We encourage you to have a look at a collection of just some of the exciting, published articles in our library. We thank the authors for their creativity and hard work in creating these papers and look forward to hearing more about new and ongoing projects. 

If you work for a university or research facility, and have projects you want to share with the community, or if you are interested in access to NORSAR software for your research, please contact us at sales@norsar.com
 

University of Bergen (UiB), Department of Earth Science

Dr. Isabelle Lecomte, Associate Professor, Reservoir Geophysics, is also Visiting Associate professor at NORSAR after working here from 1991 to 2016. Her main research focuses on seismic modelling and imaging, especially using ray-based methods, with applications to seismic reflection, refraction, tomography, resolution, and simulation of PSDM. Isabelle is author and co-author of more than one hundred research papers and the inventor of the NORSAR-registered patents “SimPLI” for fast and robust modelling of PSDM images. https://www.uib.no/en/persons/Isabelle.Lecomte

Most of the publications of the academic users of NORSAR Software Suite have Isabelle as a co-author. The following paper has, e.g., been used as a reference in many publications:

Lecomte, I., Lavadera, P.L., Anell, I., Buckley, S.J., Schmid, D.W., Heeremans, M.,2015. Ray-based seismic modeling of geologic models: Understanding and analyzing seismic images efficiently. Interpretation 3 (4), 71–89. http://dx.doi.org/10.1190/INT-2015-0061.1

Lecomte_etal_Ray-based_seismic_modeling_of_geologic_models_Interpretation_Nov2015.pdf

Target-oriented seismic modelling of possibly complex/detailed geological models, especially derived from outcrops, has indeed proven to be crucial for various geoscientists. The following and recently published article on seismic modelling of deep shear zones has, e.g., already aroused attention among researchers, with more than 550 reads a few months after its publication. Using SeisRoX for such modelling proves to be of high interest in the geological community!

Wrona, T., Fossen, H., Lecomte, I., Eide, C.H., Gawthorpe, R.L., 2020. Seismic expression of shear zones: Insights from 2-D point-spread-function-based convolution modelling. Journal of Structural Geology 140 (2020) 104121. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jsg.2020.104121

Wrona_etal_2D_PSF_based_conv_modelling_JSG_2020.pdf

The following article further illustrates how the research conducted by Isabelle is also applied to education for young scientists learning seismic interpretation at UiB:

Lecomte, I. 2019. From Outcrop Geology to Seismic… and Back. GEOExPro – petroleum geoscience magazine Vol. 16, No. 4 – 2019. https://www.geoexpro.com/articles/2019/10/from-outcrop-geology-to-seismic-and-back

Kristian Jensen is a PhD student at the Department of Earth Science, University of Bergen (UiB). This is how he describes his research:

“The purpose of my PhD project is to further test, improve and extend the ray-based method for simulating prestack depth migrated images originally developed at NORSAR (SimPLI patents). Throughout my PhD I have extensively used SeisRoX for this purpose besides my own research codes. With Isabelle Lecomte (UiB) as main supervisor and Tina Kaschwich (NORSAR) as one of my co-supervisors, I have currently published two SEG abstracts, while having 3 papers under work. The published SEG abstracts are:”

Jensen K., Lecomte I., Jansson X. and Tveranger J. 2020. Efficient and flexible characterization of paleokarst seismic signatures using point-spread function-based convolution modeling. 90th SEG Annual International Meeting, Expanded Abstracts, P2744-2748.
doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.1190/segam2020-3426595.1

Jensen_etal_abstract_paleokarst_SEG_2020.pdf

Jensen K., Lecomte I. and Kaschwich T. 2018. Analyzing PSDM images in complex geology via ray-based PSF convolution modeling. 88th SEG Annual International Meeting, Expanded Abstracts, P3843-3847. Doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.1190/segam2018-2995975.1

Jensen_etal_Ray-based_PSF-convolution_modeling_SEG_2018.pdf

UiB MSc. theses making use of the SeisRoX modelling technology in either geology- or geophysics-related projects are regularly published, as illustrated below with modelling of outcrop-based fault zones for sensitivity studies playing with various parameters such as frequency, wavelet, illumination, incident-angle, etc:

Andersen, I. G. (2020). Effects of geophysical parameters on the seismic expression of the Maghlaq Fault, Malta: insights from outcrop-based 2D seismic modeling, Msc. thesis, Univ. Bergen, Norway. https://bora.uib.no/handle/1956/22991

Another interesting Master thesis focuses on the seismic signature and detectability of small-scale sand injectites. Various geological models are used to generate 2D synthetic seismic images utilizing the Point-Spread Function based convolution method. The study further analyses the effects of various geophysical parameters, such as dominant frequency, maximum illumination angle, level of noise, host rock heterogeneities, fluid content and incident angle, on the seismic signature of small-sand injectites. The synthetic seismic images are finally compared with real seismic data from the Grane field in the North Sea.

