Apsu — A new compact surface nuclear magnetic resonance system for groundwater investigation

Abstract

Surface nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) is emerging as a competitive method for aquifer exploration due to its direct sensitivity to subsurface water, but the method still has several shortcomings, for example, a signal-to-noise ratio that is often poor, long survey times, and bulky equipment. We have developed Apsu, a new surface NMR system designed for near-surface groundwater investigations. It provides several features such as a compact transmitter unit, separated, small receiver coils, wireless connections between multiple receivers, quasi-zero dead time, and robust phase determination. The transmitter unit is powered by a lightweight generator, and it drives a triangular current in an untuned [Formula: see text] transmitter coil. The peak current of the triangular waveform is up to 145 A, with an effective peak current of 105 A at a Larmor frequency of 2 kHz, corresponding to a 30 m depth of investigation. The frequency and amplitude in each half-oscillation of the transmit pulses can be modulated independently, which gives great flexibility in the pulse design. The receiver uses low-noise preamplifiers and multiple receivers linked to a central unit through Wi-Fi. The use of small receiver coils and wireless connections to multichannel receivers greatly improves the layout configuration flexibility and survey efficiency. The performance of the system under field conditions is demonstrated with high-quality data collected near Silkeborg, Denmark, using on-resonance and numerically optimized modulation pulses.