Objective
Section balancing is a powerful and simple but very time consuming method of testing whether or not a seismic or geological map-controlled interpretation of rock structure (on any scale, from prospect size to basin-wide) is geometrically sensible. The aim of the project is to develop an interactive method which will accept the interpreter's digitised first-attempt interpretations, perform checks on bed lengths and areas, and allow serial restoration of movement on fault surfaces, by any amount specified. It should calculate and substitute fault shapes as an alternative to those initially input; accept any geometrical configurations of beds and be applicable in all geological environments, compressive or extensional or any mixture of styles; possess full graphics editor facilities with add and delete options on-screen; and include a decompaction capability to deal with the problem that rock sequences change thickness as the sediment pile increases with time.
Problems so far encountered have been in designing portability and compatibility into the system.
Technical trials so far have confirmed that the program core is scientifically sound.
Tests in a variety of basins have shown that BSP represents a significant level of new capability in structure interpretation. Structure modelling can be put on an objective basis and predictions can be tested systematically and very quickly. There is a great potential to develop the program.BSP is now used by three major oil companies in exploration and development work, by two state geological surveys, and is running on several academic sites.It is also on extended trials with several more oil companies and promises to establish itself a significant and distinctive interpretational software package.Users consider it to be a specialist application but not one is requiring a high level of training. It is the first program ot its type to allow routine balance exercises together with full compaction/decompaction modelling capability.
New advances in balanced section construction and basin development have been pioneered by MVE. These new advances facilitate the identification of new exploration prospects and aid their interpretation. The construction of balanced sections is now a vital step in validating seismically derived maps of prospects. The same techniques can be used to improve mapping of structurally complex fields.
The planned program allows generation of new sections from the digitized input by various operations, such as displacements on fault systems. Many sections can be held in core at once, with the capability to select, view and operate upon any one of them. Sections may be written to disk and later retrieved. They can also be plotted.
The "active" operations which generate new sections from the input include the simulation of displacement on a fault system. This operation can be used in two ways: to remove displacements on faults which have offset marker horizons (inverse modelling), or to simulate the progressive development of faults (forward modelling). Another "active" operation is the construction of non-planar fault profiles from the geometries of hanging wall rollovers.
The second class of operations are "passive", that is, they do not alter the appearance of the section. There are two such operations: a calculation of total bed length for each stratigraphic horizon, and a calculation for the area of a specified formation or region of the section. Area calculations are used to predict the estimated depth to detachment of controlling faults.
Program development and testing has proceeded rapidly and the scientific core of the code is essentially complete. The program is graphics-intensive and the initial version incorporates Tektronix software under licence and abstracted from their Plot 10 STI; this form of the program has been written for a MicroVax II, Tektronix 4107 or 4207 combination. Installations using the Tektronix terminals have also been achieved on Nord machines, and several digitising and plotter combinations have been employed. A GKS variant has been prepared and run on a VAX workstation.Program development proceeded rapidly and the scientific core ot the code is complete. The program is graphics-intensive and incorporates Tektronix software under licence and abstracted from their Plot 10 STI; this form of the program has been written for a MicroVax II, Tectronix 4107or 4207 combination. Installations using Tectronix terminals have also been achieved on Nord and Data General machines, and various digitisingand plotter combinations have been employedAn early GKS variant has been prepared and run on a VAX workstation. GKS standard routines have been written to support different input and ouput devices.
Programme(s)
Topic(s)
Call for proposal
Data not availableFunding Scheme
DEM - Demonstration contractsCoordinator
G3 6AX Glasgow
United Kingdom