TDEM Surveying

Summary
Suska Ulin Agusta

Trainee Geophysicist
Suska.Agusta@khumsup.com

Khumsup Pty Ltd
2012
Introduction
The Phenomenon
Measurement
Mathematics
Data Quality
Good Field Data
Acquisition Practices
Data Processing
Data Interpretation
Applicability
Airborne TDEM
Borehole TDEM
References
5/14/2012 2 Suska Ulin Agusta | Khumsup Pty Ltd
EM Make use of the response of the
propagation of EM fields.
Figure 1. Overview of EM
Method. [1]
Problems with the EM methods:
Small secondary field must be measured in the
presence of a much larger primary field.
TDEM only measured during the interval
when the primary is absent.
Sometimes called Pulsed or Transient-field
EM, using a primary field which is not
continuous but consists of a series of pulses
separated by periods when it is inactive.

Applications of Time-Domain
Electromagnetic (TDEM)
Techniques
Determining electrical
conductivity of soils at depth 30
feet 3000 feet
Mapping soils and changes in
soil types in that depth of range
Mapping sand and gravel
aquifers
Mapping clayey layers restricting
ground-water flow
Mapping conductive leachate in
groundwater
Mapping salt water intrusion
Determining the depth of the
bedrock

Amperes law with
Maxwells correction
states that magnetic
field can be generated
in two ways:
by electrical current
by changing electric
fields
The correction shows
that
not only a changing
magnetic field induces
an electric field,
but also a changing
electric field induces a
magnetic field.

Figure 2. Electromagnetic Induction caused by
electrical current (taken from
http://www.google.co.id/imghp?hl=id&tab=wi)
All moving charged
particles produce
magnetic fields.
Magnetic field lines
form in concentric
circles around a
cylindrical current-
carrying conductor,
such as a length of
wire. The direction of
such a magnetic field
can be determined by
using the "right hand
grip rule" (see figure at
right).
5/14/2012 Suska Ulin Agusta | Khumsup Pty Ltd 7
Figure 3. Right hand grip rule. taken from
http://www.google.co.id/imghp?hl=id&tab=wi
Figure 4. Electromagnetic
Method.[3]
Step by Step:
1. The waveform of the primary
magnetic field generated by
the transmitter and of the
primary electric field
(electromotive force)
accompanying the magnetic
field
2. The primary field impulse
(transient) creates eddy
currents immediately below
the transmitter loop,
approximating a mirror image
3. As the initial near-surface
eddy current decay, they in
turn induce eddy currents at
greater depths.
4. The secondary magnetic field
generated by the series of
eddy currents induced in the
ground.

The induced currents in the
earth are initially concentrated
immediately below the
transmitter loop.
With time, those currents will
diffuse down and away from
transmitter as illustrated
schematically in fig. 5 (often
called smoke rings).
In resistive area, the currents
will diffuse very rapidly, in
conductive media the currents
will diffuse more slowly.
The smoke rings will answer
the question why we take the
late stage/late time
apparent resistivity as the
true apparent resistivity.

Figure 5. TDEM Eddy Current Flow a)early time,
b)late time.[2]

Main Equipments
TEM Transmitter
Specifications include: current waveform, base
frequency (Hz), turn-off time (s), transmitter loop (in
single turn loop & 8-turn loop), output voltage (V),
power supply (V, rechargeable/not), battery life, weight,
and dimensions.
TEM Receiver + Antenna
Specifications include: rate of decay induced magnetic
field (nV/m
2
), EM sensor, channels, time gates,
dynamic range (bits), base frequency (Hz), integration
time (s), display (dot graphic LCD), memory,
synchronization, power supply, weight, dimensions.
Loop of Wires
Rx Coil
Generator/power supply (if needed)
Example of the TDEM system : PROTEM TDEM Systems

Figure 6a. PROTEM
receiver. [4]
Figure 6b. PROTEM
Transmitter up to
2000x2000 m maximum.[4]
Figure 7. Field setup of
TEM systems.[8]
Figure 5 shows a typical for a central loop
TDEM sounding.
Figure 8. TDEM field configuration2].

Figure 9. TDEM Waveforms[2].

