Natural gas and oil from characteristically complex unconventional reservoirs, such as organic shale, tight gas and oil, coal-bed methane; are transforming the global energy market. These conventional reserves exist in complex geologic formations where conventional seismic techniques have been challenged to successfully image the subsurface. To acquire maximum benefits from these unconventional reserves, seismic anisotropy must be at the center of our modeling and inversion workflows. I present algorithms for fast traveltime computations in anisotropic media. Both ray-based and finite-difference solvers of the anisotropic eikonal equation are developed. The proposed algorithms present novel techniques to obtain accurate traveltime solutions for anisotropic media in a cost-efficient manner. The traveltime computation algorithms are then used to invert for anisotropy parameters. Specifically, I develop inversion techniques by using diffractions and diving waves in the seismic data. The diffraction-based inversion algorithm can be combined with an isotropic full-waveform inversion (FWI) method to obtain a high-resolution model for the anellipticity anisotropy parameter. The inversion algorithm based on diving waves is useful for building initial anisotropic models for depth-migration and FWI. I also develop the idea of 'effective elliptic models' for obtaining solutions of the anisotropic two-way wave equation. The proposed technique offers a viable alternative for wavefield computations in anisotropic media using a computationally cheaper wave propagation operator. The methods developed in the thesis lead to a direct cost savings for imaging and inversion projects, in addition to a reduction in turn-around time. With an eye on the next generation inversion methods, these techniques allow us to incorporate more accurate physics into our modeling and inversion framework.

De entre los sistemas de reproducción de sonido 3D, Wavefield Synthesis (WFS) presenta una serie de ventajas sobre el resto, principalmente en lo que respecta al gran realismo y sensación de inmersión acústica que proporciona. Otra gran ventaja adicional, es que la zona útil de escucha es muy amplia, superando al resto de sistemas disponibles en la actualidad. La teoría de WFS fue propuesta a finales de los 80 y principios de los 90, no siendo hasta el siglo XXI cuando se han puesto en marcha los primeros prototipos de estos sistemas, aunque muchos aspectos no contemplados en la teoría inicial siguen siendo en la actualidad retos importantes. La presente tesis aborda el estudio de la implementación de los sistemas de WFS aportando soluciones prácticas a las limitaciones tecnológicas que presentan estos sistemas, así como otra serie de problemas de implementación y funcionamiento en tiempo real que, aunque en una primera instancia no se describen como limitaciones físicas, suponen un problema a superar cuando se busca un sistema que funcione eficientemente. El objetivo final de esta tesis es aportar soluciones que contribuyan al desarrollo de un sistema de WFS totalmente funcional, por lo que durante su desarrollo ha sido necesario encontrar soluciones particulares y originales a multitud de problemas de diferente índole. Esta serie de problemas proviene por un lado de las limitaciones físicas de WFS y por otro de la implementación práctica del sistema. Por otro lado también se ha trabajo en los aspectos computacionales relacionados con la implementación en tiempo real de sistemas de WFS, los cuales necesitan una gran potencia de cálculo para dicho funcionamiento en tiempo real sin cortes ni grandes latencias. Este último se ha tratado de forma rigurosa dedicando un capítulo completo para su análisis y propuesta de soluciones eficientes y efectivas en coste. / Bleda Pérez, S. (2009). Contribuciones a la implementación de sistemas Wave Field Synthesis [Tesis doctoral]. Universitat Politècnica de València. https://doi.org/10.4995/Thesis/10251/6685

An explicit algorithm for the extrapolation of one-way wavefields is proposed which combines recent developments in information theory and theoretical signal processing with the physics of wave propagation. Because of excessive memory requirements, explicit formulations for wave propagation have proven to be a challenge in {3-D}. By using ideas from ``compressed sensing'', we are able to formulate the (inverse) wavefield extrapolation problem on small subsets of the data volume, thereby reducing the size of the operators. According {to} compressed sensing theory, signals can successfully be recovered from an imcomplete set of measurements when the measurement basis is incoherent} with the representation in which the wavefield is sparse. In this new approach, the eigenfunctions of the Helmholtz operator are recognized as a basis that is incoherent with curvelets that are known to compress seismic wavefields. By casting the wavefield extrapolation problem in this framework, wavefields can successfully be extrapolated in the modal domain via a computationally cheaper operatoion. A proof of principle for the ``compressed sensing'' method is given for wavefield extrapolation in 2-D. The results show that our method is stable and produces identical results compared to the direct application of the full extrapolation operator.

Incomplete data represents a major challenge for a successful prediction and subsequent removal of multiples. In this paper, a new method will be represented that tackles this challenge in a two-step approach. During the first step, the recenly developed curvelet-based recovery by sparsity-promoting inversion (CRSI) is applied to the data, followed by a prediction of the primaries. During the second high-resolution step, the estimated primaries are used to improve the frequency content of the recovered data by combining the focal transform, defined in terms of the estimated primaries, with the curvelet transform. This focused curvelet transform leads to an improved recovery, which can subsequently be used as input for a second stage of multiple prediction and primary-multiple separation.

