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Fractured Reservior Modeling: Coupled Seismic and Fluid Response

Thomas M. Daley, Michael Schoenberg, Jonny Rutqvist, Kurt Nihei

Contact: Thomas M. Daley, 510/486-7316, TMDaley@lbl.gov

Research Objectives
Fractured reservoirs are more difficult to model and typically less well understood than porous reservoirs. These problems lead to greater expense in resource exploration/ exploitation and in environmental characterization and cleanup. We are coupling state-of-the-art fractured-media modeling codes to allow investigation of the seismic response to fluid-induced changes in reservoir properties, such as pore pressure and permeability. This research could lead to improvements in remote sensing and time-lapse monitoring of dynamic processes in fractured reservoirs.

To continue reading more about this project, view the 1-page pdf here.

 

 

 

 
Surface seismic shot gather for the three-layer model described in the text. Pre-injection (left) and post-injection (right) comparison shows a substanital change in the event between 270 and 310 ms. This change in seismic reflection response is caused by fluid pressure changes in the reservoir due to injection.