After each measurement, the sign changes in
the primary magnetic field are applied for
suppression of:
1. The coherent noise signals from power lines, if
the repetition frequency is chosen as a sub
harmonics of the power line frequency
2. Offsets of the instrumental amplifiers
This measuring technique is referred to as
synchronous detection

The datasets are recorded
in decay time windows often
called gates (dB/dt) the time
derivative of the magnetic
flux passing the coil).
The gates arranged with a
logarithmically increasing
width to improve the
signal/noise (S/N) ratio
especially at late times.
S/N ratio compares the level
of a desired signal to the
level of background noise.
This is called Log-Gating
and 8-10 gates per decade
in decay time are commonly
used.

Figure 10. The quantification of a
decaying TDEM response by
measurement of its amplitude in a number
of channels (1-6) at increasing times (t1-6)
after primary field cut-off. The amplitudes
of the response in the different channels
are recorded along a profile.[1]

Fundamentals of EM Surveying

0
D
H J
t
B
E
t
D q
B
q
J
t
c
V = +
c
c
V =
c
V =
V =
c
V =
c
Depends upon EM field frequency and the
electrical conductivity of the medium through
which EM field propagating.

Where A
0
is the amplitude of the field, and
z
effective
is in meters, the conductivity of the
ground is in Sm
-1
, and the frequency f of the
field is in Hz.
1
0 d
A A e
=
503.8
f
o
o
=
100
effective
z
f o
=
The decaying secondary
magnetic field is referred
to b or the step
response.
The actual measurement
is that of db/dt. Is called
the impulse response.
At late-times, the impulse
response can be written
as:

As seen db/dt has a decay
development proportional
to t
-5/2
.
3/ 2 5/ 2 2
5/ 2
0
1/ 2
20
z
I a b
t
t
o
t

c
~
c
Figure 11. In the impulse responses
(db/dt) for a homogeneous halfspace
with varying resistivities are
presented.[5]

We can also use the output voltage equation:

Where
e(t) = normalized voltage or output voltage from a single-turn
receiver coil of area 1 m
2
k
1
= a constant
M = magnetic moment: product of T
x
current and area (a-m
2
)
= terrain conductivity (siemens/m=S/m=1/m)
t = time(s)

3/ 2
1
5/ 2
( )
k M
e t
t
o
=
Observation of the
decaying magnetic field is
not very informative and
the same applies for
actually measured
sounding curves.
A plot of apparent
resistivity, a, is more
illustrative. It is derived
from the late-time
approximation of the
impulse response

1/ 2
5/3 2
5/3
0
1/3
20 /
a
z
Ia
t
b t
t

| |
=
|
c c
\ .
Figure 12. a converted curve. The
grey line is the response of a two
layer earth with 100 m in layer 1
and 10 m in layer 2. Layer 1 is 40 m
thick[5]

NOISE SOURCES
Lightning
Power Supply and the
Related Man-Made
Electrical Installations
Environmental Effect
Metals
Debris
Fences
Buildings
Rail tracks
Buried steel drums
Unexploded
ordnance
Reinforced concrete
Pipelines

Induced Polarization
Effect
Data Acquisition
Process
Non-synchronous
acquisition or
inappropriate receiver
bandwidth
Transmitter turn-off
effect

NOISE SOURCES
Lightning
Has a random character
More powerful during the day
than during the night
Stronger during summer
compared to winter
Power Supply and Related
Man-Mad Electrical
Installations
Partly the 50 or 60 Hz signals
and its harmonics, which have a
deterministic character
Partly the transient fields, which
are random character and
related to current changes in the
power lines, when various
installations are turned on or off.
Removed by synchronous
detection techniques.

Figure 13. TDEM response corrupted
by noise due to power line. [7]

NOISE SOURCES
Environmental Effect
Example: Presence of
small metal objects, or
clutter.
We can see that the very-
late time TDEM Signals
are virtually free of
geologic and clutter-
generated noise.

Figure 14. The TDEM response of
a vertical buried plate target with
clutter. Solid dots indicate
response without clutter. Solid
lines indicate responses with 5
different realizations of clutter.
Each plot shows the spatial
response at a single time gate.[6]

NOISE SOURCES
IP-Effect
Problem: The part of TDEM response
due to the IP effect is negative.
The influence of IP effects on TDEM
curves is mostly discussed for the
coincident-loop configuration
(Kaufman et al., 1989; El-Kalioubly et al.,
1997) and sometimes for the central
loop (Elliott, 1991) or offset-loop
soundings (Everett, 1997).
More resistive the ground higher the
amplitude of IP effect (The amplitude of
the inductive part becomes small
enough, the IP signal dominates and
leads to negative data.
Solution: The larger the transmitter
loop, the less predominant the IP
Effect should be.