Seismic imaging involves the solution of an inverse-scattering problem during which the energy of (extremely) large data volumes is collapsed onto the Earth's reflectors. We show how the ideas from 'compressive sampling' can alleviate this task by exploiting the curvelet transform's 'wavefront-set detection' capability and 'invariance' property under wave propagation. First, a wavelet-vaguellete technique is reviewed, where seismic amplitudes are recovered from complete data by diagonalizing the Gramm matrix of the linearized scattering problem. Next, we show how the recovery of seismic wavefields from incomplete data can be cast into a compressive sampling problem, followed by a proposal to compress wavefield extrapolation operators via compressive sampling in the modal domain. During the latter approach, we explicitly exploit the mutual incoherence between the eigenfunctions of the Helmholtz operator and the curvelet frame elements that compress the extrapolated wavefield. This is joint work with Gilles Hennenfent, Peyman Moghaddam, Tim Lin, Chris Stolk and Deli Wang.

京都大学 / 新制・課程博士 / 博士(工学) / 甲第23482号 / 工博第4894号 / 新制||工||1765(附属図書館) / 京都大学大学院工学研究科社会基盤工学専攻 / (主査)教授 森 信人, 准教授 原田 英治, 准教授 志村 智也 / 学位規則第4条第1項該当 / Doctor of Philosophy (Engineering) / Kyoto University / DFAM

Traditional methods of imaging the Earth’s subsurface using seismic waves require an identifiable, impulsive source of seismic energy, for example an earthquake or explosive source. Naturally occurring, ambient seismic waves form an ever-present source of energy that is conventionally regarded as unusable since it is not impulsive. As such it is generally removed from seismic data and subsequent analysis. A new method known as seismic interferometry can be used to extract useful information about the Earth’s subsurface from the ambient noise wavefield. Consequently, seismic interferometry is an important new tool for exploring areas which are otherwise seismically quiet, such as the British Isles in which there are relatively few strong earthquakes. One of the possible applications of seismic interferometry is the ambient noise tomography method (ANT). ANT is a way of using interferometry to image subsurface seismic velocity variations using seismic (surface) waves extracted from the background ambient vibrations of the Earth. To date, ANT has been used to successfully image the Earth’s crust and upper-mantle on regional and continental scales in many locations and has the power to resolve major geological features such as sedimentary basins and igneous and metamorphic cores. In this thesis I provide a review of seismic interferometry and ANT and apply these methods to image the subsurface of north-west Scotland and the British Isles. I show that the seismic interferometry method works well within the British Isles and illustrate the usefulness of the method in seismically quiet areas by presenting the first surface wave group velocity maps of the Scottish Highlands and across the British Isles using only ambient seismic noise. In the Scottish Highlands, these maps show low velocity anomalies in sedimentary basins such as the Moray Firth and high velocity anomalies in igneous and metamorphic centres such as the Lewisian complex. They also suggest that the Moho shallows from south to north across Scotland, which agrees with previous geophysical studies in the region. Rayleigh wave velocity maps from ambient seismic noise across the British Isles for the upper and mid-crust show low velocities in sedimentary basins such as the Midland Valley, the Irish Sea and the Wessex Basin. High velocity anomalies occur predominantly in areas of igneous and metamorphic rock such as the Scottish Highlands, the Southern Uplands, North-West Wales and Cornwall. In the lower crust/upper mantle, the Rayleigh wave maps show higher velocities in the west and lower velocities in the east, suggesting that the Moho shallows generally from east to west across Britain. The extent of the region of higher velocity correlates well with the locations of British earthquakes, agreeing with previous studies that suggest British seismicity might be influenced by a mantle upwelling beneath the west of the British Isles. Until the work described in Chapter 6 of this thesis was undertaken in 2009, seismic interferometry was concerned with cross-correlating recordings at two receivers due to a surrounding boundary of sources, then stacking the cross-correlations to construct the inter-receiver Green’s function. A key element of seismic wave propagation is that of source-receiver reciprocity i.e. the same wavefield will be recorded if its source and receiver locations and component orientations are reversed. By taking the reciprocal of its usual form, in this thesis I show that the impulsive-source form of interferometry can also be used in the opposite sense: to turn any energy source into a virtual sensor. This new method is demonstrated by turning earthquakes in Alaska and south-west USA into virtual seismometers located beneath the Earth’s surface.

