Frequency-domain Induced Polarization Research Articles

Spectral induced polarization: frequency domain versus time domain laboratory data

SUMMARY Spectral information obtained from induced polarization (IP) measurements can be used in a variety of applications and is often gathered in frequency domain (FD) at the laboratory scale. In contrast, field IP measurements are mostly done in time domain (TD). Theoretically, the spectral content from both domains should be similar. In practice, they are often different, mainly due to instrumental restrictions as well as the limited time and frequency range of measurements. Therefore, a possibility of transition between both domains, in particular for the comparison of laboratory FD IP data and field TD IP results, would be very favourable. To compare both domains, we conducted laboratory IP experiments in both TD and FD. We started with three numerical models and measurements at a test circuit, followed by several investigations for different wood and sandstone samples. Our results demonstrate that the differential polarizability (DP), which is calculated from the TD decay curves, can be compared very well with the phase of the complex electrical resistivity. Thus, DP can be used for a first visual comparison of FD and TD data, which also enables a fast discrimination between different samples. Furthermore, to compare both domains qualitatively, we calculated the relaxation time distribution (RTD) for all data. The results are mostly in agreement between both domains, however, depending on the TD data quality. It is striking that the DP and RTD results are in better agreement for higher data quality in TD. Nevertheless, we demonstrate that IP laboratory measurements can be carried out in both TD and FD with almost equivalent results. The RTD enables a good comparability of FD IP laboratory data with TD IP field data.

Spectral Induced Polarization of limestones: time domain field data, frequency domain laboratory data and physicochemical rock properties

Summary With advances in data acquisition and processing methods, spectral inversion of time domain induced polarization (IP) data is becoming more common. Geological interpretation of inverted spectral parameters, for instance Cole-Cole parameters, often relies on results from systematic laboratory measurements. These are most often carried out with frequency domain systems on sandstone samples. However, the two different methods of measuring the spectral IP response differ in both measurement technique and scale. One of the main objectives of the current study is, thus, to perform a direct comparison of inverted spectral parameters from time domain IP field data with frequency domain IP spectra from laboratory measurements. To achieve this, field measurements were carried out before a ∼50 m long rock core was drilled down along one of the measurement lines. Solid parts of the core were vacuum-sealed in plastic bags to preserve the natural groundwater in the samples, after which the core samples were measured with frequency domain spectral IP in laboratory. The results showed that the inverted Cole-Cole parameters closest to the borehole were comparable to the IP spectra measured at the core samples, despite differences in measurement techniques and scale. The field site chosen for the investigation was a limestone succession spanning over a well-known lithological boundary (the Cretaceous—Paleogene boundary). Little is known in previous research about varying spectral IP responses in limestones, and an additional objective of this study was, therefore, to investigate possible sources of these variations in the laboratory. The IP spectra were interpreted in light of measured lithological and physicochemical properties. The carbonate texture differed strongly across the Cretaceous—Paleogene boundary from fine-grained calcareous mudstone (Cretaceous) to more well-lithified and coarse-grained wackestone and packstone (Paleogene). Both laboratory and field spectral IP results showed that these differences cause a large shift in measured bulk conductivity across the boundary. Furthermore, carbonate mound structures with limestone grains consisting mainly of ∼cylindrical bryozoan fragments could be identified in the inverted Cole-Cole parameters as anomalies with high relaxation times. A general conclusion of this work is that limestones can give rise to a wide range of spectral responses. The carbonate texture and the dominant shape of the fossil grains seem to have important control over the electrical properties of the material. A main conclusion is that the inverted Cole-Cole parameters from the field scale time domain IP tomography were comparable to the magnitude and shape of frequency domain IP spectra at low frequencies. This opens up large interpretational possibilities, as the comprehensive knowledge about relationships between lithological properties and IP spectra from laboratory research can be used for field data interpretation.

