Finding the strike direction of fractures using GPR

GPR reflection energy varies with antenna orientation relative to the strike and dip of the reflector. This directional dependence of GPR responses was investigated through numerical experiments and was used to estimate the azimuth of fractures and joints. Three antenna configurations were considered in this study: perpendicular-broadside (YY mode), parallel-broadside (XX mode) and cross-polarization (YX mode). The reflection energy in the cross-polarization mode shows a shape characteristic similar to the strike, regardless of the dip angle. Those in the other two modes show quite different amplitudes from the strike, depending on the dip angle. We have developed a strike-direction-finding scheme using data obtained from the three different modes for the same survey line. The azimuth angle of each reflector was displayed in colour on the GPR profile. This scheme was applied to a field survey at a granite quarry in southern Korea. The GPR profiles showed different images of the reflectors depending on the antenna configuration. The estimated azimuths of reflectors obtained using our scheme matched fairly well with those of known fractures and joints.