Vertical arrays for fracture mapping in geothermal systems
- Los Alamos National Lab., NM (United States)
- Nambe Geophysics, Inc. (United States)
- Lithos Inc. (United States)
- Petroleum Geo-Services (United States)
In collaboration with UNOCAL Geothermal Operations, Los Alamos National Laboratory assessed the feasibility of using vertical arrays of borehole seismic sensors for mapping of microseismicity in The Geysers geothermal field. Seismicity which arises from minute displacements along fracture or fault surfaces has been shown in studies of seismically active oil reservoirs to be useful in identifying fractures affected by and possibly contributing to production. Use of retrievable borehole seismic packages at The Geysers was found to reduce the threshold for detection of microearthquakes by an estimated 2--3 orders of magnitude in comparison to surface-based sensors. These studies led to the design, materials selection, fabrication, and installation of a permanent array of geophones intended for long term seismic monitoring and mapping of fractures in the vicinity of the array at The Geysers.
- Research Organization:
- Los Alamos National Lab. (LANL), Los Alamos, NM (United States)
- Sponsoring Organization:
- USDOE, Washington, DC (United States)
- DOE Contract Number:
- W-7405-ENG-36
- OSTI ID:
- 677044
- Report Number(s):
- LA-UR-98-2068; CONF-980917-; ON: DE99000770; TRN: AHC29821%%177
- Resource Relation:
- Conference: Geothermal Resources Council annual meeting, San Diego, CA (United States), 20-23 Sep 1998; Other Information: PBD: [1998]
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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