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Vibrator-Source Exploration Seismics in Urban Environments Using DAS, A Feasibility Study in Potsdam, Germany

Session: Fiber-Optic Seismology I

Type: Oral

Date: 4/23/2021

Presentation Time: 10:45 AM Pacific

Description: 

In the frame of its de-carbonization strategy, the city of Potsdam, Germany, seeks the utilization of its geothermal potential. Consequently, the Stadtwerke Potsdam conducted an urban seismic exploration campaign in preparation for the development of a deep geothermal project for district heating. The seismic campaign took place in December 2020 in the city center of Potsdam and we complemented the contractor-performed vibroseismics along three profiles by distributed acoustic sensing (DAS). In close cooperation with the municipal utilities, we interrogated a 21 km-long dark telecommunication fiber whose trajectory followed the seismic lines as close as possible. This was accompanied by a network of 15 three-component geophones for further control and research.

In this contribution we present the data set, the approach for geo-referencing the fiber, and first results regarding DAS recording capabilities of vibroseismic signals in an urban environment. We address questions regarding the accuracy of localization of sensing points along dark-fiber, their sensitivity and their coupling to the ground as well as the range of active stimulation. DAS has the potential to tap the seismic wavefield over the dense and spacious extent of telecommunication networks to close gaps in the explored underground there. Following this paradigm, we strive to further shed light on the possibilities of its employment for urban exploration, which promises a sought for low-footprint supplement or alternative to classical point-like seismological interrogation techniques.

Presenting Author: Christopher Wollin

Student Presenter: No

Authors