de Groot-Bril’s (dGB) seismic sequence stratigraphic interpretation system (SSIS) was unveiled at the AAPG this month. The methodology, developed under a joint industry project (JIP) involving Statoil, BG Group, TNO and Shell, involves a representation of seismic data in as a ‘Wheeler’ diagram—with a vertical scale of geologic time. This used to delineate sedimentological bodies in situ and to reveal depositional hiatus.
SSIS
SSIS workflows begin with a stratigraphic interpretation. Stratigraphic time of deposition is then assigned to picked seismic horizons. The whole seismic volume is then transformed into a geologic time-flattened cube—the Wheeler display. OpendTect’s tracking algorithms are used to delineate seismic horizons, unconformities, and other sequence boundaries.
Sequence stratigraphy
Seismically derived depositional units are further categorized with model driven assignment of internal bed geometries. SSIS allows for switching from time to Wheeler domain for further insight. Time synchronous seismic horizons can be extracted from the flattened Wheeler cube for attribute analysis.
Stark Research
The SSIS plug-in is a commercial add-on to the free OpendTect infrastructure. A similar OpendTect plug-in from Stark Research was announced last month (OITJ Vol. 11 N° 3). Stark Research holds a US patent covering the Wheeler volume.
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