Speaker Abstracts
April, 2007
Seismic Technologies for Independents Exploring for Unconventional Resources
Dr. Bob A. Hardage, Senior Research Scientist, Bureau of Economic Geology
Abstract
Independents who explore and exploit unconventional resources need: (1) a strategy to evaluate the fracture systems that dominate many unconventional resource plays, and (2) access to seismic contractors who specialize in acquiring small 3D seismic surveys. Shear (S) waves react to fractures in a more robust manner than do compressional (P) waves, thus S-wave seismic technology should be used to evaluate unconventional resources whenever possible. Nine-component (9C) seismic data provide all possible S-wave modes and are the optimal data-acquisition option to use across unconventional prospects. However, the lowest cost type of S-wave data that can be acquired is the P-to-SV converted shear mode that can be extracted from three-component (3C) seismic data. Consequently, the P-SV mode will be a more attractive S-wave option for many cost-conscious independents. For this reason, this paper discusses the use of P-P and P-SV data acquired in 3D3C data surveys for fracture evaluation.
