Improving Airgun Signal Detection with Small-Aperture Seismic Array in Yunnan

Repeating airgun sources are eco-friendly sources for monitoring the changes in the physical properties of subsurface mediums, but their signals decay quickly and are buried in the noises soon after traveling short distances. Stacking waveforms from different airgun shots recorded by a single seismic station (shot stacking) is the most popular technique to detect weak signals from noisy backgrounds, and has been widely used to process the data of Fixed Airgun Signal Transmission Stations (FASTS) in China. However, shot stacking sacrifices the time resolution in monitoring to recover a qualified airgun signal by stacking many shots at distance stations, and also suffers from persistent local noises. In this paper, we carried out several small-aperture seismic array experiments around the Binchuan FAST Station (BCFASTS) in Yunnan Province,China, and applied the array technique to improve airgun signal detection. The results show that seismic array processing combining with shot stacking can suppress seismic noises more efficiently, and provide better signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) and coherent airgun signals with less airgun shots. This work suggests that the array technique is a feasible and promising tool in FAST to increase the time resolution and reduce noise interference on routine monitoring.     

Characteristics of the Seismic Waves from a New Active Source Based on Methane Gaseous Detonation

Active seismic sources are critical for obtaining high resolution images of the subsurface. For active imaging in urban areas, environment friendly and green seismic sources are required. In present work, we introduce a new type of green active source based on the gaseous detonation of methane and oxygen. When fired in a closed container, the chemical reaction, i.e. gaseous detonation, will produce high pressure air over 150MPa. Seismic waves are produced when high pressure air is quickly released to impact the surroundings. The first field experiment of this active source was carried out in December, 2017 in Jingdezhen, Jiangxi Province, where a series of active sources were excited to explore their potential in mine exploration. In current work, we analyzed the seismic waves recorded by near-field accelerators and a dense short-period seismic array and compared them with those from a mobile airgun source, another kind of active source by releasing high pressure air into water. The results demonstrate that it can be used for high resolution near surface imaging. Firstly, the gaseous detonation productions are harmless CO₂ and water, making it a green explosive source. Secondly, the dominant seismic frequencies are 10-80Hz and a single shot can be recorded up to 15km, making it suitable for local structure investigations. Thirdly, it can be excited in vertical wells, similar to traditional powder explosive sources. It can also act as an additional on-land active source to airgun sources, which requires a suitable water body as intermediate media to generate repeating signals. Moreover, the short duration and high frequency signature of the source signals make it safe with no damage to nearby buildings. These make it convenient to excite in urban areas. As a new explosive source, the excitation equipment and conditions, such as gas ratio, sink depth and air-releasing directions, need further investigation to improve seismic wave generation efficiency.     

利用固定台站分析长江激发气枪信号特征

“地学长江计划”安徽实验是以气枪震源为核心的大型主动源探测实验。通过在长江安徽段20个固定点定点激发气枪震源,结合109个固定台站、11条流动测线组成的观测网络,首次利用主动源实现了对长江流域安徽段约6万km2面积的三维地下结构探测。本文利用固定台站对长江激发气枪信号进行了分析,结果表明,长江中气枪信号激发效果良好,固定台记录中气枪信号可识别的最远距离达300km。对气枪信号绝对振幅的研究结果表明：① 50km处的气枪信号约为10nm量级,200km处的气枪信号小于1 nm;② 气枪信号强度的空间分布存在一定的方位各向异性,可能与长江的几何形状有关;③ 台站背景噪声对于提取气枪信号至关重要,高质量的固定台网为识别nm量级气枪信号提供了可能。     

Using an airgun array in a land reservoir as the seismic source for seismotectonic studies in northern China: experiments and preliminary results

