Dear Yohanes, it is nice to know about your desire to derive temperature profile from seismic velocity. Well, going by your query, you will not find any direct correlation between these two parameters. However, it can be executed the other way around. You can explore correlation through heat flow (thermal conductivity in particular). That basis will lead you to establishment of relation with temperature. Lot of uncertainties will pop up. As such, the desired relation has to be constrained by suppressing some independent variables. Apart from that, type of mantle and moho are another influential parameter. I will be glad to join your endeavor.

Dear Yohanes, I try to response following the clear relationship between present heat flow and seismic velocity.

Present heat flow data can be readily correlated with other geophysical and geological parameters. In particular, there are clear associations between heat flow and surface heat production, geologic age, seismic velocity and electrical conductivity. Discussion up to this point has concentrated on empirical linear relationhips, between crustal heat flow and upper Mantle P-wave velocity. Seismic velocity varies with temperature (e.g. Anderson et al., 1968), and the temperature of the upper mantle varies with crustal heat flow. Consequently, we may expect a correlation between crustal heat flow, Q (mWm-2), and upper mantle P-wave velocity, Vp (kms-1). Cull and Denham (1979) demonstrated such a correlation for Australia, described by the linear expression: Q = 1150 – 135 x Vp. For example, if Vp is 8.10 kms-1, the Q = 56.5 mWm-2. Houbolt and Wells (1980) developed an empirical relationship between heat flow and sonic travel times, based on the observation that for most sedimentary rocks the ratio of sound velocity to thermal conductivity increases linearly with temperature. They use one-way travel time logs in combination with BHT (bottom-hole temperature) to derive a relationship for heat flow. (pp232 - 234: Crustal Heat Flow: A guide to Measurement and Modelling) by G.R. Beardsmore and J.P. Cull, ©Cambridge University Press 2001. ISBN 0-521-79289-4.

I hope that this answer will help you in your research or project.

Best wishes, Mario E. Sigismondi

Dear Yohanes Nuwara Lubis,

Rajib and Mario already pointed to the important issues.

I would suggest the following workflow.

Try to setup a 1D model of the crust and compute geotherms. Use your seismic information as well as geological background information to structure your model into rock-type specific units. You also can use the interrelation between thermal conductivity and sonic velocities known from certain petrophysical studies for a wide range of rock types to compute rock-type specific thermal conductivity's. Compare for example the petrophysical textbooks from Jürgen Schön. Deciphering radiogenic heat production for the calculation of heat-flow profiles is possibly a bit more challenging. But again, common textbooks should give you a good hint for starting values.

Check, for example, Chapman (1986) as one example for the overall procedure.

Thermal gradients in the continental crust

D. S. Chapman Geological Society, London, Special Publications, 24, 63-70, 1 January 1986, https://doi.org/10.1144/GSL.SP.1986.024.01.07

Question that would arise from this point: Where is your project area located? Do you have any idea of the regional background heat flow at surface or crust/mantle boundary? This parameter is a prerequisite of this approach.

Hello Mr. Yohanes,

Ryan, G., & Shalev, E. (2014) published an article discussing seismic velocity/temperature correlations. They presented formulas for different reservoir temperature ranges to determine seismic velocity.

The authors pointed out that the presented formulas are purely empirical and strictly only valid for the local area the study was carried out in.

Other parameters other than temperature influence seismic velocity.

Article title: Seismic Velocity/Temperature Correlations and a Possible New Geothermometer: Insights from Exploration of a High-Temperature Geothermal System on Montserrat, West Indies.

Hope you find valuable information from the article.

Yakubu

Kindly dear professors, PhDs, and researchers,

Rajib Biswas, Mario Emilio, Sven Fuchs, Ketil Hokstad, Yakubu Fransisco

I'm very honored and interested to receive such replies from various academic viewpoints. I thank very much for the answers. I have reviewed so far the papers and explanations about relations between these two properties: heat and seismic velocity. Almost all of them are very helpful. But, there are some points that I still need to figure out. Most papers, such as Trampert & van der Hilst (2005) also from Cull & Denham (1979), only explain that the correlation exists in mantle regime. Anderson (1964) made an equation that relates seismic attenuation (Q-1) and upper mantle temperature. Few researches also focus only on upper mantle using seismic tomography. Also, most of them are still using travel-time log or sonic log to infer the temperature based on velocity data and laboratory tests (continuous-wave transmission pulse, etc.) to examine the empirical relation between different rock's seismic velocity and temperature, i.e. from Olorode (2014)

I'm still looking for more effective way to infer the subsurface temperature for local not global, mainly in the upper crust, using seismic velocity data from tomography (not bound with lab test or logging, or it be?) Are there any type of tomography (surface-wave or seismic Q or else) that can map the temperature distribution? Is there any pure velocity property that relates directly to temperature? I'm about to using this to infer subsurface temps. of geothermal field using seismic tomo (student research).

I'm expecting for further replies, sir. Thankyou for your time.

Nuwara

I recommend Rajib's answer