Developing and calibrating a new approach of geoelectrical acquisition for detecting active tectonic features, Northern Dead Sea Fault System, Syria

Abstract

A new interpretative geoelectrical approach is adapted by using vertical electrical sounding (VES) technique with geoelectrical Schlumberger configuration and mainly Pichgin and Habibuleave technique. The proposed approach is aimed at getting interpretative reliable apparent resistivity measured data for the shallow penetration depths of approximately less than 10 meters. The adapted VES configuration with its specific small AB/2 spacings not exceeding 50m is used to characterize the structures of Recent and Quaternary deposits in the Al-Ghab depression region. The AB/2 spacings used in this Schlumberger array are 1, 1.3, 1.68, 2.18, 2.82, 3.66, 4.74, 6.15, 7.97, 10.33, 13.38, 17.35, 22.49, 29.15, 37.78 and 48.87 meter. The features of those structures are considered as good records for indicating active and neo-tectonic events. The interpretations of the eight acquired VES data carried out along a studied profile located above an excavation at Mehanbel area with an integrated enhanced Pichgin and Habibuleave approach provide quantitative calibrated results that are in exact concordance with the real positions of the Recent and Quaternary structures. The obtained results encourage consequently to apply this adapted configuration elsewhere to detect the outcropped or blind active faults and other structural features in the Recent and Quaternary deposits. The privileged locations of the trenching, used for studying the new active tectonic features will be decided at the light of the established subsurface geoelectrical imaging obtained by this integrated approach along different profiles in a given study area.