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Case History 8

A 3-D Reflection Seismic Survey Over the Dollarhide Field,

Andrews County, Texas
Michael T. Reblin, Gregory G. Chapel, Unocal North American Oil & Gas Division; Steven L.
Roche, Chuck Keller, Halliburton Geophysical Services

Because onshore 3-D surveys can be expensive, the results may not be considered cost- Introduction and
effective. This case history presents an onshore 3-D survey that was cost-effective and that Survey Planning
shows the power of 3-D seismic versus well control and 2-D data.
Discovered in 1945, the Dollarhide field is a large faulted anticline in Andrews County which
is located on the Central Basin Platform of west Texas. Production in this field is from the
Permian Clearfork, Devonian Thirty-one, Silurian Wristen, and Ordovician Ellenburger formations.
(The commonly used names for the reservoirs are in italics.) Well spacing is approximately 40
acres (16 ha) and the Devonian formation is currently undergoing CO2 flooding.
In August and September 1988, a 3-D survey was acquired over a 24 mi2 (62 km2) area
covering the Dollarhide field. The survey’s primary purpose was to accurately image the
location of faulting within and bounding the Devonian. This would aid in planning the CO2
flood and possibly locate previously untested fault blocks.
Geophysicists from Unocal and Halliburton Geophysical Services (HGS) worked together to
design the 3-D survey. Information (including depth of the main objective, velocity, maximum
dip desired to be recorded, and reflection data quality) was compiled from previous 2-D
seismic data and geologic data from well logs. Migration aperture, Vibroseis sweep bandwidth,
source and receiver arrays, CMP fold, and offset geometry were all modeled and examined for
optimum recording parameters. We determined that a subsurface bin size of 110 ft inline × 110
ft crossline would adequately sample the subsurface for processing through 3-D migration.
The high cost of land 3-D seismic surveys has been a deterrent to their use in both
exploration and production geophysics. HGS suggested two innovations to reduce costs:
• Reduce the amount of data collected and replace it with trace interpolation prior to 3-D
migration. Well control in the area reveals the general dip of the target horizon. Because the
dip in the north-south direction is less steep than in the east-west direction, we could reduce
the sampling in the former. We were able to use a subsurface sample interval of 110 ft (34 m)
in the east-west (inline) direction and 330 ft in the north-south (crossline) direction, thus
reducing by 66% the amount of data to be acquired. This also generated a further cost relief
because the lessened number of receiver and vibrator lines meant fewer surface access
permits to be obtained. And, economies were realized also in data processing because the
number of records that had to go through CMP stack was reduced by 66%.
• Use two vibrators simultaneously to sweep two separate lines. This technique improved
the productivity of the recording crews by approximately 70%. The separation of the two
source signals is accomplished by upsweep-downsweep and phase rotation summing. Source
separation is performed in the field during the correlation and sum processes. The isolation of
the two sources using this method is on the order of 40 dB.

The data were acquired using a 384-channel DFS VII recording system deployed as a Data Collection
four-line swath. The receiver lines were spaced 1320 ft (400 m) apart with two source lines and Processing
per swath (Figure 9-8-1). Each swath generated eight subsurface profiles, separated by 330
ft. After each swath, the spread was moved 2640 ft or 800 m (two cable lines) in the
crossline direction. This geometry results in the subsurface swaths being adjacent as
opposed to overlapping. This can be described also as “one fold crossline.” With 12 swaths
being recorded, the subsurface area is sampled 110 ft in the line and 330 ft in the crossline
directions. The source interval averaged 440 ft (130 m). The resulting effective fold is 18-24
when source-to-receiver offsets are considered relative to the depth of interest.
Data processing techniques included: geometry description; field record quality control;
surface-consistent deconvolution; preliminary stack; velocity analysis; residual static
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estimation; 3-D f-k DMO; stack; trace interpolation; and 3-D migration.
At several steps during the processing of this survey, different parameters were tested
and reviewed — including the deconvolution method, benefit of DMO, migration velocity
analysis, and poststack migration algorithm. A benefit was realized by including DMO in
the processing sequence in that the diffracted image of the subsurface was improved. This
enabled the trace interpolation algorithm to perform better in the conversion of 110 ft × 330
ft subsurface bins to 110 ft × 110 ft bins. After 3-D migration, the data volume was moved to
a workstation for interactive interpretation.

