Surface Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (SNMR) - A new method for exploration of ground water and aquifer properties

Abstract

The Surface Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (SNMR) method is a fairly new technique in geophysics to assess ground water, i.e. existence, amount and productibility by measurements at the surface. The NMR technique used in medicine, physics and lately in borehole geophysics was adopted for surface measurements in the early eighties, and commercial equipment for measurements has been available since the mid nineties. The SNMR method has been tested at sites in Northern Germany with Quaternary sand and clay layers, to examine the suitability of this new method for groundwater exploration and environmental investigations. More information is obtained by SNMR, particularly with respect to aquifer parameters, than with other geophysical techniques. SNMR measurements were carried out at three borehole locations, together with 2D and 1D direct current geoelectrics and well logging (induction log, gamma-ray log and pulsed neutron-gamma log). Permeabilities were calculated from the grain-size distributions of core material determined in the laboratory. It is demonstrated that the SNMR method is able to detect groundwater and the results are in good agreement with other geophysical and hydrogeological data. Using the SNMR method, the water content of the unsaturated and saturated zones (i.e. porosity of an aquifer) can be reliably determined. This information and resistivity data permit in-situ determination of other aquifer parameters. Comparison of the SNMR results with borehole data clearly shows that the water content determined by SNMR is the free or mobile water in the pores. The permeabilities estimated from the SNMR decay times are similar to those derived from sieve analysis of core material. Thus, the combination of SNMR with geoelectric methods promises to be a powerful tool for studying aquifer properties.