A combination of electrical resistivity, seismic refraction, and gravity measurements for groundwater exploration in Sudan

Abstract

In the savannah belt of central Sudan, near the town of Kosti, a regional geophysical survey has been carried out forming part of a groundwater project. Because of the presence of detectable and significant contrasts in physical properties of the subsoil, integrated use could be made of electrical resistivity, seismic refraction, and gravity methods. In the interpretation of multilayer electrical sounding curves, additional subsurface information such as lithological well descriptions and geophysical well logs is normally a necessity for solving the problems of equivalence. Along a profile in the eastern part of the area studied, where additional subsurface information was scarce, 16 vertical electrical soundings have been made. A preliminary simple mathematical interpretation suggested possibilities for the presence of fresh groundwater in the eastern part of the profile. In order to solve the equivalence problem, seismic refraction work was carried out at some selected places; that yielded additional information on depths to bedrock. These seismic data made possible a unique solution of the electrical sounding curves, from which it could be concluded that all groundwater in the area is saline. Subsequent test drilling confirmed these findings. A regional relative Bouguer anomaly map provided a picture of the general geologic structures and made possible rough estimates of depths to bedrock. In areas where the basement rocks are relatively close to the surface, as is the case with the profile presented, the gravity anomalies cannot be correlated with bedrock relief, because the effect is strongly influenced by lateral density variations within the bedrock itself. This is an example of a case where only an integrated application of several geophysical exploration methods can provide the desired hydrogeologic information in an acceptable balance between reliability and cost.