Ground Penetrating RADAR (GPR)

(After Basson 2000)

Introduction

GPR is an electromagnetic (EM) geophysical method for highresolution detection, imaging

and mapping of subsurface soils and rock conditions. The idea of using the propagation of
highfrequency EM waves for subsurface investigations can be traced back to the beginning
of the century, but the earliest references to the possibility of using sharp EM pulses appear
in German patents from the 1920s. Radar (short for radio detection and ranging), a system
that uses short EM pulses, was fully developed in Britain for defense against enemy planes
during the Second World War, although several such systems did exist in Britain, France,
Germany and the USA before the War.
In addition to its numerous military and civil applications, radar is now a very important
tool in ground investigations, normally from the near surface to a depth of several tens of
meters. During more than two decades of development, GPR systems have become the
geophysical tools that provide the subsurface window for a variety of geological,
engineering, environmental and archaeological applications: determining the thicknesses of
soil horizons and depth to water table detecting airfilled subsurface cavities, buried
channels and tunnels mapping contamination plumes investigating the condition of dam
cores, masonry structures and bridge piers detecting buried objects in archeological
surveys finding ice or permafrost thicknesses studying the condition of the asphalt layer
on roads, etc.
Fundamentals of GPR

A typical GPR system has three main components: Transmitter and receiver that are
directly connected to an antenna, and a control unit (timing) (Fig. 1). The transmitting
antenna radiates a short highfrequency EM pulse into the ground, where it is refracted,
diffracted and reflected primarily as it encounters changes in dielectric permittivity and
electric conductivity.

Figure 1: Flow chart for a

typical GPR system
[after Davis et al., 1989].

The propagation of a radar signal depends mainly on the electrical properties of the
subsurface materials (see AppendixA for the electrical properties of geological media).
Waves that are scattered back toward the earth's surface induce a signal in the receiving
antenna, and are recorded as digitized signals for display and further analysis (Fig. 2).

Figure 2: Comparison of actual and GPRimaged subsurface profiles, demonstrating the

capabilities of the GPR system as an imaging tool of the shallow subsurface. The cliff shown
is in the site of Nesher Ramle quarry. Horizontal scales indicate positions of measurement
stations along mapped profile vertical scale indicates depth to the reflectors.
Figure 2a: Photograph of mapped quarry cliff showing complex structure in chalky
limestone layers. Area imaged by GPR is shown inside the dashed frame.
Figure 2b: Plot image display of blackfilled wiggle traces (variable area, VAR).
Figure 2c: Variableintensity plot image, displayed in grey levels. Note that most of the
signals in the profiles are reflections exceptfor the two topmost events, which are two
direct waves from the transmitter to the receiver, one in the air and the other one in the
ground. The amplitude of these two topmost events is considerably strong: they generally
appear as two thick reflections that reduce our ability to visualize the shallowest part of the
profile.
The most common operation mode of GPR is the Reflection mode, whereby traces of
returned waves are collected either continuously or in stations along a line, thus creating a
time crosssection or a profile image of the subsurface. CMP (common mid point), or WARR
(wideangle reflectionrefraction) sounding and Transillumination are other modes of
operation.
Several types of radar such as frequencymodulated sinewave radar or holographic radar
are in use, but for ground investigations, the most commonly used (i.e. GPR) is the pulse
radar. The development of these systems started around middle 1950s and accelerated
considerably after 1970 as a result of the tremendous progress that took place in
electronics and computer technology. The principles of GPR and the landmarks in its
development are discussed at length in Morey [1974], Annan and Davis [1977], Ulriksen

[1982], Davis and Annan [1986, 1989], Basson [1992], Cook [1995] Parasnis [1997] and
Basson [2000].
Display

