Multifrequency VLF+LF receiver (Multifrekvens VLF+LF mottagare)

Project description
Background This project aims at further developing the so-called Tensor VLF technique which is presently used routinely by the SGU for producing a variety of anomaly maps. The new VLF technique was developed during the first half of the 90s (Pedersen et al. 1994; Pedersen, 1996; Bastani and Pedersen, 1997). Later SGU supported the development of interpretational tools. Pedersen (1998) showed that through derivation in two horizontal direction corresponding to a highpass filtering of the anomaly maps new anomaly maps are produced that correlate with normal static magnetic anomaly maps if the underlying electrical resistivity and magnetization correlate. Later Gharibi and Pedersen (1999) showed that for 2-D structures the anomalies along flight lines could be integrated to give estimates of apparent resistivities and phases at the given frequency interval directly from the VLF data. More recently Becken and Pedersen (2003) generalized this to three dimensions. They showed maps of apparent resistivity for the Stockholm SE map sheet where in general the sedimentary overburden is thin which nicely imaged the underlying geological units ranging from granitic rocks with high electrical resistivity to metasedimentary rocks with moderate resistivity. All previous airborne VLF measurements were made in the so-called VLF band, approximately between 15-30 kHz. (See Figure 1 for the location of transmitters in Europe in this band and in the so-called LF band above it.) Even though the frequencies vary from transmitter to transmitter it has been assumed that that the anomalies do not vary much with frequency. This assumption is fairly well satisfied in a small interval say 20 % around a central frequency. Modern instruments, however, measure sufficiently accurately that the frequency dependency can be used to constrain the depth penetration and thereby improve the depth resolution of those electrical conductors that are the sources of the anomalies.

Experiences from ground measurements with the EnviroMT instrument (Bastani, 2001) operating in the frequency interval 1-250 kHz can be directly transferred to this project. The EnviroMT instrument is a prototype instrument for general EM measurements with and without controlled sources. Both magnetic and electrical fields are measured to achieve good lateral and depth resolution. An example (Pedersen et al., 2004) is shown in Figure 2 from the area of Skediga, 5 km north of Uppsala where coincident reflection seismic and EnviroMT data were analyzed. White lines indicate the dominant reflectors taken to represent the upper and lower boundaries of the most dominant clay units and the lower reflectors were taken to indicate the crystalline basement. Superimposed on this is the model for electrical resistivity which supports the seismic interpretation quite well, especially in clearly identifying the conductive clay units bounded by reflectors C and C*.

Figure 2. Model of electrical reistivity from the Skediga area north of Uppsala. White lines represent dominant reflectors obtained from a coincident reflection seismic experiment.

Often it is sufficient to measure the magnetic field if the aim is to get an overview of the conductivity distribution in an area. The gain is a much faster (continuous) measurement operation; the price to be paid is a degraded resolution compared with RMT measurements, but numerical simulations and experiences from RMT measurements clearly show that the multifrequency concept is superior to the traditional VLF techniques (Pedersen and Oskooi, 2004). Also the experience gained by the SGU in conducting a variety of geological and hydrogeological studies using traditional single frequency VLF and multifrequency RMT measurements clearly points towards the superiority of the latter over the former in delineating lithologies both laterally as well as with depth. However, the EnviroMT prototype RMT instrument developed earlier in the frame of an EU project is too bulky and slow to be used routinely under harsh field conditions. The potential of the new VLF multifrequency receiver It is relevant to ask whether the anticipated increased speed of operation and precision in positioning and orientation of the new system can give rise to much improved geoelectrical models of the subsurface. We believe that the answer is yes. Firstly, the greatly improved speed of operation will enable data collection along many profiles in a given area without excessive costs. Secondly, the automatic orientation of the sensors will enable an unforeseen detail in the measured responses. All taken together this will be of great importance when in the near 3

