RESISTIVITY MODELING FOR ARBITRARILY SHAPED 2-DIMENSIONAL STRUCTURES

A numerical technique is developed to solve the three‐dimensional potential distribution about a point source of current located in or on the surface of a half‐space containing arbitrary two‐dimensional conductivity distribution. Finite difference equations are obtained for Poisson's equations by using point‐ as well as area‐discretization of the subsurface. Potential distributions at all points in the set defining the half‐space are simultaneously obtained for multiple point sources of current injection. The solution is obtained with direct explicit matrix inversion techniques. An empirical mixed boundary condition is used at the “infinitely distant” edges of the lower half‐space. Accurate solutions using area‐discretization method are obtained with significantly less attendant computational costs than with the relaxation, finite‐element, or network solution techniques for models of comparable dimensions. Copyright © 1979, Wiley Blackwell. All rights reserved