Showing papers by "Milo M. Backus published in 2004"

Combining a New 3-D Seismic S-Wave Propagation Analysis for Remote Fracture Detection With a Robust Subsurface Microfracture-Based Verification Technique

Abstract: Fractures within the producing reservoirs at McElroy Field could not be studied with the industry-provided 3C3D seismic data used as a cost-sharing contribution in this study. The signal-to-noise character of the converted-SV data across the targeted reservoirs in these contributed data was not adequate for interpreting azimuth-dependent data effects. After illustrating the low signal quality of the converted-SV data at McElroy Field, the seismic portion of this report abandons the McElroy study site and defers to 3C3D seismic data acquired across a different fractured carbonate reservoir system to illustrate how 3C3D seismic data can provide useful information about fracture systems. Using these latter data, we illustrate how fast-S and slow-S data effects can be analyzed in the prestack domain to recognize fracture azimuth, and then demonstrate how fast-S and slow-S data volumes can be analyzed in the poststack domain to estimate fracture intensity. In the geologic portion of the report, we analyze published regional stress data near McElroy Field and numerous formation multi-imager (FMI) logs acquired across McElroy to develop possible fracture models for the McElroy system. Regional stress data imply a fracture orientation different from the orientations observed in most of the FMI logs. This report culminates Phase 2more » of the study, ''Combining a New 3-D Seismic S-Wave Propagation Analysis for Remote Fracture Detection with a Robust Subsurface Microfracture-Based Verification Technique''. Phase 3 will not be initiated because wells were to be drilled in Phase 3 of the project to verify the validity of fracture-orientation maps and fracture-intensity maps produced in Phase 2. Such maps cannot be made across McElroy Field because of the limitations of the available 3C3D seismic data at the depth level of the reservoir target.« less