This paper reports the field setup and preliminary results of experiments utilizing an airgun array in a reservoir in north China for a seismotectonic study. Commonly used in offshore petroleum resource exploration, the airgun source was found to be more useful than a traditional explosive source for large‐scale and long offset land seismic surveys. The airgun array, formed by four 1,500 in³ airguns (a total of 6,000 in³ in volume) was placed at a depth of 6–9 m into the reservoir to generate the pressure impulse. No direct evidence was found that the airgun source adversely affected the fish in the reservoir. The peak ground acceleration recorded on the top of the reservoir dam 100 m away was 17.8 gal in the horizontal direction; this is much less than the designed earthquake‐resistance threshold of 125 gal for this dam. The energy for one shot of this airgun array is about 6.68 MJ, equivalent to firing a 1.7 kg explosive. The seismic waves generated by the airgun source were recorded by receivers of the regional seismic networks and a temporary wide‐angle reflection and refraction profile formed by 100 short‐period seismometers with the maximum source‐receiver offset of 206 km. The seismic wave signature at these long‐offset stations is equivalent to that generated by a traditional blast source in a borehole with a 1,000–2,000 kg explosive. Preliminary results showed clear seismic phases from refractions from the multi‐layer crustal structures in the north China region. Forward modelling using numerical simulation confirms that the seismic arrivals are indeed from lower crustal interfaces. The airgun source is efficient, economical, environmentally friendly and suitable for being used in urbanized areas. It has many advantages over an explosive source for seismotectonic studies such as the high repeatability that is supreme for stacking to improve signal qualities. The disadvantage is that the source is limited to existing lakes or reservoirs, which may restrict experimental geometry.     

Regional Scale Seismological Investigation on the Continent Crust Using Airgun Sources——A Perspective Review

The investigations on the structure and temporal variations of the continent crust have been the long-lasting topics of seismology. The artificial sources play the most important role in these studies for their well-known locations and occur times among all the sources producing elastic waves, so that precise results are obtained. In past decades, we have successfully excited the airgun sources in on-land water bodies such as reservoirs, expanding their applications in marine seismology. Large volume airguns have been used to produce low frequency signals which can travel hundreds of kilometers after stacking, providing a source connecting the exploration seismology and traditional seismology at regional scale. In this review, we introduce the changes through which we turn the airgun into scientific instruments by experiments. We also present the advances on imaging the continental crust structure and monitoring the velocity variations using the highly repeatable signals emitted by airgun sources. The potential applications such as imaging the subsurface of urban areas and high resolution illuminating of mines are proposed and the challenges for further investigations are also discussed.     

甘肃祁连山大容量气枪主动源最大探测范围

叠加甘肃和青海数字测震台网记录到的甘肃祁连山大容量气枪连续激发的大量观测波形。结果显示,单次激发的气枪震源信号最远可以在距气枪震源304km的古浪台(GLT)识别,通过110次叠加的信号最远可以追踪到412km的安西台(AXX),4 600次叠加的信号最远可以在距气枪震源677km的乌图美仁台站(WTM)观测到。研究结果可为提高甘肃祁连山大容量气枪主动源观测系统的监测能力和微弱信号的提取能力,探讨祁连山区域内部介质速度变化等工作提供重要的科学意义。     

利用人工重复震源进行地下介质结构及其变化研究的探索和进展???

在自然和人为活动的作用下,地球内部的介质会产生变化。通过分析来自重复地震、背景噪音和重复性人工震源等的地震波,研究地球介质的变化是近年来地震学研究的一个热点方向,这些研究为人类认识地震、火山等灾害的物理过程提供了重要的手段。本文介绍了过去10余年中我们在利用人工震源（尤其是大容量气枪震源）探究地下介质结构及其变化方面的研究进展,以期为今后类似的研究提供参考。本文首先介绍了不同类型震源性能的探索、数据处理方法等方面的研究进展和主要认识,最后也给出了关于下一步人工震源研究方向的思考。     