Time Domain and Frequency Domain Induced Polarization Modeling for Three-dimensional Anisotropic Medium

Time domain induced polarization (TDIP) and frequency domain induced polarization (FDIP) synthetic models, incorporating three-dimensional (3D) anisotropic medium, were tested. In TDIP modeling, both resistivity and chargeability of the medium were anisotropic, and the apparent chargeability values were calculated by carrying out two resistivity forward calculations using resistivity with and without an IP effect. We analyzed the TDIP response of a 3D isotropic cube model embedded in the anisotropic subsurface half-space. In FDIP modeling, the complex resistivity of the medium at various frequencies was anisotropic. The complex resistivity was determined by a Cole-Cole model with anisotropic model parameters. We then analyzed the FDIP response of a 3D anisotropic cube model embedded in an isotropic subsurface half-space. Both of the TDIP and FDIP simulation results suggest that IP responses acquired in two orthogonal directions on the surface are different when the same arrays are used and acquisition in orthogonal directions helps resolve the presence of anisotropy. The anisotropy should be taken into account in practice for TDIP and FDIP exploration.

Correlation analysis for spread-spectrum induced-polarization signal processing in electromagnetically noisy environments

In induced-polarization (IP) surveys, the raw data are usually distorted significantly by the presence of electromagnetic (EM) interferences, including cultural noise. Several methods have been proposed to improve the signal-to-noise ratio of these data. However, signal processing in an electromagnetically noisy environment is still a challenging problem. We have determined a new and simple technique based on the analysis of the correlation between the measured potential and the injected primary current signals. This processing is applied to the data acquired using a new frequency-domain IP method called the spread-spectrum induced-polarization (SSIP) approach. In this approach, we use a pseudorandom m-sequence (also called the maximum length sequence) for the injected primary current. One of the advantages of this sequence is to be essentially spectrally flat in a given frequency range. Therefore, complex resistivity can be determined simultaneously at various frequencies. A new SSIP data set is acquired in the vicinity of Baiyin mine, Gansu Province, China. The correlation between potential difference and transmitting current signals for each period can be used to assess data quality. Only when the correlation coefficient between the two signals is greater than 0.5 can the SSIP data be used for subsequent processing and tomography. We determine what threshold value should be used for the correlation coefficient to extract high-quality apparent complex resistivity data and eliminate EM-contaminated data. We then compare the pseudosections with and without using the correlation analysis. When the correlation analysis is used, the noisy data are filtered out, and the target anomaly obtained through tomography is clearly enhanced. The inversion results of the apparent complex resistivity (amplitude and phase) for the survey area are consistent with some independent geologic and drilling information regarding the position of the ore body demonstrating the effectiveness of the approach.

Induced polarization effect in reservoir rocks and its modeling based on generalized effective-medium theory

One of the major tasks of the petroleum resource-efficient technologies (pREFFIT) is the development and improvement of the methods of exploration for energy resources. This review paper summarizes the results of the research on induced polarization (IP) effect in reservoir rocks conducted by the University of Utah Consortium for Electromagnetic Modeling and Inversion (CEMI) and TechnoImaging. The electrical IP effectin hydrocarbon (HC) bearing reservoir rocks having nonmetallic minerals is usually associated with membrane polarization, which is caused by a variation in the mobility of the ions throughout the rock structure. This mobility is related to the size and shape of the pores filled with electrolyte and the double electrical layers. We have studied the IP response of multiphase porous systems by conducting complex resistivity (CR) frequency-domain IP measurements for two different groups of samples: sands and sandstones containing salt water in pores and those whose unsaturated pores were filled with synthetic oil.We have also studied selected carbonate reservoir formations, typical of some major HC deposits. The generalized effective-medium theory of induced polarization (GEMTIP) was used to analyze the IP parameters of the measured responses. This paper presents a conceptual model of polarizing clusters to explain the observed IP phenomena. The results of this study show that the HC bearing sands and sandstone samples and carbonate rocks are characterized by a significant IP response. These experimental observations, compared with the theoretical modeling based on the GEMTIP approach, confirm earlier geophysical experiments with the application of the IP method for HC exploration.

