Modelling viscoacoustic wave propagation with the lattice Boltzmann method

Area of Science:

• Geophysics
• Computational Physics
• Seismology

Background:

• Seismic wave propagation in viscous media is crucial for understanding subsurface structures.
• Accurate numerical modeling is essential for seismic inversion and exploration.
• Traditional methods for simulating viscoelastic wave propagation can be computationally intensive.

Purpose of the Study:

• To employ the lattice Boltzmann method (LBM) for simulating wave propagation in viscous media.
• To investigate the relationship between LBM parameters and the quality factor (Q).
• To develop a novel, efficient forward modeling kernel for seismic inversion.

Main Methods:

• Utilized the lattice Boltzmann method (LBM) to track discrete particle evolution for wave simulation.
• Employed spectrum ratio method to analyze the relationship between LBM relaxation time (τ) and the quality factor (Q).
• Validated LBM results against finite difference method (FDM) solutions for viscoacoustic equations (Kelvin-Voigt model) in 2D homogeneous and two-layered models.

Main Results:

• LBM accurately reproduced wavefields and amplitude spectra, matching FDM results.
• Demonstrated the capability of LBM with a single relaxation time for viscoelastic wave simulation.
• Established a quantitative relationship between LBM relaxation time and the quality factor (Q).

Conclusions:

• The LBM is a capable and efficient method for simulating wave propagation in viscous media.
• The identified relationship between LBM relaxation time and Q provides a new parameterization for subsurface modeling.
• This novel LBM scheme offers an alternative forward modeling kernel for seismic inversion applications.