祁连山气枪主动震源浮台漂移钢索悬吊控制技术

针对地下介质动态变化监测研究中的信噪比、震源可重复性和波速精确测量等关键问题,利用大容量气枪作为主动震源,构建了一套高性能的主动源探测技术系统,该系统主要由气枪震源和信号接收部分组成。为了解决浮台偏离设定位置的问题 ,提出了浮台漂移控制技术。实验结果表明,该技术可以有效地解决气枪激发后浮台受到水流冲击作用而偏离设定位置的问题。本研究结果可为一定激发场地情况下的气枪主动震源重复探测工作所借鉴。     

An Experimental Study on Modulating the Large Volume Airgun Array Signals through Asynchronous Excitation

Large volume airgun arrays have been widely used in exploring and monitoring underground structures for nearly a decade. Nowadays, large volume airgun arrays adopt the synchronous excitation mode, and source characteristics are controlled by the source signal of a single airgun, which to some extent limits its application. In order to realize the asynchronous excitation of the airgun array, we developed a new firing system for the airgun array, and carried out a field experiment in the Binchuan Fixed Airgun Signal Transmission station to study the influences of the asynchronous excitation on the source signal. The experimental results show that:the newly developed airgun array firing system can ignite the airguns according to the setting time series with high precision. By designing the excitation time series, the asynchronous excitation can enhance the energy of airgun source signal at 3-5Hz, and reduce the energy of pressure pulse wave at 6-18Hz. The signal detection capability of the asynchronous excitation with time series mode is equivalent to the synchronous excitation.     

大容量气枪震源长江定点激发信号检测

地学长江计划“安徽段实验”是大容量气枪震源在长江的首次激发。本文针对布设在气枪固定激发点附近的流动台和周边固定台接收到的气枪信号进行线性叠加分析近场和远场信号的时频特性,利用叠加结果检测气枪信号的传播特性,分析不同环境因素对信号传播距离的影响。结果表明：①近岸首台可以接收到清晰的压力脉冲、气泡脉冲的体波和面波信号;②气枪信号主频为5Hz左右,随震中距的增加,压力脉冲信号衰减很快,信号主频频带变窄;③对信号传播距离进行初步检测,最近的传播距离为180km,最远共有3个激发点传播达到260km,夜晚激发信号传播距离较远。     

大容量气枪震源特征及地震波传播的震相分析

利用大容量气枪震源在陆上水库进行地震波激发试验,研究陆上水库环境下激发气枪震源所产生的地震波特征及传播距离. 试验结果表明,大容量气枪震源是具有丰富的10 Hz以下低频信号的低频震源,其激发的地震波具有传播距离远,穿透深度深的特点. 在185 km长的测线上均记录到了气枪信号,成功检测到Pg,Pc,P2,PmP和Pn等多组震相,并在此基础上对地下深地壳结构进行了一维速度结构正演,讨论了该区域壳幔过渡带的低速结构. 气枪震源还具有一般炸药震源不具有的特征,如长期定点重复激发和有效转换S波的优点,是陆上进行长炮检距深穿透地下结构研究的一种优良人工震源.     

安徽气枪实验固定台层析成像初步结果

为探索气枪震源在探测区域性地壳结构中的应用, 2015年10月10～20日在长江马鞍山-安庆段开展气枪流动激发实验（安徽实验）,在20个固定点定点激发2973炮,中间流动激发1872炮,由周边109个固定台、700个流动台（包括11条测线）进行接收。为获取郯庐断裂带南端较为精细的地壳速度结构,本文利用安徽气枪实验中采集到的固定台数据进行初至P波震相拾取,对20个气枪源、52个台站、335个震相进行体波层析成像,验证了利用气枪震源进行体波层析成像的可行性,并得到了P波速度结构的一些初步结果：①利用大容量气枪震源可进行三维体波层析成像;②15km深度的成像结果显示出大区域高低速异常区的清晰轮廓,即从研究区中心向外整体呈现出低-超低-低-高的分布特征,与地质构造背景相关,具有显著的横向不均匀性;③秦岭-大别造山带显示出高速异常,与其深部超高压变质岩相对应,而长江中下游地区整体呈现低速异常,与其特殊的成矿背景相对应。     