Interpretation and The results of this 3-D survey are impressive. Figure 9-8-2 shows the structure map of the
Results Devonian at Dollarhide field as determined by the 40-acre-spaced well control. This map has
gone through many evolutions in the 46 years since the field was discovered. Notice that the
contours are relatively smooth, the anticline is cut by four simple cross-faults and bounded on
the east by a fault.
The structure map from the 3-D seismic survey (Figure 9-8-3) is more complex. The
contouring is more detailed and the cross-faults are not simple. The structure map shows the
detail of the Devonian that the 3-D seismic has allowed us to see. This shouldn’t be a surprise
as our seismic data points are equivalent to a spacing of approximately four wells per acre.
Considering that a seismic trace is an approximation to a synthetic seismogram from a sonic
log, we indeed have a very powerful means of detail mapping subsurface structure.
There are two principal ways to look at the 3-D seismic data volume. One is the
conventional seismic line display (Figure 9-8-4). On the crest of the structure, the top of the
Clearfork Formation is the strong event at approximately 780 ms. The Devonian, at
approximately 1000 ms on the upthrown block and 1350 ms on the downthrown block, is
colored purple. The top of the Ellenburger is a high-amplitude event at approximately 1250
ms. At about 960 ms, an unconformity can be seen that helps highlight one of the more
remarkable features of the data — a fault zone showing over 2000 ft (610 m) of displacement
on the Devonian marker. The imaging of this fault zone demonstrates one of the
shortcomings of some 3-D surveys. Due to economics, lines may not be long enough to
properly image all the features (such as large faults or extremely steep dip) within the survey
limits. This survey was designed to image the upthrown block so that the incomplete image
east of the major fault was as expected.
The other view of the 3-D data volume, and one not available with 2-D data, is the time
slice. This view allows the interpreter to see subtle features which may not be apparent or as
readily interpretable on conventional seismic sections. A time slice (Figure 9-8-5) through the
3-D data volume at 1008 ms (about 4600 ft subsea or 7800 ft below surface) demonstrates this.
The cross-faults are seen as northeast-southwest lineations. The previously undetected

Fig. 9-8-1. Swath design

of the 3-D dual source
survey.
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Fig. 9-8-2. Simplified Devonian structure map from 40- Fig. 9-8-3. Simplified Devonian structure map from 3-D
acre (16-ha) well control. The unit outline is red. seismic interpretation.

