Advanced Acoustic Modeling for Environmentally Sensitive Surveys
Received sound levels, defined as sound pressure level (SPL) and sound exposure level (SEL), can be modeled within the Nucleus+ software package for any source array configuration, water depth, and for different rates of geometric spreading and decay. Specialty modeling services can also incorporate the seafloor bathymetry and seabed geo-acoustic models for a survey location to model spatial variations in received sound levels. The geometric modeling from Nucleus+ will typically model the worst-case scenarios, and therefore provide robust thresholds for shutdown distances when required in environmentally sensitive survey areas.
TGS has tools to model the dynamic loads and drag of a specific acquisition configuration when planning how the trailing equipment will be deployed for specific survey designs. These tools can be used to qualitatively compare the merits of different vessel configurations in terms of drag and associated fuel consumption and CO2 emissions. Work in progress aims to predict the 'carbon budget' for a survey as a function of different key acquisition parameters. Digitalization of all vessel data assets is complete, and CO2 emissions are accurately managed and reported for surveys.
