Francesco Ciocca, Silixa’s Environmental Engineer, will be giving a presentation on the use of fibre optic acoustic sensing for hydrogeophysical soil subsurface characterization on 12 December 2017.
Research indicates that surface seismic methods can characterize the hydrogeochemical properties of soil in a controlled environment; however, no technology has been proven outside a controlled environment.
Silixa conducted a study in the United Kingdom to test the exciting potential of utilising distributed acoustic sensing for hydrogeophysical soil layer characterization.
Fibre optic cables were buried horizontally in low permeability bare soil at Silixa’s test facilities in Elstree, UK. Silixa used its intelligent Distributed Acoustic sensor (iDAS) to perform surface seismic to capture the different arrival times of seismic waves traveling through dry and wet soil.
Francesco will present the results of the study along with a comparison of body-wave travel times as well as surface-wave dispersion. He will show how these results point at the prospect of determining site-specific relations between the soil Poisson ratio and saturation.
The study represents a major step towards the use of distributed acoustics above surface for subsurface characterisation. Potential applications include detection of areas of different hydrogeophysical properties, such as those generated by seepages in dams and liquid leaks along pipelines.
The research was conducted within the framework of both the Distributed Intelligent Heat Pulse System (DiHPS) project, funded by the British National Environmental Research Council (NERC), and the Hi-Freq project funded by the Marie Curie H2020 Research and Innovation Staff Exchange (RISE) Consortium.
Presentation details:
Abstract ID: 270785
Abstract Title: Towards the Wetness Characterization of Soil Subsurface Using Fibre Optic Distributed Acoustic Sensing
Final Paper Number: H21A-1423
Presentation Type: Poster
Session Date and Time: Tuesday, 12 December 2017; 08:00 — 12:20
Session Number and Title: H21A: Advances in Subsurface Characterization Using Innovative Methods of Geophysics and Hydrogeology IV Posters
Location: New Orleans Ernest N. Morial Convention Center; Poster Hall D‑F
For more information please contact us.
Related links: 2017 AGU Fall Meeting
Image: Public Domain, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=308705