future it becomes possible with reasonable computational efforts to invert the data in a threedimensional (3D) frame instead of the one-dimensional (1D) or two-dimensional (2D) frame that is standard nowadays. The emerging methods for 3D inversion of magnetotelluric data (Newman et al., 2003; Avdeev, 2004; Siripunvaraporn et al, 2004) can be directly applied for inversion of massive RMT data from hundreds of RMT stations that are routinely collected by a single geophysicist over few days of data acquisition. We believe that this combination of massive 5-component RMT data collected along several profiles in the area of study together with the possibility of quantitatively modeling all the responses in 3D will allow for imaging the geoelectric structures of the upper few hundred meters with unprecedented resolution, such that the models produced will show many details that can be interpreted in geological/hydrogeological terms. In this respect it is important that the earth is treated as a 3D structure. Only in this way it can be assured that the derived structure represents true geological features and not just artifacts introduced by false assumptions of 2D geometry of the underlying geoelectric structure. The experience gained from EnviroMT measurements over the past 6 years or so clearly indicates that 3D effects are important in nearly all cases. For example in the example shown in Figure 2 from the Skediga area where two clay lenses overlie gravel formations overlying crystalline basement, there is an indication that at position 140 there is shallow clay patch right at the surface. It is known that there are abundant clay fields to the South of the profile and we are tempted to interpret the conductor as representing a 3D effect of this kind rather than representing the true structure below the profile. However, in the absence of 3D inverse codes we could not distinguish between the two models. Another example of 3D effects is from a study of the highly resistive granite at vr (Linde and Pedersen, 2004). Inversion of the data from one profile showed a 30-40 m thick weathered layer over almost intact bedrock down to a depth of at least 200 m, where higher salinity and/or fracturing yielded higher conductivities. A major fracture zone coinciding with a seismic reflector crossing the same profile could be identified. We used 3D forward modeling to get a qualitative understanding of the effect of the surrounding Baltic Sea on the interpretation. We believe that the effect of the sea can be recognized such that we can conclude that groundwater flow at vr is dominated by a few major fracture zones. However, we would have been on safer ground if we could have used 3D inverse modeling simultaneously on several closely spaced/crossing profiles. We will carry out test measurements with the new instrument in the Skediga area with a view to study the three-dimensional distribution of clay lenses overlying the gravel and bedrock in the area. We already know that the clay lenses are distributed in a complicated way from previous measurements along a few profiles. The new measurements will be made along densely spaced profiles separated by about 30 m, the approximate depth to the basement. The data will be modeled by the new 3D inversion algorithms that we plan work with during the coming few years. The new light-weight instrument The new instrument (see Figure 3) is a rugged, portable, low power instrument to be operated by one person. The weight of the complete system including magnetic sensor, data acquisition unit and battery will be less than 6 kg. The system will also provide inputs for electrodes to measure the electric field in two orthogonal horizontal directions. If the electrodes are placed in a small rig (1x1 m2) one person can handle this in open field conditions. The instrument will operate in two data acquisition modes: automatic or manual. In the automatic mode data acquisition is continuous when the operator walks or uses a vehicle. In the manual mode the data is acquired at discrete equidistant points along a profile by the operator. A differential GPS receiver governs the positioning and co-ordinates are stored together with the measured data. 4

The magnetic sensor is an orthogonal three component coil magnetometer. The orientation of the magnetometer (roll, tilt and heading) and the electrode rig (heading) will be measured during the acquisition with an electronic compass with a tiltmeter included. Corrections for any misalignment of the sensors will be made in real time whereby a substantial reduction of orientation noise can be achieved. The magnetometer will be optimized to operate in the broad frequency band 15-350 kHz with a view to be used both for ground measurements as well as in the stinger of an airborne platform. When a survey is prepared the configuration and set up of the instrument is made from a small external pocket computer (PDA) or a notebook computer. Operation of the instrument in the field during the data acquisition will be simple with a limited, user friendly menu based software controlled from the instrument display and some functional hardware buttons. The acquired data is processed and the results (tensor, scalar or tipper) are displayed and stored automatically or manually by the operator depending on the measurement mode. The output data files (transfer functions and transmitter information) are stored on the flash disk. After completion of the data acquisition the data files are transferred to a notebook computer via Ethernet or alternatively stored on an external disk. Before discussing in more details the potential of the new instrument for improved geological mapping it is worthwhile to compare its technical specifications with the present EnviroMT system. The comparison is shown in the Table 1 below.