Weak Seismic Signal Extraction Based on the Curvelet Transform

Seismic signal denoising is a key step in seismic data processing. Airgun signals are easy to be interfered with by noise when it travels a long distance due to the weak energy of active source signal of the airgun. Aiming to solve this problem, and considering that the conventional Curvelet transform threshold processing method does not use the seismic spectrum information, we independently process the Curvelet scale layer corresponding to valid data based on the characteristics of the Curvelet transform of multi-scale, multi-direction and capable of expressing the sparse seismic signals in order to fully excavate the information features. Combined with the Curvelet adaptive threshold denoising the algorithm, we apply the Curvelet transform to denoising seismic signals while retaining the weak information in the signal as much as possible. The simulation experiments show that the improved threshold denoising method based on Curvelet transform is superior to the frequency domain filtering, wavelet denoising and traditional Curvelet denoising method in detailed information extraction and signal denoising of low SNR signals. The calculation accuracy of the relative wave velocity variation of underground medium is improved.     

呼图壁气枪数据中面波振幅变化研究

利用新疆呼图壁气枪数据,在引入小波传播子方法测量到时延迟的基础上,进一步引入面波振幅作为监测地下介质变化的一个重要参数。结果表明:相对于到时的突跳,面波振幅能克服气枪源震源强度突变带来的测量不稳定;同时,通过面波到时延迟和振幅变化特征的模拟,发现面波振幅和到时延迟测量存在较好的正相关关系,且可以用介质速度变化所导致的聚焦和散焦效应来解释。面波振幅也可以作为较为稳定的参数来衡量地下介质的波速变化。     

地震雷达

利用绿色、环保的人工震源,主动向地下发射地震波,构建地震雷达,实现大范围的地下探测,是地球科学的一个前沿课题.最早,探测地球内部利用的是天然地震产生的地震波,这是因为天然地震释放的能量大,一次天然地震释放的能量相当于万吨级炸药.几千公里远处仍可以接收到信噪比大于1的地震波信号,但天然地震发生频度低和震源位置定位精度低限制了利用天然地震进行地下探测的精度;后来,利用人工源的地震勘探得到迅速的发展,探测精度明显提高,但受到人工源能量的限制,探测的空间尺度有限;今天,以小当量激发实现大尺度探测是发展地震雷达的一个关键问题,是将地震波理论和现代信息科学相结合的一个新的领域.发展人工震源的编码和接收信号的解码等理论和技术,可以从电磁波雷达在过去半个世纪所经过的道路得到许多借鉴和启发.可以预期,地震雷达的发展将会对观测地震学带来全面的影响.     

Amplitude variation characteristics of active source airgun signals at Qilian Mountain

In this study, Qilian Mountain active source airgun signals recorded at 79 stations were obtained after stacking waveforms from July 2015 to December 2016. Based on analysis of the amplitude variation characteristics of the airgun signals, the following conclusions were drawn:along the NW-SE fault distribution direction of the Qilian Mountain area, the decrease in amplitude of airgun signals was relatively slow in relation to the epicentral distance, while the decrease in amplitude in the direction perpendicular to the fault was relatively fast. This difference may be related to the energy loss of seismic waves reflecting and scattering by the regional faults mainly distributed along the NW-SE direction, which are caused by tectonic compression of the Qinghai-Tibet and Alxa blocks.     