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Fig. 9-8-4. East-west seismic line 110. Devonian horizon is annotated in
purple; the interpreted faults are yellow.
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Fig. 9-8-5. Time slice at 1008 ms (about 4600 ft [1400 m] subsea or 7800 ft [2380 m] below surface).
Devonian horizon is annotated in purple; the interpreted faults are yellow.
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Fig. 9-8-6. Northeast perspective view of the Devonian time structure map.
The color change from red to green is at the same time as the time slice in
Figure 9-8-5. Note the cross-fault definition.
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Fig. 9-8-7. Composite horizon slice (seismic amplitude map) of the producing Devonian horizon.
Largest amplitudes are yellow and red and smallest amplitudes are blue and green.
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grabens not seen on Figure 9-8-2 are seen as easterly pullouts on the time-sliced peaks (blue) and
troughs (red) in the areas of the cross-faulting. Mapping of the data is now possible in both the
vertical and horizontal sense. Both offer unique perspectives of the data volume.
Because the 3-D survey gives an evenly sampled volume of data, another display of the data
is possible after a horizon is interpreted. In Figure 9-8-6, a perspective view of the Devonian
horizon time map as viewed from the southwest is presented. It shows the northerly plunge of
the anticline, which isn’t readily apparent on the Devonian horizon structure map (Figure 9-8-3).
The cross-faults, with their associated grabens, are quite distinct and give a real feel for the
relative throw of faults. This display has helped the geologists and engineers develop a better
understanding of the field shape and how the faults impact the ongoing CO2 flood project.
Having the 3-D data volume loaded on an interactive workstation allowed the interpreters to
generate various attribute displays that took us beyond the traditional time interpretation. Using
the seismic peak and trough associated with the producing Devonian horizon, a composite
horizon slice (amplitude map) was made (Figure 9-8-7). The hot colors, yellow and red,
represent larger amplitudes and, in most cases, correspond with the better wells in the field. The
cool colors, blue and green, represent lower seismic trace amplitudes along the producing
Devonian. The amplitudes are interpreted to be related to the thickness of the producing zone —
high amplitudes to a thick zone, low amplitudes to a thin zone. The possible exception is the
linear pattern next to the north-south bounding fault where we believe the larger amplitudes are
possibly related to poorly imaged steep dips. The major cross-faults are seen as northeast-
southwest lineations, which divide the structure into four major fault blocks. The CO2 flood is
expected to have better results in the northern block which is denoted by the higher amplitudes.
The flood was initiated in the northern block last year. The next block south has had the poorest
flood results to date which seem related to the dominance of the lower amplitudes on the
composite amplitude map. The third fault block was the first one flooded and has the best
results to date, as could be predicted from the abundance of high amplitudes. The smallest fault
block, located to the southeast, is faulted below the producing limits of the field to the north.
However, a well drilled to the productive Devonian horizon in 1948 recently has been reentered
and reevaluated, and could open up an extension to the field. The higher amplitudes indicate it
could be a very productive block with good CO2 flood potential.

Conclusions Earlier in this case history, we alluded to the cost-effectiveness of this 3-D survey. One of the
features that helped us sell the concept to management was the comparison of the cost to shoot
this 3-D survey to a 1/2 mi grid of 2-D data and the dryhole cost of a Devonian test. The 2-D
survey cost (including acquisition, surface permits, and processing) was estimated at $750,000
for 150 line-mi. The dryhole cost of a Devonian test is approximately $300,000. To date, two
Devonian locations have not been drilled as the 3-D results indicated they were uneconomic.
Shooting conventional swath 3-D to record 110 ft × 110 ft bins was estimated at about $1,300,000
(generating 1140 mi (1820 km) of 3-D data over the 24 mi2). Using the 3-1 interpolation technique
and simultaneous source recording, the survey actually cost $400,000. This cost is approximately
half that for a 2-D survey, a third of a conventional 3-D survey, and only slightly more than a dry
hole. The after-tax profit of a primary Devonian development well in the Dollarhide field is
about $1,000,000. By adding one well to the field, we easily recover the cost of the survey plus
give the geologists and engineers a more detailed look at a reservoir that is still being developed
during the tertiary recovery stage.
The results to date are multifold. The cross-faulting of the Devonian producing horizon is
much more extensive than previously mapped. This knowledge has influenced the location of
several wells for the CO2 flood and the engineers continue to use the results for future programs.
Some of the newly discovered faults have generated fault traps within the field that have not
been drilled and are now being evaluated to determine their potential. Evidence suggests that
the fault block to the southeast may be productive, although it was drilled and abandoned over
40 years ago. Lastly, preliminary studies of the Clearfork Formation indicate the 3-D data will
help in the development of the plan for the secondary recovery from that producing unit.
Land 3-D surveys can be economical and may produce results well beyond the initial goals.
The two acquisition techniques discussed here are just two examples of how to shoot cost-
effective land 3-D surveys. The 3-D seismic is a necessary tool to use in developing new
discoveries and extending the life of old fields.