THE G-LOG* SEISMIC INVERSION PROCESS

Abstract

The G-LOG process is a method of seismic inversion which provides direct estimates of subsurface acoustic impedance from wavelet process stacked or migrated data. The fundamentals and characteristics of the inversion method will be discussed and examples of its use on Australian seismic data will be presented.

G-LOG functions are derived by an iterative subsurface modelling technique based on a rigorous inversion of one- dimensional wave equation. This process finds the acoustic impedance model, or log, whose resulting wave-equation- consistent synthetic seismogram best matches the input seismic data in a least mean squared error sense. Multiple reflections are included in the synthetic seismogram, so that they become useful information in the determination of the log.

Interval velocity logs are derived from the acoustic impedance logs. The results can be displayed in various forms, including detailed velocity logs, and colour-coded log 'sections' to match with the seismic section. Several examples of such results are presented.

The G-LOG process is a revolutionary technique of subsurface modelling, and the logs it provides are strong indicators of subsurface lithology and will be an important tool in the evaluation and re-evaluation of potential hydrocarbon-bearing prospects.

*Trademark of G.S.I.