Figure 15. Negative transients
recorded due to the IP Effect in
Fogo Volacano Area.[7]

NOISE SOURCES
Data Acquisition Process
Non-synchronous acquisition or inappropriate
receiver bandwidth
1. Could lead to the fact that the first windows of the
transient should have been registered during the turn-
off of the primary signal.
2. A limited receiver bandwidth could integrate the
receiver response to the primary field so it extends into
the time window of early measurements.
EFFECT: An increasing amplitude of early time
positive measurements, but never in reversing their
polarity delayed response.

NOISE SOURCES
Data Acquisition Process
Transmitter Turn-off
Effect
In high resistive
conditions, the response
of the transmitter loop to
an abrupt turn-off time
could lead to improper
shape of the current
ramp, which exhibits
some oscillations
around zero.
Figure 16. Improper current turn-
off that could exhibits oscillations
around zero of the current ramp.
[7]

Important element of the data quality
precise knowledge of the parameters of the
applied instrument.
Timing parameters must be known accurately
because of their severe impact on early-time
data.
The geometry of the transmitter-receiver
configuration must be accurate, especially for the
offset-loop configuration.
Beware of the metal objects, buildings, fences, etc
near the observation area.
High resistive area is not going to give a good
recorded data.

A small transmitter coil with a high current is very
field efficient, but 3 issues must be tackled in the
configuration design:
Saturated amplifiers will produce distorted signals for
several milliseconds.
Solution: Also use a large transmitter loop or a large
offset between the transmitter and the receiver coils as a
comparison.
The IP-effect.
Solution: Use offset configuration and moves to later
decay-times as the offset between the transmitter and the
receiver coil is increased.
At early times, measurements using the offset
configuration are extremely sensitive to small variations
in the resistivity in the near surface.
Solution: use central loop configuration that produces
datasets which are less-affected by near-surface
resistivity variations.
Borehole TDEM Processing Short Manual
What do the numbers that we work with
mean?
dB/dt or Impulse Response
The time derivative of the magnetic flux passing
the coil is usually called Normalized Voltage.
Output voltage which is normalized to a receiver coil
moment of 1-turn m
2
(single turn with a coil area of
square meter) and a transmitter current of 1 Ampere
(A). Unit : V/A, nV/m
2
, nV/Am
2
, V/A.
Apparent resistivity
A volume average of heterogeneous half-space.
Unit: -m
The behavior of the Impulse Response

Figure 17. The behavior of the
Impulse response. [8]

The behavior of the Apparent Resistivity
curves.
Figure 18. The behavior of the
Apparent Resistivity. [8]

EM responses with variable layer thickness

Figure 19. The behavior of
EM response due to layer
thickness variations. [8]

Forward Modeling &
Inverse Modeling
Figure 20 shows a
sample sounding curve.
The upper panel on the
left shows the decay of the
magnetic field, decaying
over 6 decades during the
course of the recording
from 0.006 ms to 2 ms.
The second panel on the
left of Figure 20 shows a
plot of the same data
converted to late-stage
apparent resistivity.
The right-hand panel of
Figure 20 shows the
model geoelectric section
used to calculate the
model response shown as
a solid line in the plots to
the left.
Figure 20. Example of TDEM Sounding and Model [2].

1. Mineral Exploration metallic elements are found
in highly conductive massive sulfide ore bodies.
2. Groundwater Investigations groundwater
contaminants such as salts and acids significantly
increase the groundwater conductivity.
3. Stratigraphy Mapping rock types may have
different conductivities.
4. Geothermal Energy geothermal alteration due to
hot water increases the conductivity of the host rock.
5. Permafrost Mapping there is a significant
conductivity contrast at the interface between frozen
and unfrozen ground.
6. Environmental - locate hazards such as drums and
tanks, contaminant plumes, etc.