Recent theoretical and experimental studies in a wide range of applications (ultrasonics, underwater acoustics, seismicoe) have demonstrated that Green's functions (impulse responses) can be extracted from cross-correlation of diffuse fields using only passive sensors. The technique, whose validity is supported by a physical argument based on time-reversal invariance, effectively uses a correlation process between the point source and points located in the focal zone. Indeed, the coherent noise source distributions can be considered as a timereversal mirror and the cross-correlation operations gives the field measured at one receiver after refocusing on the other receiver. Passive-only reconstruction of coherent Lamb waves (80-200 kHz) in an aluminum plate and thickness comparable to aircraft fuselage and wing panels will be presented. In particular, the influence of the noise source characteristics (location, frequency spectrum) on the signal-to-noise ratio the emerging coherent waveform will be investigated using a scanning laser Doppler velocimeter. This study suggests the potential for a structural health monitoring method for aircraft panels based on passive ultrasound imaging reconstructed from diffuse fields.

Les données de VSP multi-source/multi-offset acquises en 2007 sur le site géothermique de Soultz-sous-Forêts sont traitées et analysées. Des géophones placés dans les puits GPK3 et GPK4 entre 3 et 5 km de profondeur ont enregistré les ondes sismiques émises par deux vibrateurs placés en 24 positions de tir réparties dans un rayon de 5 km autour des puits. Après corrélation des enregistrements avec la source associée à chaque vibrateur, les différentes composantes du champ d'onde sont séparées par filtrage en vitesse apparente. La comparaison des résultats obtenus par filtrage médian ou dans le domaine FK montre des signaux similaires. Un modèle de vitesse est établi pour pouvoir calculer les temps d'arrivée. Il comporte deux couches sédimentaires sur le socle granitique et des interfaces planes pentées. Le champ d'onde descendant de forte vitesse apparente est interprété comme des réflexions sur des structures subverticales autour des puits. Leur pendage, azimut et extension latérale sont déterminés en ajustant les temps de trajet observés et calculés par tracé de rayons 3D. Les structures à pendage vers l'ouest connues par les observations en forage et la microsismicité sont retrouvées. Une structure antithétique nouvelle est déterminée. Nos résultats permettent de compléter le modèle structural de la fracturation dans le réservoir géothermique. / The vertical seismic profiles (VSP) acquired in 2007 with multi-component geophones placed at depths between 3 and 5 km in two wells at the Soultz-sous-Forêts geothermal site are processed and analyzed. The multi-offset, multi-azimuth VSP were acquired with two simultaneously vibrating sources located in 24 distinct shot positions. After correlation of the raw records with the proper sweep sequence, the different components of the wavefield are separated according to their apparent velocities. The results obtained by median or FK filtering are similar. A velocity model is created in order to compute traveltimes. Two layers in the sediments above the granitic basement are separated by plane dipping interfaces. The downgoing waves having a fast apparent velocity are interpreted as reflections on steeply dipping reflectors. The dip, the azimuth and the lateral extent of these structures away from the well are determined by fitting the observed traveltimes with those computed by 3D ray tracing. The west dipping structures already known from borehole logging and the trends of microseismicity are constrained. A new antithetic structure is determined. Our results improve the structural model of fracturation in the geothermal reservoir.

Generation of electricity from ocean waves has seen increasing research and commercial interest in recent years. The development of projects of several hundred megawatts rated capacity is now being considered. There is a clear need for improved understanding of the environmental impact of large-scale wave energy extraction, particularly in nearshore regions where sediment transport and cliff erosion may be affected. This thesis investigates the change in nearshore wave conditions and sediment transport due to energy extraction by long strings of wave energy devices. The influence of wave energy converter (WEC) arrays has been studied using transmission coefficients implemented within a spectral wave model. It is shown that the breaking wave height nearshore is larger (5%) if transmission is defined as frequency dependent. This is due to the energy dissipation processes associated with different wave frequencies. Linear wave theory is employed to determine frequency dependent transmission and reflection coefficients across a line of wave energy devices based onthe amplitude of scattered and radiated waves. This approach is compared with experimental measurements of the wave field in the vicinity of an array of five heaving floats. The transmitted wave amplitude is predicted with reasonable accuracy but additional numerical damping is required to predict the measured float response amplitude. This comparison indicates that linear analysis is an acceptable approach for predicting float response and wave field in the vicinity of the array for a certain range of conditions. Linear wave analysis is subsequently applied to investigate the variation of transmission coefficients with distance inshore of a long array of heaving WECs undergoing free response and with damping specified to optimise power extraction. A method is presented for identifying representative transmission and reflection coefficients such that change in wave energy is equal to energy extraction by the devices. These coefficients are employed to quantify the change in nearshore conditions due to deployment of a long line of wave devices at a site near the East Anglian coastline. Wave conditions are modelled at 12 points along the shoreline over a 140 year period and significant wave height reductions up to 30% were obtained. Importantly, changes in nearshorewave direction are also observed. Analysis using the sediment transport model SCAPE (Soft Cliff and Platform Erosion model) indicates that the introduction of the array reduces both the sediment transport rate and cliff recession rate by an average of 50%.