imaging fracture zones over hardrock basement geothermal

5 Fabienne Reiser1, Cedric Schmelzbach1, Hansruedi Maurer1, Stewart Greenhalgh1,2, Olaf

10 Saudi Arabia, greenhalgh@kfupm.edu.sa

27 image from a comprehensive set of source gathers. In geothermal exploration at established

28 sites, it is reasonable to assume that sufficient à priori information is available to construct

42 subsets of acquired data for optimum target-oriented processing.

47 being more recently referred to as enhanced geothermal systems or EGS). Hydrothermal

52 produce electricity. Examples of operational hydrothermal systems are Lardarello in Italy

54 Germany (Wolfgramm et al., 2007).

62 permeability and fluid flow.

63 Geophysical exploration of EGS systems often includes magnetotelluric

64 investigations, potential field measurements and local earthquake tomography (Geiermann

70 Schmelzbach et al., 2016).

71 Controlled-source seismic methods can generally be subdivided according to their

72 recording geometry into three surveying configurations: surface-based, surface-to-borehole

80 inferred the approximate extent and velocity structure of the faults.

81 Despite some successes, surface-based seismic reflection imaging investigations in

87 discontinuous morphology; (4) high velocities in crystalline basement result in a loss of

90 to image without very large aperture recording arrays.

92 area of interest can be more effectively illuminated, such as by means of crosswell

93 transmission tomography (e.g., Niitsuma et al., 1999) or surface-to-borehole methods (vertical

97 overburden (near-surface layers), thus suffering less from frequency-dependent attenuation

101 for placing additional wells.

120 model of the area.

132 geothermal sites.

141 fracture zones with different azimuths.

142 2. Experimental setup

150 comprehensive dataset.

162 are illustrated in Fig. 1.

168 An advantage of VSP surveying over surface-based seismic measurements is the

182 dependent measure of illumination. This procedure results in amplitude-dependent

188 simplified scheme.

198 steeply dipping interfaces.

205 dipping than gently dipping interfaces.

213 2.2 Computation of synthetic VSP data

238 2.3 Processing sequence

264 3. Method to optimize VSP survey design

276 reference) image.

286 Apart from 2D crosscorrelation, other approaches such as root-mean-square error

290 measure (or benefit statistic) for the optimization process.

299 benefit-cost curves (benefit corresponding to the crosscorrelation coefficient, cost

300 corresponding to the number of single-sources images) to be constructed. The benefit-cost

302 crosscorrelated with the tapered comprehensive data image.

337 4. Results of 2D study

340 orientations) and varying noise levels.

359 configurations 1 to 4, respectively.

375 zones that are crossing the borehole.

376 4.2 Varying signal-to-noise ratios

397 ratio, but comparable image quality is achieved.

398 4.3 Multiple fracture zones

412 position spread.

422 5. Results of 3D study

423 5.1 Different fracture zone azimuths

424 As a next step, we extended our survey-design strategy to optimize acquisition

430 different azimuths in order to minimize à priori known 3D effects.