Bradaric, A. D. (2020). Seismic signature and detectability of small-scale sand injectites: insights from 2D Point-Spread Function based convolution modelling. https://hdl.handle.net/11250/2723787

We congratulate Alma D. Bradaric on the 2020 Earth Model Award in an international geoscience competition rewarding excellence in Master’s level research. https://www.landmark.solutions/EarthModelAward
 

University Centre in Svalbard (UNIS) 

Associate Professor Kim Senger and Peter Betlem, PhD student, conduct seismic modelling at a range of scales from detailed outcrops to entire rift basins. Peter’s Ph.D. focusses on detecting CO2 leakage along fault zones in the cap rock, using digital outcrops. 

The following paper has been published by Prof. Kim Senger et al.:

Lubrano-Lavadera, P., Senger, K., Lecomte, I., Mulrooney, M. & Kühn, D. 2018: Seismic modelling of metre-scale normal faults at a reservoir-cap rock interface in Central Spitsbergen, Svalbard: implications for CO 2 storage. Norwegian Journal of Geology 65-83.
https://dx.doi.org/10.17850/njg003

Lubrano-Lavadera _Implications_for_CO2_storage_2018.pdf
 

University of Aberdeen, UK

Raisya Pertiwi, PhD student, uses SeisRoX module to observe how heterogeneity (microscale and mesoscale) in a 3D medium will affect the seismic responses, and to perform seismic forward modelling in sand-injectite complex. She has presented one of the results at the SEG 2020 conference:

Pertiwi, R.N., I. Lecomte and D. Iacopini, 2020, 3D seismic modeling of heterogeneous poorly-consolidated sandstones in shale host rocks:  90th Annual International Meeting, SEG, Expanded Abstracts, doi: https://library.seg.org/doi/10.1190/segam2020-3418232.1 

Pertiwi_etal_3DSeismic_modeling_in_sand-injectite_complex_SEG_2020.pdf

Zhihua Cui, PhD student, is doing 2D and 3D forward modelling upon the seal bypass structures (fluid escape pipes) using SeisRoX and NORSAR-3D. He published in SEG 2019 poster.

Cui Z., D. Iacopini, and I. Lecomte, 2019, Novel seismic forward modelling of the seal bypass structure: An example from the Loyal Field of the North Sea (Scotland, UK): 89th Annual International Meeting, SEG, Expanded Abstracts, 2054-2058, doi: https://library.seg.org/doi/10.1190/segam2019-3199625.1

Cui_etal_Seismic_modeling_of_the_seal_bypass_structure_SEG2019.pdf

Postdoctoral Research fellow Dr. Antonio Grippa in the group Sand Injection Research Group (SIRG) has published a following paper within forward modeling of sandstone intrusions:

Grippa, A., Hurst, A., Palladino, G., Iacopini, D., Lecomte, I. and Huuse, M. 2019. Seismic imaging of complex geometry: Forward modeling of sandstone intrusions. Earth and Planetary Science Letters, 513, 51–63, doi: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.epsl.2019.02.011

Grippa_etal_EPSL_2019_513_51-63.pdf
 

University of Leeds, UK

Dr. Simon J. Oldfield is a Postdoctoral Researcher at Technical University of Denmark. He received a Ph.D. (2018) in structural geology from the University of Leeds. 

This is how he describes research conducted at the University of Leeds:
“Using the NORSAR Software Suite, we have worked with industry partners to simulate the expected seismic response of both synthetic and interpreted subsurface geometries. Using a mixture of 2D and 3D models, we have then used this to examine which elements of subsurface structures should be visible during the interpretation process. Quantifying this in terms of risked resource volumes, has provided valuable insight on realistic uncertainty ranges related to interpretation, while also providing insight to the key areas of uncertainty within common geological structures. We have demonstrated that this can be used iteratively to refine the human interpretation process and understand the underlying cause of observed anomalies in geometric attributes.”

