Detection of coalbed fractures with P-wave azimuthal AVO in 3-D seismic exploration

The detection of fractures is important for production and safety in coal fields. Subsurface fractures result in azimuthal anisotropy of the seismic wave, and the amplitude of reflection wave varies with offset and azimuth. In case of weak anisotropy, the reflection coefficients of P-wave are concisely denoted as the analytic function of fracture parameters. For the purpose of predicting the coal-bed fracture distribution through analyzing variation of the reflection amplitudes with offset and azimuth, 3-D seismic data with full-azimuth were acquired in a coal field in Huainan, Anhui Province. The careful analysis and process of seismic data showed that the reflection amplitude of the primary coalbed varied with azimuth in much consistent with the theoretical model. The conclusion was drawn that the coal-bed fracture in this coal field could be predicted through the method of the P-wave azimuthal AVO.