E. COMPASS WITH TILTMETER

GPS ANTENNA

GPS RECEIVER BOARD COMPUTER BOARD with FLASH DISK

P.AMP.

E. COMPASS

Hz Hx Hy

DISPLAY FUNC. KEYS

Ey1 Ex1

PAMP.

ANALOUGE to DIGITAL CONVERTER BOARD

PDA or NOTEBOOK COMPUTER

Ex2 Ey2

EXTERNAL FLASH DISK

Figure 3. Block diagram of VLF multifrequency receiver.

Manpower needed for operating Automatic positioning Automatic orientation Continuous measurements Operational speed

EnviroMT 2 persons No No

New system 1 person GPS Compass

Remarks

Manual positioning optional in new system Orientation of both magnetic and electric sensors will be made automatically Assuming 10 m between stations

Magnetic sensors Electric sensors Receiver Power supply Synchronization between source and receiver

1 station per minute 1 station per 3 minutes (1 min for registration and 2 min to move to next station) 3-components 30x30x30 cm3

2 stations per second 1 stations per 30 seconds (10 s for registration and 20 s to move to next station) 3-component 15x15x15 cm3

2-components 2-components 10 m spread 1.4 m spread Heavy and bulky Lightweight and robust 1 car battery 1 light weight battery Yes No

New magnetic sensors can be placed in the stinger for airborne measurements New sensor is mounted on a fixed frame

This is the only point where the EnviroMT system is superior

Table 1. Comparison between EnviroMT and new multifrequency system The new multifrequency system is a dedicated RMT system, whereas the EnviroMT system is more general in that it allows including a low frequency transmitter, which is synchronized to the receiver. Experience gained from a number of field campaigns indicate that for many geological applications the available VLF+LF signals are sufficient for constraining the geological problem to be solved. The project team The project team is lead by the applicant, professor Laust B Pedersen who has been heavily involved in developing new measurement techniques and interpretational tools for VLF and RMT data, in many cases in SGU funded projects. In this context it is worth mentioning that an international evaluation of geoscience reseach supported by SGU external research funds 20002003 explicitly mentioned two projects in which the applicant was directly or indirectly involved as mycket lyckade projekt. Lars Dynesius is a senior research engineer, with more than 10 years of experience in constructing electromagnetic equipment for geophysical purposes using modern digital techniques. For this project his most important experience dates back to his role as the project 6

leader from 1997-1999 for the EU project Adapting magneto-telluric (MT) geophysics systems at high frequency ranges for environmental investigations (EnviroMT). Mehrdad Bastani is a former Ph.D. candidate from Uppsala University who played a major role in the development of the EnviroMT system. His Ph.D. thesis contains a detailed description of some of the system software and application software that he developed. He is now working as a geophysicist at the SGU and via a separate application to SGU internal research funds he will be working closely together with us and take responsibility for implementing software for both the in-field processing and post-processing stages. Michael Becken is a Ph.D. student and research assistant at Technische Hochshcule, Berlin. He has a strong theoretical background and has together with the applicant developed a working method for transforming VLF anomaly maps into apparent resistivity and phase maps that are now used routinely by the SGU. He plans to continue co-operating with us on developing 3D inversion techniques for VLF data. Maxim Smirnov is a Ph.D from St.Petersburg University. He held a post-doc position in Uppsala University and currently employed as guest researcher. Specialist in magnetotelluric data processing and inversion. One of the major parts of his work in Uppsala was developing a new instruments for magnetotelluric investigations. Thomas Kalscheuer is a Ph.D. student and Diplom Geophysiker from University of Cologne. He has recently started his work and is planning to take actively part in implementing approximate methods for inverting large EM data sets in a 3D environment. Sren Bystrm is a senior engineer and head of the airborne activities within the SGU. He is an expert in geophysical instrumentation and in systems engineering.