The eleven works on which Simon has credited NORSAR are linked to as part of his ORCID profile: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-7947-9901

He is currently working on some papers on his Ph.D. research. See also the following presentations:

Oldfield_201711_GSL_FaultSeal.pdf
Oldfield_EGU2018_SpatiallyVariantSeismicUncertainty.pdf
Oldfield_TSG2017_StructUncertaintyForwardModelling.pdf
Oldfield_TSG2018_SJO_SeismicForwardModelling.pdf

Dr. Charlotte Botter, teaching fellow at University of Leeds in Applied Geosciences, received a Ph.D. (2016) in petroleum geosciences from the University of Stavanger, Norway. Her research interests include numerical modeling of geologic processes, faulting, seismic characterization, and seismic imaging of fault zones.

The following articles show the results of prestack depth migration simulations of faults performed in SeisRoX.

Botter, C., Cardozo, N., Lecomte, I., Rotevatn, A., and G. Paton, 2017, The impact of faults and fluid flow on seismic images of a relay ramp over production time, Petroleum Geoscience, 23, 17–2822, doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.1144/petgeo2016-027

Botter_etal_Impact_of_faults_and_fluid_flow_PG_2017.pdf

Botter, C., Cardozo, N., Qu, D., Tveranger, J. and Kolyukhin, D.,2017. Seismic characterization of fault facies models. Interpretation 5 (4), 9-26. doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.1190/int-2016-0226.1

Botter_etal_Seismic_characterization_of_Fault_facies_models_2017.pdf

Botter, C., N. Cardozo, S. Hardy, I. Lecomte, G. Paton and A. Escalona, 2016. Seismic characterisation of fault damage in 3D using mechanical and seismic modelling. Marine and Petroleum Geology, v. 77, p. 973–990 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.marpetgeo.2016.08.002

Botter et al. - 2016 - Seismic characterisation of fault damage in 3D using mechanical and seismic modelling.pdf

Botter, C., N. Cardozo, S. Hardy, I. Lecomte, and A. Escalona, 2014, From mechanical modeling to seismic imaging of faults: A synthetic workflow to study the impact of faults on seismic: Marine and Petroleum Geology, v. 57, p. 187-207 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.marpetgeo.2014.05.013

Botter_2014_mechanicalAndSeismicModellingFaults.pdf
 

University of Campinas, Brazil

“NORSAR software continues to be an important tool for our activities” emphasizes Prof. Martin Tygel. “The NORSAR Academic License is used by us for model-building construction for testing the various imaging and inversion algorithms that are our internal main research topics of our High-Performance Geophysics Lab. We also have a Research Project in partnership with Petrobras and it is nice to have the NORSAR software supporting it.”

Martin Tygel holds a bachelor's degree in physics (1969) from the State University of Rio de Janeiro and a master's degree in mathematics (1973) from the Pontifical Catholic University of Rio de Janeiro. He holds a PhD (1979) in mathematics from Stanford University. In 1981, Dr. Tygel joined the Graduate Program in Geophysics at the Federal University of Bahia, a pioneering Program sponsored by the Brazilian Oil Company Petrobras.

In 1984, he joined the University of Campinas (Unicamp), where he stayed until his retirement in 2017. As an Emeritus Professor, Prof. Tygel participates at the Center for Petroleum Studies at Unicamp dedicating himself to joint academic and industry research projects.

Prof. Tygel was a Humboldt Foundation (1985-1987) in Hanover (Germany), and also a visiting professor at the Universities of Karlsruhe (Germany) (1990) and Trondheim (Norway) (2007-2008).. In 1997, Tygel was one of the founders of the Wave Inversion Technology Consortium (WIT). In 2001 he founded the Computational Geophysics Laboratory of the Applied Mathematics Department at Unicamp. In 2002, he received the Conrad Schlumberger Award from the European Association of Geophysicists and Engineers.  In 2013 he founded the High Performance Geophysics Laboratory (HPG) at the Petroleum Studies Center also at Unicamp dedicated to the integration of geophysical results with high performance computing. In 2015 he was appointed a member of the Brazilian Academy of Sciences in the area of Earth Sciences. In 2017 he was awarded the Honorary Lecturer for Latin America by the Society of Exploration Geophysicists (SEG). In addition to his scientific activities, which include three books and more than 200 publications in international magazines and annals of international congresses, Prof. Tygel has a long experience in carrying out projects involving academia and the oil industry. His research interests are in seismic processing, imaging and inversion methodologies and algorithms that have a solid base in wave propagation and find practical application in the exploration and monitoring of hydrocarbon reservoirs.

