High definition cross-well electrical resistivity imaging using seismoelectric focusing and image-guided inversion

S U M M A R Y We propose a new, simple and efficient method to image electrical resistivity between a set of wells. Our procedure consists of two steps: first, we map the interfaces between various subsurface formations using seismoelectric conversions; second, we derive the formation resistivity using image-guided cross-well electric tomography. In the first step, we focus seismic energy at a set of points located on a regular grid between wells, which enables us to map the geological formations in terms of heterogeneities in electrical, hydraulic and/or seismic properties. The density of the scanning points (i.e. the seismoelectric image resolution) is related to the wavelength of the seismic impulse used to scan the formations. Each time the seismic energy is focused at a point, the resulting electrical potential burst (equivalent to the one generated by a volumetric seismic source) is recorded remotely at a set of electrodes positioned in wells (the reference electrode can be located on the ground surface or far enough to be considered at infinity). We construct a high-resolution ‘seismoelectric’ image by assigning the electrical potential simulated at these fixed electrodes to the location of the seismic focus. In a follow-up step, the structure of this image is used in image-guided inversion to improve electrical resistivity tomography between the two wells. The structural information from the seismoelectric image is used to impose constraints on the model covariance matrix used in the inversion of the electrical resistivity data. This approach offers new perspectives in recovering fine structure of resistivity (high definition resistivity tomography) between the wells, which cannot be resolved through conventional cross-well resistivity or from seismic tomography alone.