GPR data are displayed on printer paper or on a computer screen during acquisition (i.e.,
during real time). For a given transect, the data consist of a crosssection of signal
amplitudes (intensities) versus location (along the twoway time axis and the horizontal
axis). The intensity values are digitally recorded for each trace separately, converted back
into analogue signals and displayed as signal voltage amplitude versus twoway time (the
RAMAC GPR system uses a 16 bit A/D converter to convert the recorded signal to 65,536
levels of amplitudes). The plot is referred to as a normalincidence time section (when the
transmitterreceiver offset is negligible relative to the investigated depth and at a
monostatic configuration). Simple processing is generally needed for a conventional
display otherwise, the display may become illegible. Such a typical processing is the
running average of three to five samples along each trace plus the average of three traces
along the profile in order to increase the signal to noise ratio. Amplifying gainis neededto
increase the visibility of the deeper parts of the image. Basic processing routines can be
applied during operation in the field while the image is built, in a way that does not affect
the collected data.
Two common display types of a GPR profile are shown in Figure 2. The profile, which was
conducted at the NesherRamle Quarry of the Cement Corporation of Israel (about 20 km
southeast of Tel Aviv), images a sequence of folded and faulted chalkylimestone layers on
the western margins of the Judea anticline. The data were collected using a RAMAC GPR
system (see APPENDIX B for the description of the system). Figure2a shows the cliff along
which the profile was conducted, part of the graded cliff that surrounds the open quarry.
The GPR profile was conducted along 75 m on the middle step, 510 m from its edge, to
cover the complex geological structure shown inside the dashed frame of the picture. The
photograph and the profiles are compared in Figure 2, convincingly demonstrating the
capability of GPR as an imaging tool in complex geological environments.
Contiguous wiggle trace curves, generally with a black fill of the positive (or the negative)
area, are one common display type of the amplitudes intensity field (Fig. 2b). This type of
plot is also known in seismic reflection as variable area (VAR). Another common display
technique is the variableintensity in which the intensity valuesamples are represented by
grey tones or by colors. Figure 2c is an example of a variableintensity display in grey
levels. In special cases, a combination of these methods can be useful.
Interpretation

Modern GPR and SR processing make the profiles look so much like crosssections trough
the earth, that it is tempting to interpret them as such. In some ways, this is a useful way
of thinking because it drives the development of acquisition sensors and processing
methods forward to this goal. However, excluding simple and normal cases, GPR sections
are not simple slices through the earth. This is mainly because of the nature of propagation
and interaction of the EM wave inside and outside the ground, and its sensitivity to
reflecting interfaces and objects, which are not necessarily the same interfaces and objects
that would be visible to the eyes. Yet, a proper interpretation of a GPR profile should be
based on the comprehensive understanding of geological and environmental conditions.
An example of an interpretation is shown in Figure 3. Figure 3a shows the prominent
stratigraphy, structures and faults on the photograph of the cliff: dipping folded layers, a
syncline and several faults. Figure 2.3b shows the interpretation of those elements on the
GPR profile.

Figure 3: Interpretation of a GPR profile image.

Figure 3a: Interpretation of the prominent stratigraphic units, structures and faults
distinguished on a photograph of the cliff in the Nesher Ramle quarry, including dipping
folded layers, a syncline and several faults.
Figure 3b: The interpretation of those elements on the GPR profile.
Terms and Concepts of GPR

Antenna, pulsewidth, center frequency and sampling

Most of the GPR systems use dipole antennas, either in monostatic or bistatic arrangement
(monostaticwhen the same antenna is use for transmission and reception, and bistatic
when two separate antennas are used). The length of the dipole antenna controls the
character of the transmitted pulse, mainly the pulse width (duration), dt, so that a broader
pulse requires a longer antenna. In practice, an antenna length of 1 m is required for a 10
ns pulse the efficient GPR transmission duration while pulses of 12 ns widths require
antennas of 0.150.40 m long.
Normally, a GPR antenna emits a succession of pulses of the same form and duration at
definite intervals. The frequency around which most of the pulses energy is concentrated is
called the center frequency, fc. GPR systems are generally planned to create a frequency
bandwidth, df (the pulse width at the frequency domain), which is similar to the center
frequency, i.e., df ~ fc. In the time interval between two successive pulses, the receiving
antenna measures the electric field in the incoming reflected puas an analogue signal,
which is later amplified and converted to digital form. The interval at which the incoming
signals are sampled is called sampling interval (its inverse is termed sampling
frequency,fs).
The Sampling Theorem deals with the aspects of signal sampling [Yilmaz, 1987 Dobrin and
Savit, 1988]. The criterion of the Sampling Theorem, for a faithful pulse represented by its
samples, is that the sampling frequency must be at least twice as high as the maximum

frequency fmaxof the pulse, i.e.:

