Processing of electrical resistivity tomography data using convolutional neural network in ERT-NET architectures

Abstract

Electrical resistivity tomography (ERT) inversion has emerged as an effective method for predicting resistivity in complex geological structures. In most cases, traditional ERT inversion problems are posed as nonlinear optimization problems. Solving distribution resistivity inversion can be computationally challenging for two reasons: one is the significant cost of software and the other is the issue of local minima. The ERT-NET architecture was developed in this study to learn the parameter regression relationship between geophysical ERT datasets and subsurface models. We developed a novel convolutional neural network (CNN) technique that comprised of a fully connected network (ERT-INET) and a fully convolutional network (ERT-UNET); both train ambiguity information of the inverted resistivity based on processing ERT datasets. We also output our network segmentation of pixel-wise prediction for ERT-INET and structured prediction segmentation. The noise assessments of our network inversion were managed by employing depth of investigation (DOI) and statistical analysis for evaluation performance. The DOI appeared to be effective in conveying the breadth of possibility within our networks. Moreover, the performances are either the synthetic resistivity model or the field resistivity data, both of which have an average of greater than 95%. The inversion results of both architectures are precisely and accurately expressed, containing approximately the ground truth models and thereby also the field observation models. We conclude that these ERT-NET architectures could be one approach to ERT interpretation handling, and we strongly suggest alternatives that promote the geoelectrical method of interpretation.