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Vertical Seismic Profiling

(definition)
Vertical seismic profiling (VSP) is a form of seismic reflection
Surveying that utilizes borehole.
Vertical Seismic Profiling
(Sorts)
Description of an zero offset VSP.
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Vertical Seismic Profiling
(Sorts)
Description of an offset VSP.
Vertical Seismic Profiling
(Sorts)
Description of an walk away VSP.
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Vertical Seismic Profiling
(Sorts)
Description of an reverse VSP.
Vertical Seismic Profiling
(zero offset VSP)
If the surface shot location lies at the wellhead vertically above
the borehole detector locations, so that the recorded rays have
travelled along vertical ray paths, the method is known as zero
offset VSP.
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Vertical Seismic Profiling
( Offset VSP)
If the surface shot locations are offset laterally, so that the
recorded rays have travelled along inclined ray paths, the
method is known offset VSP.
Vertical Seismic Profiling
(Feature of VSP)
Removal of multiple reflection.
Shortening the overall path length of reflected rays.
Reducing the effects of attenuation.
Reducing the dimensions of the Fresnel zone.
VSP data leads to much improved reliability in geological
interpretation of seismic sections recorded at the surface in the
vicinity of the borehole.
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Vertical Seismic Profiling
(Feature of VSP)
Each trace being recored at different depth.
Separation downgoing and upgoing events
by f-k filtering.
Time correction to each trace.
Stacked seismogram produced by stacking in
shaded corridor zone.
Vertical Seismic Profiling
(The nature of VSP data)
A synthetic zero-offset
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Vertical Seismic Profiling
(The nature of VSP data)
(a) Synthetic VSP section
(downgoingwaves
removed by f-k filterling)
(b) Each trace has been time shifted by
the relevant upholetime to simulate
a surface recording.
(c) Stacked seismogram produced
by stacking in the shaded corridor
zone of (b) to avoid multiple events
corridor zone
(a) (b) (c)
Vertical Seismic Profiling
(The nature of VSP data)
Comparison of the VSP stack with the surface
recorded data enables the primary events
in the seismic section to be reliably
distinguished from multiple events.
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Application of seismic refletionsurveying
Reflection surveying was concerned almost exclusively with the
search for hydrocarbon and coal, oil etc.
Reflection profiling at crustal and lithospheric scale si now being
carried out by many countries.
The use of reflection seismics for high-resolution studies of
shallow geology is a field of growing importance in which
developments are linked directly to recent technical advances.
Application of seismic refletionsurveying
(Example 1)
Interpreted seismic section across the Noth Viking gas field,
North Sea.
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Application of seismic refletionsurveying
(Example 2)
(a) Seismic section (courtesy Shell UK Ltd.)
(b) Line interpretation across the Brent oilfield, North Sea.
G: gas, O: oil, W: water.
(a)
(b)
Application of seismic refletionsurveying
(Example 3)
A non-migrated crustal reflection section fromthe 1986/87 GRID survey of BIPS programme, collected along a west-east
line about 30kmnorth of Scotland, UK, and a migrated line drawingof the main reflection events. The main structure are
interpreted to be of Caledonian age with later re-activation.
(FL: Flannanreflection; OIF:Outer Isles fault; MT: Moinethrust; NT: Naver thrust; M: Moho)