(1) fs > 2fmax

Operation modes and stacking

Most surface investigations with GPR, whether they use continuous profiling or stationary
point collection methods, are made in reflection mode. Both methods are usually applied
using a crossline antenna configuration in which dipoles are fitted perpendicular to the
profile direction. In continuous profiling, the antennas are pulled along the profile while the
GPR is scanning, so that the number of scans per unit of distance is a function of the pulse
repetition and the pulling speed (which tends to vary during profiling). The result of
continuous profiling is a nonuniform basic quality profile, which normally has to be
spatially resampled. However, in stationary point collection, the antennas are fixed at the
measurement point while the scans are being stacked (i.e., added and averaged), resulting
in a substantial increase in the signal to noise ratio (significant improvement of GPR data
can be achieved by stacking 16 128 times). When the operator is satisfied with the data
quality, the antennas are moved at uniform intervals to the next stations along the profile,
stacking each one at a time.
Extensive development and improvement in the hardware and software of the new
systems, such as the RAMAC GPR used to collect the data for this thesis, have made it
possible to combine the two methods to create a continuousstationary collection mode.
Operating the RAMAC GPR (see Appendix B) at a pulse repetition rate of 100 kHz, with a
distancecalibrated survey wheeland a bidirectional (enhanced) parallel port for control
computer communication of 4 Mbit/s, enable collecting stacked data at point stations while
continuously moving the antennas. Measurements in the Evrona (southern Arava valley,
Israel) study site were taken at uniform intervals of 0.25 m between stations, while moving
at an average speed of about 0.5 m/s with the antennas lifted about 510 cm above the
surface. At each station, the GPR pulses were stacked 1632 times for 0.25 s, resulting in
each station having a linear dimension of about 0.125 m. Thus, for all practical purposes,
the stations can be considered point stations.

Reflection and diffraction

When operating a GPR system in the conventional reflection mode, a reflection profile is
obtained. Most of the returned signals in such a profile are reflections from subsurface
discontinuities, although other types of waves may also be present. Wave types such as a
direct airwave, a critically refracted airwave and a direct ground wave generally appear as
well, as predicted by the Ray Theory and simple geometrical relations. In a reflection
profile, the principal reflections are generally more or less immediately identifiable, as can
be seen, for example, in Figures 2b and 2c. Note that most of the signals in the profiles are
reflections exceptthe two topmost, which are two direct waves from the transmitter to the
receiver, one in the air and the other in the ground.
In certain common conditions during GPR investigations, in addition to reflections, the EM
waves undergo diffractions from small inhomogeneities and objects. Diffractions that can be
identified as hyperbolas in the time section occur in two cases: when the dominant
wavelength, Lc, in the radar pulse is larger than the dimensions of the diffractions source,
and when waves are diffracted from sharp edges. The physical relation between the
velocity, v, wavelength, L , and frequency, f, of an EM wave is given by the equation:
(2) v = Lf
According to relation 2, if, for example, a GPR signal were transmitted at a center
frequency of 100 MHz into geological environment such as Evrona, with an average
propagation velocity of 0.1 m/ns, the local dominant wavelength of the propagating signal
would be approximately 1 m. Therefore, diffraction patterns would be obtained from objects
or inhomogeneities that are smaller than 1 m. A clear diffraction pattern can be seen in

Figures2b and 2c at a depth of 8 m under the 60 m coordinate position.

