Significance of Seismic Exploration Activities
“A century ago, petroleum- what we call oil was just an obscure commodity; today it is almost as vital to human existence as water”, is an apt quote from British Author and Journalist James Buchan in the present age wherein over sixty percent of the world’s energy needs are met by much coveted Natural Oil and Gas deposits, the magnitude of investment in this sector runs in billions of dollars and the scramble for power and control over these reserves is a never-ending conflict resulting in events that often cause major upheavals in the world economy. In this context, the significance of Seismic Exploration Activities in the pursuit of these precious reserves has no parallel, and reliable, efficient services centered on the voluminous Seismic Exploration Database such as Data Base Management Services, Translation Services etc are highly sought after by establishments involved in these explorations.
·Seismology is the branch of geo-physics that deals with the study of natural phenomena like earthquakes as well as artificially induced seismic waves that propagate through solids or fluids and could be in the form of body waves, surface waves or normal modes.
· Seismic Exploration involves using controlled explosions or vibration of controlled sources in order to trace economically viable deposits of oil and gas beneath the earth’s surface as well as detect groundwater sources and enable the construction of dams and harbors.
·The scientific principle underlying Seismic Exploration is the theory of elasticity which studies the properties of different strata and sub-strata constituents in relation to their being subjected to seismic or elastic waves and the data is studied by scientists to determine potential hydrocarbon reserves.
·Based on their propagation characteristics, the seismic waves utilized for exploration studies could belong to refraction, reflection or surface-wave categories, and could generate inline waves propagating within the vertical plane or offline waves that transcend the vertical plane.
·The process involves sensitive devices called geophones that are embedded at several places on the earth’s surface which capture and transmit relevant data to a seismographic recording truck, where the data is observed and analyzed by scientists by means of using a digital seismograph.
·The first attempt in this regard was conducted by John C Karcher and his team at Oklahoma in 1992 in the form of 2-D, single-fold seismic exploration that provided only a rough estimation of potential deposits, and hence gave way to the evolution of 2-D multi-fold exploration techniques that comparatively increased the resolution and accuracy of subsurface images.
·Seismic Exploration technology was revolutionized in the 1980s with the invention of 3-D technology that enabled geophysicists to view 3-dimensional pictures of sub-strata geological structures and increased the chances of accurate placement of drill sites by over 50 percent.
·In the current global scenario, scientists make use of 4-D or Time-Lapse Seismic Techniques that studies numerous 3-D techniques at the same potential reservoir at specified time-intervals and works on the principle of changes in flow, temperature, pressure and saturation. The reaction of reservoirs to gas injection, water flooding or depletion of hydrocarbons is studied and by subtracting the data of one survey from the data of another survey, 4-D technology enables one to study the change that has occurred in the reservoir over time.
Current Global Perspective
·It is important to note here that irrespective of the technology involved, unregulated seismic exploration activities could hold a potential threat to ecologically sensitive areas, and therefore warrant strict governmental regulations at various junctures. Documents pertaining to Safety Regulations and Environmental Database are necessary to review the overall viability of the exploration technique.
·Areas that are currently being focused upon for seismic survey include the Gulf of Mexico, North Sea, Australia, Indonesia, West Africa, Brazil, New Zealand, North slopes of Alaska and Canada, as well as the Indian Ocean.
·Amidst several key players engaged in upgrading seismic exploration methods, Canada’s NXT Energy Solutions has claimed to invent an SFD (Stress Field Detection) technology that identifies oil and gas reserves 10 times faster than existing technology at 1/20th of the current cost structure.
·The top global market players with holdings in the field of seismic exploration services include Integra, Geotech, PetroAlliance, Bashneftgeophysics and TNG-group, while Russia tops the list of countries with highest number of independent companies
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