Mapping the thickness of sediments in the Ljubljana Moor basin (Slovenia) using microtremors |
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| Authors: | Andrej Gosar Alenka Lenart |
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| Institution: | 1.EARS, Seismology and Geology Office,Ljubljana,Slovenia;2.University of Ljubljana,Ljubljana,Slovenia;3.Institute Jo?ef Stefan,Ljubljana,Slovenia |
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| Abstract: | The Ljubljana Moor basin is characterized by moderate bedrock topography and thicknesses of Quaternary lacustrine and fluvial
sediments ranging from 0 to 200 m. More than 65 boreholes which reached the bedrock were drilled in the area, but their distribution
in the basin is very uneven and some data from the boreholes uncertain. There are also no data on S-velocity distribution
within the basin, but seismic refraction measurements pointed out a rather uniform increase of P-velocity with depth, great
impedance contrast with the bedrock and relatively small lateral velocity variations. The microtremor horizontal-to-vertical
spectral ratio (HVSR) method was therefore applied as a complementary tool to seismic refraction survey to map the thickness
of sediments. First, microtremors were measured at the locations of boreholes which reached the bedrock and the resonance
frequencies determined. The inverse power relationship between the resonance frequency and the thickness of sediments was
then determined from 53 data pairs. The quality of the correlation is moderate due to possible heterogeneities in sediments
and possible 3D effects in some minor areas, but the obtained parameters correspond well to the values obtained in six other
European basins. Secondly, a 16 km-long discontinuous seismic refraction profile was measured across the whole basin, leaving
uncovered some larger segments where active seismic measurements were not possible. Microtremors were then measured at 64
locations along the same profile, using 250 m point spacing, without leaving any gaps. The frequency–thickness relationship
was used to invert resonance frequencies to depths. These were first validated using the results of the seismic refraction
survey, which showed good agreement, and finally used for interpolation in the segments of missing refraction data to obtain
a continuous depth profile of the bedrock. The study has shown that the microtremor method can be used as a complementary
tool for mapping the thickness of unconsolidated sediments also in areas characterized by moderate bedrock topography. As
the input data are always to some extent uncertain, it is important to have a sufficiently large number of borehole data to
establish a frequency–thickness relationship, as well as some additional independent geophysical information for its validation. |
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