Induced polarization effect in reservoir rocks and its modeling based on generalized effective-medium theory

One of the major tasks of the petroleum resource-efficient technologies (pREFFIT) is the development and improvement of the methods of exploration for energy resources. This review paper summarizes the results of the research on induced polarization (IP) effect in reservoir rocks conducted by the University of Utah Consortium for Electromagnetic Modeling and Inversion (CEMI) andTechnoImaging.The electrical IP effect in hydrocarbon (HC) bearing reservoir rocks having nonmetallic minerals is usually associated with membrane polarization, which is caused by a variation in the mobility of the ions throughout the rock structure.This mobility is related to the size and shape of the pores filled with electrolyte and the double electrical layers. We have studied the IP response of multiphase porous systems by conducting complex resistivity (CR) frequency-domain IP measurements for two different groups of samples: sands and sandstones containing salt water in pores and those whose unsaturated pores were filled with synthetic oil. We have also studied selected carbonate reservoir formations, typical of some major HC deposits. The generalized effective-medium theory of induced polarization (GEMTIP) was used to analyze the IP parameters of the measured responses. This paper presents a conceptual model of polarizing clusters to explain the observed IP phenomena. The results of this study show that the HC bearing sands and sandstone samples and carbonate rocks are characterized by a significant IP response. These experimental observations, compared with the theoretical modeling based on the GEMTIP approach, confirm earlier geophysical experiments with the application of the IP method for HC exploration. © 2015 Tomsk Polytechnic University. Production and hosting by Elsevier B.V. This is an open access article under the CC BY-NC-ND license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/). Peer review under responsibility of Tomsk Polytechnic University.

IP4DI: A software for time-lapse 2D/3D DC-resistivity and induced polarization tomography

We propose a 2D/3D forward modelling and inversion package to invert direct current (DC)-resistivity, time-domain induced polarization (TDIP), and frequency-domain induced polarization (FDIP) data. Each cell used for the discretization of the 2D/3D problems is characterized by a DC-resistivity value and a chargeability or complex conductivity for TDIP/FDIP problems, respectively. The governing elliptic partial differential equations are solved with the finite element method, which can be applied for both real and complex numbers. The inversion can be performed either for a single snapshot of data or for a sequence of snapshots in order to monitor a dynamic process such as a salt tracer test. For the time-lapse inversion, we have developed an active time constrained (ATC) approach that is very efficient in filtering out noise in the data that is not correlated over time. The forward algorithm is benchmarked with simple analytical solutions. The inversion package IP4DI is benchmarked with three tests, two including simple geometries. The last one corresponds to a time-lapse resistivity problem for cross-well tomography during enhanced oil recovery. The algorithms are based on MATLAB® code package and a graphical user interface (GUI).

Electromagnetic coupling in frequency-domain induced polarization data: a method for removal

Summary Electromagnetic (EM) coupling is generally considered to be noise in induced polarization (IP) data and interpretation is difficult when its contribution is large compared to the IP signal. The effect is exacerbated by conductive environments and large-array survey geometries designed to explore deeper targets. In this paper we present a methodology to remove EM coupling from frequency-domain IP data. We first investigate the effect of EM coupling on the IP data and derive the necessary equations to represent the IP effect for both amplitude and phase responses of the signal. The separation of the inductive response from the total response in the low-frequency regime is derived using the electric field due to a horizontal electric dipole and it is assumed that at low frequencies the interaction of EM effects and IP effects is negligible. The total electric field is then expressed as a product of a scalar function, which is due to IP effects, and an electric field, which depends on the EM coupling response. It is this representation that enables us to obtain the IP response from EM-coupling-contaminated data. To compute the EM coupling response we recognize that conductivity information is necessary. We illustrate this with a synthetic example. The removal method developed in this work for the phase and the per cent frequency effect (PFE) data are applicable to 1-D, 2-D and 3-D structures. The practical utility of the method is illustrated on a 2-D field example that is typical of mineral exploration problems.