Resolution
The resolution of a GPR image is controlled by the sharpness of the focus of the system.
The resolutionis defined by the Rayleigh criterion as the ability to distinguish between two
close signals obtained during the GPR mapping, before their separate identity is lost and
they appear to be one event. The range resolution, dl, can be practically defined as the
halfwavelengthof the GPR signal in the geological medium, i.e.:
(3) dl ~ v/fc = 0.5 kc
where v is the average propagation velocity (although Widess [1973] showed that the limit
of the range resolution can reach kc/8 in case of excellent data). Processing methods such
as deconvolution can enhance the range resolution below a quarter of the wavelength. For
example, the calculated average basic vertical resolution for a 100 MHz center frequency
mapping of an alluvial environment such as Evrona is about 0.5 m (or Widess resolution of
0.125 m, see Appendix C for the basic resolution of other common geological materials).
A reflecting horizon may vary laterally in dielectric constant, thus changing the reflection
coefficient, or stop laterally, as a result of faulting or absence of deposition (e.g., channel
sands). Horizontal (or spatial) resolution refers to the ability to detect the lateral changes in
reflectors, such as those caused by faults or facies changes. In this case, the reflected
energy that arrives at the receiver antenna does not come from a single point of incidence,
but from a circular zone on the reflector. If t is the twoway time of a reflection, fc the
frequency of a radar wave and v the velocity, the first Fresnel zone radius Fr from which
most energy comes, is:
(4) Fr ~ 0.5 v (tr/fc)1/2
The derivation of the Fresnel zone radius approximation for GPR is exactly analogous for
seismic waves, although in reality, since GPR systems generally use directional dipole
antennas, the EM sheaf of waves forms the shape of an elliptical cone (the long axis is
perpendicular to the dipole). According to equation 4, if the area of a reflector is greater
than an area bordered by circular zone with radius Fr, its shape will be accurately mapped
on the time section. However, if the areal extent of the reflector is smaller, diffraction
patterns from the edges may dominate its shape. From equation 4, it can be understood
that that spatial resolution decreases as a function of depth (e.g., with the increase of the
time).
To illustrate, in the alluvial environment of Evrona (southern Arava valley, Israel, average
propagation velocity of 0.1 m/ns), the calculated spatial resolution of a reflector is about
4.5 m (2Fr) at the depth of 10 m (i.e. tr = 200 ns) achieved in the 100 MHz GPR profiles.
This means that the reflector must be larger than 4.5 m, in order to be best mapped. In
practice, the spatial resolution is substantially better. Sheriff [1985] discusses an effective
Fresnel zone as equal to half the size of the first Fresnel zone. Therefore, it can be shown
that when such a reflector occupies only 25 percent of the Fresnel zone, its reflected
amplitude decreases only by 40 percent. This result emphasizes the fact that even
reflectors with lateral dimensions of 1 m (about Fr)can be clearly detectable at a depth of
10 m, in conditions of fair signal to noise ratio.

Time window, velocity and depth

The time length between two transmitted pulses for which the reflections are recorded is
called the time window, T w , or the total twoway travel time, since the pulse travels to the
reflectors and back. The propagation velocity of GPR waves in nonconducting and non
media is approximately c/ (K) 1/2, where c is the velocity of light in vacuum (0.3 m/ns) and
K is the dielectric constant (or relative permittivity). Since the dielectric constants of most

dry and nonconducting rocks and soils vary within about 515, the propagation velocity in
the ground is normally between about 0.077 and 0.134 m/ns (see AppendixA). Propagation
Velocity measurements of geological environments can be done by GPR through
CMP(common midpoint) or WARR (wideAngle reflectionrefraction) sounding methods.
Transillumination mode is efficient for measuring velocities inside accessible rock bodies
such as tunnels and quarries, or objects such as pillars, walls, bridges, etc. Another simple
approach to determining the velocity of a radar pulse in the ground using the conventional
reflection mode is to locate a surface outcrop of rock or some buried reflecting object
whose depth is known and measure the twoway time for the reflection from it.
When converted to depth, the time window limits the maximum depth (or maximum range)
of acquisition in the GPR profile (presuming sufficient penetration of the EM waves). For a
short transmitterreceiver offset relative to the total depth, the profile depth, D, can be
calculated as half of the time window, T w, multiplied by the average propagation velocity,
v,of the pulse inside the geological media (i.e., D ~ 0.5 T w v). Otherwise, it can be shown
from simple geometrical relations that for a transmitterreceiver offset,x, the precise depth
to a reflector, d, located at twoway time, t, is given by the equation:
(5) d = 0.5 (v2t2+x2)1/2