Undertaken near Mount Minza,
Northern Territory, Australia
(Duckworth 1968, Spies 1976)
The response is expressed in
terms of the induced voltage in
the loop e(t) normalized with
respect to the current in the
transmitter loop I.
The response persists into the
latest channels (good
conductor).
The asymmetry of the response
curves and their variation from
channel to channel allows the
dip of the conductor to be
estimated.
Figure 21. Example of TDEM profiles.[1]

Borehole TDEM from
the Single Tree Hill area,
NSW, Australia (Boyd &
Wiles 1984)
In hole PDS1, the
response at early times
indicates the presence of
a conductor at a depth of
145 m (negative
response at later times
diffusion of the eddy
currents).
In hole DS1 and DS2,
negative response
respectively, indicate that
the receiver passed
outside, but near the
edges of, the conductor
at these depths.
A model consisting of a
rectangular current-
carrying loop.

Figure 22. Borehole TDEM .[1]

Passive systems only the receiver is airborne.
Include airborne versions of the VLF and AFMAG methods.
Active systems both transmitter and receiver are
mobile.
More commonly used
Ground mobile transmitter-receiver systems lifted into the air
and interfaced with a continuous recording device.
Comprise 2 main types: fixed separation & quadrature.

Figure 23. Airborne
EM Field Operation.
[8]

Airborne TDEM Methods
The discontinuous primary field is
generated by passing pulses of
current through a transmitter coil
strung about an aircraft.
The transient primary field induces
currents persist during the period
when the primary field is shut off
and the receiver becomes active.
The exponential decay curve is
sampled at several points and the
signals displayed on a strip chart.
The signal amplitude in successive
sampling channels is, to a certain
extent, diagnostic of the type of
conductor present.
Poor conductors produce a rapidly
decaying voltage and only register
on those channels sampling the
voltage shortly after primary cut-off.
Figure 24. Airborne EM schematic diagram.[8]

HOW?
The rotating primary field is
generated by a transmitter
consisting of two orthogonal coils in
the plane perpendicular to the flight
direction.
The coils powered by the same AC
Source with the current to one coil
shifted /2 (90o) out-of-phase
with respect to the other.
The resulting field rotates about the
flight line and is detected by a
receiver with a receiver with a
similar coil configuration which
passes the signal through a phase-
shift network so that the output
over a barren area is zero.
The presence of a conductor is
then indicated by non-zero
output.
Figure 25. Airborne
EM data acquisition
process.[1]

The Airborne TDEM
Response
a) Primary field
b) Receiver response to
primary alone
c) Receiver response in the
presence of a secondary
field
d) Enlargement of the receiver
signal during the primary
field cut-off. The amplitude
of the decaying induced
voltage is here sampled on
6 channels.
Figure 26. Airborne TDEM Waveforms. [1]

The transmitting
antenna is a
rectangular wire loop
on the ground and
the 3 orthogonal
components of the
magnetic field are
measured below the
ground in the
borehole.
Figure 27. Borehole TDEM Field
Operation. [8]

Equipment:
Large ground loop transmitter
Receiver measuring the magnetic
field
Probe consists of three coils
measuring the magnetic field in 3
perpendicular directions.
The coils form a right-handed
coordinate system
One coil is fixed with its axis parallel to
the hole
The other two are naturally fixed on a
movable frame carefully journalled in
bearings.

Figure 28. Borehole Probe. [9]

1. Kearey, P., Brooks, M., Hill, Ian. 2002. An Introduction to Geophysical
Exploration. London : Blackwell Science Ltd.
2. Time-domain Electromagnetic Exploration. Northwest Geophysical
Associates, Inc.
3. Lange, G., Seidel, K. Electromagnetic Methods. Environmental Geology,
4 Geophysics.
4. PROTEM TDEM Systems Brochure Specifications.
5. Sorensen, K. I., Christiansen. A. V., Auken, E. The Transient
Electromagnetic Method. Burval.
6. Everett, M. E., Benavides, A., Pierce J. C. 2005. An experimental study
of the time-domain electromagnetic response of a buried conductive
plate. Geophysics VOL 70, NO.1.
7. Descloitres, M., Guerin, R., Albuoy, Y., Tabbagh, A., Ritz, M. 2000.
Improvement in TDEM sounding interpretation in presence of IP. Journal
of Applied Geophysics 45 (2000) 1-18.
8. Lecture 12 TDEM Methods. Applied and Environmental Geophysics.
9. Malmqvist, L., Pantze, R., Kristensson, G., Karlsson, A. 1990.
Electromagnetic Fields in Boreholes Measurements in 3D.
Department of Electroscience Electromagnetic Theory Lund Institute of
Technology Sweden.

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Summary

Suska Ulin Agusta

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