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2018 SOUTH PACIFICHONORARY LECTURER

Sponsored byThis program is supported through the SEG Foundation.

Dense sampling in marine seismic: Efficiency in acquisition without compromising data qualityby Mazin Farouki, PGS Geophysical Advisor, Marine Contract, Asia Pacific, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

ABSTRACT The marine seismic industry is constantly striving for greater efficiency in acquiring seismic data: the quicker a survey area can be acquired, the more competitive the cost to the customer. But acquiring large surveys with unconventional spreads can impose limitations on the recorded data, so that certain geophysical requirements for the exploration or development objectives may be compromised. This is especially the case in shallow water areas, where traditionally the width of the streamer spread is restricted in order to image the shallow section.

We will look at some modern acquisition approaches for towed streamer seismic currently offered in the industry; these are very different ideas, but each aims to provide increased cross-line density or improved acquisition efficiency, or indeed, both.

In particular, we will look at the use of multiple sources instead of the conventional dual-source configuration, the use of the cross-line component in multi-sensor recording, an approach based on compressive sensing, and an imaging approach that exploits free surface multiples to provide greater illumination of the near surface. For each of these approaches we look at its value proposition and ask how well it stacks up to its promise, and what are, if any, the associated limitations and concerns regarding the resulting “data quality”?

Above: The modern seismic vessel is a marvel of efficient 3D acquisition.

Above: The power of multiples. Seismic data at 80m depth slice. On the left, the striped footprint that results from wide tow acquisition in shallow water. On the right, the same survey, but exploiting free surface multiples for greater illumination.

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To see Mazin Farouki’s full itinerary or to view previous Honorary and Distinguished Lecturer presentations, visit:

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Occidental Oil and Gas

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Adjunct Lecturer at Southern Methodist University

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Mazin Farouki has a BSc degree in physics from Manchester University and more than 40 years of industry experience with seismic contractors, mostly on overseas assignments. He has lived and worked in the United Kingdom, Zaire, Pakistan, Algeria, Egypt, the United States, Australia, Norway, Singapore, and Malaysia, holding technical and management positions in data processing, imaging, and marine geophysics. Most of his tenure has been with two employers: the Seismograph Service Companies from the late 1970s and Petroleum GeoServices (PGS) from the 1990s. For a number of years he specialized in velocity model building and depth imaging at a time when the discipline was in its infancy in the industry. His current position is geophysical advisor for PGS Asia Pacific Marine Contract based in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. He is an active member of SEG and EAGE and has received ‘best paper’ awards at industry regional conferences and workshops.