Here are some of the publications acknowledging NORSAR software:

ZHAO, HAO ; WALDELAND, ANDERS UELAND ; SERRANO, DANY RUEDA ; TYGEL, MARTIN ; IVERSEN, EINAR . Time-migration velocity estimation using Fréchet derivatives based on nonlinear kinematic migration/demigration solvers. STUDIA GEOPHYSICA ET GEODAETICA, v. 64, p. 26-75, 2020.

Zhao_et_al_Frechet_Tomography_Studia_2020.pdf

TYGEL, M.; URSIN, B.; IVERSEN, E. ; Hoop, M.V. . Estimation of geological dip and curvature from time-migrated zero-offset seismic reflections in heterogeneous anisotropic media. Geophysical Prospecting (Print), v. 60, p. 201-216, 2012.

Tygel_et_al_Geophys_Prosp_2012.pdf

IVERSEN, E.; TYGEL, M.; URSIN, B.; Hoop, M.V. . Kinematic time migration and demigration of reflections in pre-stack seismic data. Geophysical Journal International (Print), v. 189, p. 1635-1666, 2012.

Iversen_Tygel_Ursin_deHoop_Mig_Demig_JGI_2012.pdf

Takahata A.K., L.J. Gelius, R.R. Lopes, M. Tygel and I. Lecomte; 2D Spiking Deconvolution Approach to Resolution Enhancement of Prestack Depth Migrated Seismic Images. 75th EAGE Conference & Exhibition, June 2013, cp-348-00031.

Takahata_etal_2D_Spiking_Deconvolution_Approach_EAGE_2013.pdf

IVERSEN, E.; TYGEL, M.; Image-ray tracing for joint 3D seismic velocity estimation and time-to-depth conversion. GEOPHYSICS, VOL. 73, NO. 3 (MAY-JUNE 2008); P. S99-S114.

Iversen_Tygel_Time_Migration_Geophys_2008.pdf
 

University of Liverpool, UK

PhD student Isabella Masiero has been using SeisRoX for her research. She has currently published the following paper where SeisRoX is used to create synthetic seismic images:

Masiero, I., Kozlowski, E., Antonatos, G., Xi, H. and Burgess, P., 2020. Numerical stratigraphic forward models as conceptual knowledge repositories and experimental tools: An example using a new enhanced version of CarboCAT. Computers & Geoscience, p.104453. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cageo.2020.104453

Masiero_etal_Univ_of_Liverpool_2020.pdf
 

University of Manchester, UK

PhD student Saad Almalki, Saad.Almalki@postgrad.manchester.ac.uk and his supervisor Prof. Mads Huuse, mads.huuse@manchester.ac.uk summarize their research on seismic imaging of reservoir, seal and fluid conduits as follows:

“The aim of this project is to contribute to the understanding of subsurface fluid flow that bypasses pore networks and faults and to further the understanding of reflection seismic interpretation of such systems, whether real or imagined. In specific, we will study pipe-like vertical and sub-vertical stacked anomalies whether they are real or artifacts (pull-up or push-down) and try to provide a tool for interpreters to distinguish real pipes from the artifacts. NORSAR software is used to achieve these goals. The following will be the procedures for this work:

  • Building a 2D model with geological features such as real pipe, two shallow channels and valley fill in NORSAR-2D. Seismogram Generator was used to generate synthetic seismic data by using Ray-based modelling in Seg-y format. 
  • Using angle stacks (near, mid, and far) with real pipe and two shallow channels and valley fill in both cases of velocity models accuracy. Because we used exact velocity model, we did not see any change with different angle stacks (near, mid, and far) underneath real pipe and two shallow channels and valley fill. Prestack depth migration results were generated by using the Local-Target PSDM simulator method in SeisRoX and this method enables using different angle incidence to generate what is called angle stacks by using Zoeppritz, Aki, and Richard equations.  
  • Post-stack time migration was generated by using the time convolution (1D) method in SeisRoX. Velocity model in time was created but it wasn’t accurate like the velocity model in depth. As results, we see pull up and push down anomalies underneath real pipe and two shallow channels and valley fill.”


