Patent ID: 6101446
Filing Date: 2000-08-08
Classification: G01V

Abstract:
Method for mapping the drillable areas of an oil field without running the risk of encountering anomalous zones, such method comprising the steps of:carrying out an acquisition of recordings or seismic traces using seismic reflection acquisition equipment in the area of the oil field to be explored;creating, from these recorded seismic traces, a 3D seismic block that is a three dimensional image of the area explored within an axial system (X, Y, P), while attributing to each square (B.sub.ij) of a set of squares forming a regular spatial grid in the plane defined by axes (X, Y) and chosen as a representation of the acquisition plane of the seismic traces, a central trace (TR.sub.ij) established from the recorded traces whose positions are located inside the square in question, this central trace having been assigned to the center (.alpha..sub.ij) of such square following the axis P, andsampling the 3D seismic block in elementary cells, each cell (C.sub.ijk) being centered on a square (B.sub.ij) of the plane (X, Y) and having measurements following the axes X and Y that correspond respectively to those of the square on which it is centered and a thickness according to axis P that corresponds to a sample interval following axis P of the central trace associated with such square, so that each elementary square contains a sample (k) of a central seismic trace defined by its coordinates (X, Y, P) in such seismic block, and where such coordinates form the coordinates of the elementary cell that contains the sample, and comprising;calculating, for each elementary cell (C.sub.ijk) of the seismic block, the energy of this cell from the amplitude of the seismic trace sample it contains, such energy being proportional to the square with this amplitude,determining an energy threshold beyond which we consider that the presence of anomalous zones is probable;selecting the cells of the block that have energies equal to or greater than such threshold,assigning a code to the selected cells, so that all of the cells belonging to a same set of selected connecting cells have the same code and that the selected cells belonging to different sets of selected connecting cells have different codes, each set of selected connecting cells forms an anomalous zone,memorizing the position (X, Y, P) of each of the cells retained as well as its code, andcarrying out an XY projection of the block of cells that have been assigned these codes, where each anomalous zone appears in this projection with a different code, which provides a map of the superposed anomalous zones.