Characterization of Thin Gas Hydrate Reservoir in Ulleung Basin with Stepwise Seismic Inversion

Bo-Yeon Yi, Young-Ho Yoon, Young-Jun Kim, Gil-Young Kim, Yong-Hwan Joo, Nyeon-Keon Kang, Jung-Ki Kim, Jong-Hwa Chun and Dong-Geun Yoo
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Bo-Yeon Yi: Petroleum and Marine Research Division, Korea Institute of Geoscience and Mineral Resources, Daejeon 34132, Korea
Young-Ho Yoon: Petroleum and Marine Research Division, Korea Institute of Geoscience and Mineral Resources, Daejeon 34132, Korea
Young-Jun Kim: Petroleum and Marine Research Division, Korea Institute of Geoscience and Mineral Resources, Daejeon 34132, Korea
Gil-Young Kim: Petroleum and Marine Research Division, Korea Institute of Geoscience and Mineral Resources, Daejeon 34132, Korea
Yong-Hwan Joo: Petroleum and Marine Research Division, Korea Institute of Geoscience and Mineral Resources, Daejeon 34132, Korea
Nyeon-Keon Kang: Petroleum and Marine Research Division, Korea Institute of Geoscience and Mineral Resources, Daejeon 34132, Korea
Jung-Ki Kim: Petroleum and Marine Research Division, Korea Institute of Geoscience and Mineral Resources, Daejeon 34132, Korea
Jong-Hwa Chun: Petroleum and Marine Research Division, Korea Institute of Geoscience and Mineral Resources, Daejeon 34132, Korea
Dong-Geun Yoo: Petroleum and Marine Research Division, Korea Institute of Geoscience and Mineral Resources, Daejeon 34132, Korea

Energies, 2021, vol. 14, issue 14, 1-14

Abstract: Natural gas hydrates (GHs) filling sand layer pores are the most promising GHs that can be produced via conventional mechanisms in deep-sea environments. However, the seismic tracking of such thin GH-bearing sand layers is subject to certain limitations. For example, because most GH-bearing sand layers are thin and sparsely interbedded with mud layers, conventional seismic data with a maximum resolution of ~10 m are of limited use for describing their spatial distribution. The 2010 Ulleung Basin drilling expedition identified a relatively good GH reservoir at the UBGH2-6 site. However, the individual GH-bearing sand layers at this site are thin and cannot therefore be reliably tracked using conventional seismic techniques. This study presents a new thin layer tracking method using stepwise seismic inversion and 3D seismic datasets with two different resolutions. The high-resolution acoustic impedance volume obtained is then used to trace thin layers that cannot be harnessed with conventional methods. Moreover, we estimate the high-resolution regional GH distribution based on GH saturation derived from acoustic impedance at UBGH2-6. The thin GH layers, previously viewed as a single layer because of limited resolution, are further subdivided, traced, and characterized in terms of lateral variation.

Keywords: gas hydrate; 3D seismic survey; stepwise seismic inversion; acoustic impedance; saturation (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: Q Q0 Q4 Q40 Q41 Q42 Q43 Q47 Q48 Q49 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2021
References: View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (2)

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