Literature references Avdeev, D.B., 2004. Three-dimensional electromagnetic modeling and inversion from theory to application. Review talk, pp193-213. 17th international workshop on electromagnetic induction in the earth, 18-23 October 2004. Bastani, M., 2001. EnviroMT A New Controlled Source/Radio Magnetotelluric System. Ph. D. thesis. Acta Universitatis Upsaliensis, Uppsala Dissertations from the Faculty of Science and Technology 32. Bastani, M. and Pedersen, L.B., 1997. The reliability of aeroplane attitude determination using the main geomagnetic field with applicaiton to tensor VLF data analysis. Geophysical Prospecting 45, 831-841. Becken, M. and Pedersen, L.B., 2003. Transformation of VLF anomaly maps into apparent resistivity and phase. Geophysics 68, 497-515. Gharibi, M. and Pedersen, L.B., 1999. Transformation of VLF data into apparent resistivities and phases. Geophysics 64, 1393-1402. Linde, N. and Pedersen, L.B., 2004. Characterization of a fractured granite using radiomagnetotelluric (RMT) data. Geophysics 69, 1155-1165. Newman, G.A., Recher, S., Tezkan, B. and Neubauer, F.M., 2003. 3D inversion of a scalar radio magnetotelluric data set. Geophysics 68, 791-802. Pedersen, L.B., Qian, W., Dynesius, L., and Zhang, P., 1994. An Airborne Tensor VLF System. From Concept to Realisation. Geoph. Prosp., 42, 863-883. Pedersen, L.B. , 1996. Relations between tensor VLF and magnetic anomaly maps. Extended abstract, EAGE 58 Conference and Technical Exhibition - Amsterdam, 26-30 May, 1996, M001, 2 pp. Pedersen, L.B., 1998. Tensor VLF measurements: Our first experiences. Exploration Geophysics. The Bulletin of the Australian Society of Exploration Geophysicists 29, 52-57.

Pedersen, L. B, Bastani, M. and Dynesius L.,2004, Ground water exploration using the high resolution EnviroMT technique. Accepted for publication in Geophysics. Siripunvaraporn, W., Uyeshima, M. and Egbert, G., 2004. Three-dimensional neworkmagnetotelluric inversion and it application to Hokkaodo. Abstract S.2-O.5, 17th international workshop on electromagnetic induction in the earth, 18-23 October 2004. Smirnov, M., 2003. Magnetotelluric data processing with a robust statistical procedure having a high breakdown point. Geophys. J. Int. 152, 1-7.

Timeplan for multifrequency VLF / LF receiver project.

M arketsearchfo relectro niccardsandparts P urchaseo fnecessaryelectro niccardsandparts Co nstructio no fpo wersupplycard Co nstructio no fbufferelectro deamplifiers Co o rdination,designandpurchaseo fmagneticsenso rs M echanicaldesignandcabling P lanningo fco mpleteso ftwarelayo ut Implementatio nofso ftwaredriverfo rtheA /Dbo ard P reliminarydevelo pmento fuserinterface/co ntro lso ftware Interfacing,testandevaluatio no fmagneticsenso r Implementatio nofGP Shardware/software Implementatio nofelectro nicco mpasshardware/so ftware Instrumentno isetestinSEM KOEM Clab.andevaluation M o dificatio nfo rinstrumentno isereduction 0 Y e a r1,s um o fwo rk ingho urs :7 2 0 . 1 00 200 300 400

Y ear1

Ho urs

500

F inal Ins trument nois e tes t S E M KO E M C lab. and evaluation E ventual modification for ins trument nois e reduction F inal development o f us er interface / c ontrol s oftware R M T s oftware ins tallation S ynchronization of R M T - and us er / control s oftware F ield data dis play s oftware C alibration- with us er / contro l s oftware D es ign and co ns tructio n of elec trode rig D es ign and co ns tructio n of carrying device for the ins trument F ield meas urement 1 and evaluatio n 0 Y e a r2 ,s um o f wo rk ingho urs :9 2 0 . 100 200 300 400

Y ear2

H ours

500

C ompleting pos t proces s ing and vis ualis ation s oftware F ield meas urement 2 and evaluation R eporting, publis hing and pres entation 0 Y e a r3 ,s um o f wo rk ingho urs :4 4 0 . 100 200 300 400

Y ear3

H ours

500

Total sum of working hours for year 1 - year 3 : 2080 hours.

10