Supercomputing analysis of seismic efficiency of the electromagnetic pulse source “Yenisei”

Abstract

We developed a computational technology for numerical modeling of wave fields generated by seismic sources in blocky-layered geological media, and applied it to the analysis of efficiency of the electromagnetic pulse source of new generation "Yenisei", created recently by international geotechnical company "Geotech Seismic Services". To describe wave processes, we worked out new mathematical models of the dynamics of elastic, viscoelastic and elastic-plastic media, of porous and granular materials taking into account the increase in stiffness of such materials as pores collapse, [1]. Algorithms of numerical implementation of governing equations were realized for the cluster-type supercomputers, based on the method of two-cyclic splitting with respect to spatial variables. The conducted computational experiments have demonstrated that the proposed technology allows reproducing the system of waves near the region of excitation of seismic oscillations in 3D setting with a high degree of details and accuracy, [2]. We analysed frequencies and amplitudes of waves generated in the near-surface soils, and showed that our computational results are in a good agreement with seismic parameters of a real electromagnetic pulse source. We studied seismic efficiency of the pulse source as the ratio of the energy passing through the reflecting surface in the depth of layered massif to the energy of pulse effect on the surface. Besides, the energy of surface waves, which is obviously useless for the excitation of reflected waves, was estimated. To compare the energy efficiency of pulse sources with seismic sources of periodic action (vibrators), the problem of cyclic loading through the platform was solved numerically by the same method and the same geometric scheme. The seismic efficiency of vibrator was calculated by the maximum value of the energy fluxes during large time interval. Judging by computations, the pulse seismic sources are not inferior to the sources of vibratory type by seismic efficiency in the range of low frequencies. However, it is necessary to take into account that they differ sharply by the level of expended energy, because the energy of a pulse source, needed for generation of incident wave of a given amplitude, is many times lower than the energy of a vibrator.