AGH University of Science and Technology, Cracow, Poland

Andrzej Daletka is a PhD student at the AGH University of Science and Technology in Cracow. This is how he describes his research:

“The thesis is an integrated project carried out by AGH University of Science and Technology in Cracow and Geofizyka Torun S.A. company and is planned to contribute towards the improvement of cooperation between the scientific community and the geophysical industry in Poland. The objective of the research is the analysis of potential advantages related with an introduction of advanced forward seismic modelling methods into hydrocarbon exploration process in Poland. In discussed study it is planned to utilize NORSAR 3D seismic modelling package along with other commercially available software.

In many regions of Poland seismic data acquisition and their further analysis encounter a number of impediments which are typical to onshore seismic. The restrictions caused by variable topography and high urbanization makes the data recording by using regularly distributed shot and receiver points impossible. In the recent decade, such limitations were met in the regions of complicated geological structure, such as: the Carpathian fold and thrust belt or Poznan-Kalisz Dislocation Zone. Because of the co-existence of these factors, the exploration works became even more demanding and risky, than it was in the past.

The key element to minimize the ambiguity of seismic images and better understanding of the complex wave fields are the procedures of forward modelling. For many years, due to their high costs and computer-power requirements, these methods have been underused and undervalued. Their potential is unquestionably high and could be revealed through the realization of the partial goals:

  • the assessment of shallow velocity model effects on the modelling results for the target Miocene reflections, underlying the Carpathian overthrust surface,
  • the comparison of the illumination calculation resulted from the use of various commercial algorithms,
  • the determination of optimal seismic array configuration based on the illumination study in the area of Carpathian fold-thrust belt,
  • the planning of undershooting 3D seismic survey in the presence of overburden Triassic graben structures,
  • the analysis of the illumination at the top of Rotliegend horizon and its effect on seismic amplitude attributes distribution.”


University of Camerino, Italy

Tiziano Volatili has been using SeisRoX for his PhD thesis, working on 2D models of a fault damage zone on carbonates, in Central Italy. The aim of this work is to generate synthetic seismograms by means of PSDM and compare seismic results with field-based data.

He is currently working at the University of Stavanger for his Ph.D. period abroad under the supervision of prof. Nestor Cardozo, working with prof. Isabelle Lecomte at the University of Bergen.
 

ENSEGID - Bordeaux Institute of Technology, France

Dr. Carine Grélaud, Lecture at the ENSEGID, aims to use the NORSAR Software to generate 2D/3D synthetic seismic models, built from outcrop correlation transects, in order to improve seismic interpretation of real seismic lines/data sets. She emphasizes that this will be useful both for her research projects and for teaching.
 

University of Adelaide, Australia

Monica Jimenez Lloreda is a PhD student at the Australian School of Petroleum and Energy Resources. Her Ph.D. project seeks to understand the evolution and kinematics of listric growth faults in the Ceduna sub-basin through a combination of structural interpretation of 3D seismic reflection data and synthetic seismic modelling. The project will use NORSAR software to build 2D synthetic seismic models of listric faults to study how the seismic parameters and complex hangingwall geometries impact the interpretation of these structures and the quantification of fault kinematics.
 

In addition to the before mentioned institutions we are thrilled having the following as NORSAR software users:

Universidade Federal Fluminense (UFF), Brazil
University of Strasbourg (EOST), France
University of Hamburg, Germany
University of Berlin (FU-Berlin), Germany
Institut Teknologi Bandung (ITB), Indonesia
University of Camerino, Italy
University of Oslo, Norway
NTNU Norwegian University of Science and Technology, Trondheim
UiT The Arctic University of Norway, Tromsø
University of Stavanger, Norway
Oil and Gas Research Institute – National Research Institute (INIG), Poland
University of Hanyang, South Korea
Korea Maritime University (KMOU), South Korea
Heriot-Watt University, UK
University of Pittsburgh, USA