Duplex Wave Migration Research Articles

Migration of duplex waves for coal-bed methane prediction

A case study of using migration of duplex waves to trace zones of near-vertical fracturing in coal formation is described. As a rule, coal-bed methane traps are connected with these zones, however, identification and tracing of them based on the standard seismic exploration techniques are practically impossible. It is shown that the joint analysis of structural interpretation and seismic facies investigation data and of the results of duplex wave migration improves efficiency of coalbed methane prediction. The work has been carried out based on 3D seismic survey conducted at one of the coalmines in the Donets Basin (Ukraine).

Comparison of seismic-based methods for fracture permeability prediction

There are several methods based on seismic reflection data for locating natural fracture systems and predicting their permeability. The only practical way to compare the predictive accuracy of each method is to evaluate the results from different oilfields using data from several wells in each field. We have studied methods based on reflection amplitude, reflection curvature and its derivatives, coherency cube, spectral decomposition, ant tracking technology, azimuthal anisotropy of P-wave velocity, and duplex wave migration (DWM) amplitude cube analysis. Here we report and analyse the results of each method for carbonate fracture plays. The study involved the analysis of several 3D data volumes from two different areas using results from hundreds of wells which have been drilled over the last three decades. We conclude that the DWM technique is the most reliable method for fracture permeability prediction. Lukoil planned a 2010 drilling programme for horizontal wells based on this DWM technology, and the first exploration results show that the locations of fracture systems were predicted with an accuracy of 25 m.