Novel Use of P-Wave and S-Wave Seismic Attenuation for Natural Gas Exploration and Development

75707-Using current technology, oil and gas in the subsurface cannot be reliably predicted from seismic data. As a result, some domestic oil and gas fields go undiscovered and unexploited, thereby increasing the Nation¿s need to import energy. This project will develop a new class of seismic methods based on inelastic rock properties (attenuation) that will provide a much better link between seismic data and the presence of hydrocarbons. The new method will offer substantial improvements in discriminating oil and gas from water in the subsurface. In Phase I, new methods will be developed to extract P-wave and S-wave attenuation information from multi-component seismic data, and to relate this attenuation to the presence of commercial hydrocarbon accumulations. Commercial Applications and Other Benefits as described by the awardee: Reliable reservoir characterization from seismic data would be a key step to finding and producing more of our domestic hydrocarbon potential. The new seismic methods should contribute to the discovery and exploitation of greater volumes of recoverable gas in the U.S.