Geophysical monitoring of subsurface contamination in two-phase porous media Journal of Applied Geophysics

We have explored a new technology based on using low-frequency strain attenuation data to monitor the infiltration of contaminants into two-fluid phase porous materials. The attenuation mechanism is related to the loss of energy due to the hysteresis of resistance to meniscus movement (changes in surface tension and wettability) when a pore containing two fluids is stressed at very low frequencies. This phenomenon was verified in our laboratory experiments and applied to a field study near Maricopa, Arizona. In the field study we conducted controlled experiments with the aim of detecting and monitoring the infiltration of a contaminant – a biosurfactant – into groundwater. Three sets of geophysical instruments, each consisting of a 3-component seismometer and a tiltmeter, were installed near an irrigation site. The experiment lasted about 3 years with controlled irrigations of initially water only and then water with contaminant into the vadose zone. We used naturally occurring signals of microseisms for our seismic sources and solid Earth tides as sources for the tilt signals.