Appendix A
Electrical Properties of Geological Media Material Dielectric constant Conductivity (mS/m)
Velocity (m/ns) Attenuation (dB/m)
Material

Dielectric
constant

Conductivity
(mS/m)

Velocity
(m/ns)

Attenuation
(dB/m)

Air

0.3

Distilled water 80

0.01

0.033

0.002

Fresh water

80

0.5

0.033

0.1

Sea water

80

30,000

0.01

1,000

Dry sand

35

0.01

0.15

0.01

Saturated
sand

2030

0.11.0

0.06

0.030.3

Limestone

48

0.52

0.12

0.41

Shale

515

1100

0.09

1100

Silt

530

1100

0.07

1100

Clay

440

21,000

0.06

1300

Granite

46

0.011

0.13

0.011

Salt (dry)

56

0.011

0.13

0.011

Ice

34

0.01

0.16

0.01

Table A.A: Electrical properties of geological media [after Davis et al., 1989]
Appendix B

RAMAC GPR Technical Specifications

Manufacturer
MALA GeoScience, Sweden

Radar unit
A/D Converter: 16 bit
Pulse Repetition Frequency: 100 kHz
Scan Rate: up to 200 scans/sec
Performance Factor: 150 dB
Time Window: up to 6 sec
Number of samples/trace: 128 2048
Number of stacks: 1 32768
Sampling frequency: 0.4 100 GHz
Data Transfer Rate: 4 Mbit/sec
Operating Temperature: 10? C +50? C
Humidity: 0 100% (RH)
Trig functions: Distance Pulse Encoders, Time, Keyboard or External
Communication: Serial, Normal or Enhanced Parallel ports to a PC computer.
Optical Fibers (4300 m) between the Transmitter, Control and Receiver
Input Voltage: 6 14 VDC
Weights
Control unit with battery: 4.9 kg
Transmitter/Receiver 2.4 kg
(with 200 MHz antenna and batteries)
Antennas
10, 25, 50, 100, 200, 400 MHz, unshielded
200, 500, 1000 MHz, shielded
100, 250 MHz borehole, 48 mm OD
Appendix C

Computed Values of Vertical Resolution [cm] of GPR Waves Inside Geological Media
Material Dielectric constant Vertical Resolution (cm)
Vertical Resolution (cm)

Material

Dielectric constant

Air

150

75

30

Distilled water

80

17

8.5

3.5

Fresh water

80

17

8.5

3.5

Sea water

80

17

8.5

3.5

Dry sand

35

8767

43.533.5

17.513.5

Saturated sand 2030

3427

1713.5

75.5

Limestone

48

7553

37.526.5

1510.5

Shale

515

6739

33.519.5

13.59.5

Silt

530

6727

33.513.5

13.55.5

Clay

440

6724

33.512

13.55

Granite

46

7561

37.530.5

1512

Salt (dry)

56

6761

33.530.5

13.512

Ice

34

8765

43.537.5

17.513

fc= 100 MHz fc= 200 MHz fc= 500 MHz

Table A.C: Vertical resolution of GPR wave [after Basson, 1992]

These values, which are halfwavelengths of the propagating signals inside the geologic
media, represent a practical resolution. In the case of very good signal to noise ratio, the
theoretical resolution can be increased up to a one eighth of the wavelengths [Widess,
1973], i.e., quarter of the presented values.
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