SEISMIC ATTENUATION FOR RESERVOIR CHARACTERIZATION

Description/Abstract

Wave-induced variations of pore pressure in a partially-saturated reservoir result in oscillatory liquid flow. The viscous losses during this flow are responsible for wave attenuation. The same viscous effects determine the changes in the dynamic bulk modulus of the system versus frequency. These changes are necessarily linked to attenuation via the causality condition. We analytically quantify the frequency dependence of the bulk modulus of a partially saturated rock by assuming that saturation is patchy and then link these changes to the inverse quality factor. As a result, the P-wave attenuation is quantitatively linked to saturation and thus can serve as a saturation indicator.