Seismic on floating ice: data acquisition versus flexural wave noise

Geophysical surveying of the Arctic will become increasingly important in future prospecting and monitoring of the terrestrial and adjacent areas in this hemisphere. Seismic data acquired on floating ice are hampered with extensive noise due to ice vibrations related to highly dispersive ice flexural waves generated by the seismic source. Several experiments have been conducted on floating ice in van Mijenfjorden in Svalbard in the Norwegian Arctic to specifically analyse the extent of flexural waves recorded with various seismic receivers and sources deployed both on top of ice and in the water below. The data show that flexural waves are severely damped at 5 m or deeper below the ice and hydrophone data suffer less from these vibrations compared with data recorded on the ice. Aliasing of single receiver hydrophone data can to some extent be suppressed using an in-line line source of detonating cord. Experiments on ice on shallow water show prominent guided wave modes often referred to as Scholte waves propagating along the seabed. In this case, both flexural and Scholte waves interfere and make a complicated pattern of coherent noise. On shallow water, the positioning and type of the seismic source must be evaluated with respect to the coherent noise generated by these waves. Geophone strings of 25 m effectively suppress both flexural and Scholte waves due to their relative short wavelengths. An airgun generates relative more low-frequency energy than a surface source of detonating cord. Accordingly, seismic mapping of deep seismic horizons seem to be best achieved using geophone strings of such length and an airgun source. For shallow targets, the use of hydrophones in combination with detonating cord is an appropriate solution. Seismic surveying in the Arctic always have to follow environmental restrictions of not disturbing or harming wildlife and not causing permanent footprints into the vulnerable tundra, which implies that the choice of seismic acquisition strategy might occur as a trade-off between optimum data quality and environmental constraints.     

首都圈数字地震台网对微弱爆破信号的检测能力

利用首都圈数字地震台网接收人工地震信号,进行地下结构研究具有重要意义.但人工震源释放的能量小,激发的地震波以短周期为主,因此本文较全面地研究了地震台网对短周期微弱信号（1～20 Hz）的检测能力：(1) 分析了台网的背景噪声,结果表明基岩台址的地震台噪声比沉积盖层台址的地震台噪声低约13 dB,这相当于近1个震级的检测阈值;夜间的噪声比白天低约5 dB;噪声有逐年增高的趋势,2006年比2001年噪声提高约4 dB.(2 )分析了在台网内进行的药量为25 kg的陆地井下爆破实验,一次爆破相当于0.69级（M_L）的天然地震,有18个地震台可辨认爆炸产生的Pg、Pm或Pc波;离爆破点218 km的基岩台,仍可以接收到振幅只有1.6 nm 的Pm波,这个结果可为地震勘探实际工作提供参考.(3) 研究了台网外核爆试验的信号特征,2006年发生在朝鲜的地下核试验是一次检验台网检测微弱信号能力的好机会.波形记录经1～5Hz滤波后,台网中噪声小的18个基岩台可以清晰辨认核爆破产生的P波或Lg波,P波平均振幅为16 nm,计算的平均震级为m_b4.3,和NEIC给出的震级相同;分析还表明背景噪声是影响台站信号检测能力的主要因素之一.     

不同激发环境下井中气枪震源特征研究

基于单枪容量为250in3的BHS-2200LL井中气枪,在内径0.2、5.0m不同激发井中开展了气枪震源特征对比分析,研究表明：①5.0m井中气枪激发产生的信号优势频率集中在10～40Hz,比在0.2m井中的低,这主要是由于较大水体利于气泡的震荡;②在能量方面,5.0m井中激发信号的能量强于0.2m井中的,幅度上相差1个数量级,单次激发的传播距离可达9km;③2种激发环境下产生的气枪信号都具有较好的重复性。     

水库气枪震源产生的S波及其分裂

人工气枪震源在陆地水库可以有效激发S波,S波能量较强,与ML1.6天然地震相当。气枪可用于S波分裂研究,对布置在燕山隆起带的流动地震台的气枪信号进行了S波分裂参数分析,结果表明,快剪切波偏振优势方向为NWW和NNE向,偏振方向和断裂的性质密切相关。气枪是高度可重复性人工震源,利用气枪定点激发和定点接收有可能精确获取S波分裂参数随时间的变化规律,为地震预测探索实践提供可靠的物理途径