ELECTRICAL RESISTIVITY METHOD

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 ELECTRICAL PROPERTIES OF EARTH MATERIALS

Electrical resistivity is a physical property of materials (soils and rocks included). It quantifies the
ability of a material to resists or conducts electric current. It is the inverse of conductivity.
Because most rocks frameworks are made up of non-conductive quartz mineral, the bulk
resistivities of earth materials from the surface to more than 15 km depth in the crust are
controlled by aqueous electrolytic conduction via pores, clay binding material (matrix), fractures,
faults and shear zones. A slight increase in resistivities with depth is generally observed in this 0 –
15 km region and is as a result of decreasing pore, fracture, fault, shear zone, porosity due to
increased lithostatic load or overburden pressure.

Factors Affecting the Resistivity of Earth Materials

(i) Aqueous Electrolytic Conduction (Volume and Concentration of Saturating fluid):
Conduction in the near surface rocks is largely electrolytic taking place through connected
pore spaces, along grain boundaries, in fractures, in faults and in shear zones but negligibly
through silicate framework. The volume and concentration (or salinity) of the dissolved salt
in the saturating fluid are the major factors controlling the resistivity of rocks with a given
porosity. The relationship between the resistivity of a partially saturated rock, the
volume and concentration ( ) of the saturated fluid can be described by the Archie’s
equation below.

=
where a, m and n are constants
= Porosity

(ii) Resistivity and Porosity: The resistivity of fully saturated “clean” sediment is related to its
porosity by the Archie 1942 equation.

(1)

(2)

Where F = Formation Factor

= Resistivity of a water saturated sediment

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 = Resistivity of the water saturating the sediment
= Porosity
and m are constants peculiar to the rock type (m is usually regarded as the
cementation factor and is the coefficient of saturation).
= 0.6 - 1.0 (generally taken as 1)
m = 1.4 - 2.20 (generally taken to be 2). The higher the degree of cementation, the
higher is the value of m.
Typical forms of equation 1 for sandstones are
(Humble Formula) (3)
For Sherwood Sandstone (Padgate), England

(Olorunfemi, 1979) (4)

For chalky rocks (5)

(iii) Temperature: Temperature affects the viscosity of fluids and hence the mobility of the ions.
The higher the temperature, the lower is the viscosity and the more mobile the ions become
and the lower is the resistivity.
According to Keller and Frischknecht, 1966

(6)

= Temperature coefficient of resistivity 0.25/ oC

t = Ambient temperature oC
= Resistivity at temperature, t
= Resistivity at 18oC (reference temperature)
Eqn. (6) is relevant in geothermal and thermal study

(iv) Rock Texture and Porosity in a Hand Specimen: The texture of rocks in a hand specimen
can be used as an index of their resistivity.
(a) Well sorted sandstone with large void spaces will exhibit low resistivity
(b) Poorly sorted sandstone with much lower porosity will exhibit higher resistivity
(c) Dissolution or weathering along fractures in a limestone and basement complex
rocks will create voids and increase effective porosity and hence lower resistivity

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 (d) Precipitation of some minerals in any rock will reduce porosity and hence increase
resistivity
(e) Crystalline rocks with lower porosity will exhibit higher resistivity
(f) Fine grained rocks with lower porosity will exhibit higher resistivity
(g) Coarse grained rocks with higher porosity will exhibit lower resistivity

(v) Rock Types: The resistivity of rocks varies with the rock type. This is due to textural
variations and variation in the geological processes (genesis) that gave rise to them. The
resistivity ranges however show significant overlap as illustrated in Figure 1. This fact
makes identification of rock types on the basis of resistivity difficult.

Fig. 1: Typical Ranges of Resistivity of Rocks and Soils

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(vi) Geological Processes: The resistivity of rocks is influenced by various geological processes.
In general, geological processes reduce the resistivity of rocks but there are exceptions as
shown below
Clay Alteration ⇒ decrease
Increase porosity and

Dissolution ⇒ decrease
fluid permeability

Faulting ⇒ decrease
Salt water Intrusion ⇒ decrease
Shearing ⇒ decrease
Jointing ⇒ decrease

Weathering ⇒ decrease
metarmorphism
compaction or
Hardening by

Induration ⇒ increase
Carbonate Precipitation ⇒ increase
Silicification ⇒ increase
Metarmorphism ⇒ increase or decrease

(vii) Effect of Clay Minerals (Matrix): A clay particle acts as an independent conducting path in
addition to the electrolyte conduction path. The origin of the clay conductivity lies in the
double layer of exchange cations – the fixed and diffused layer (Fig. 2).

Fig. 2: Clay Mineral with Double Layers of Exchanged Cations.

The diffused layer is free to move under the influence of an applied electric field. The ions
in the zone add to the normal ion concentration and thus increase the density of charge

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 carriers and hence the effective conductivity. Hence all clay bearing rocks possess an
abnormally high conductivity.
According to Patnode and Wyllie (1950), the conductivity of a clay bearing or shaly
sandstone can be expressed in term of the equation:

= + or = + (7)

Where = Bulk conductivity of the rock

= Matrix (clay) conductivity
= Conductivity of the saturating fluid (water)
F = Formation Factor
(viii) Water Saturation: The resistivity of rocks decreases with increase in the water saturation
( )

Empirically, the bulk resistivity is related to the degree of saturation and porosity by the Archie
equation.
For a clean sandstone formation
= = (8)

If and are known and and m reasonably estimated then can be found from electrical
surveys. This may be very important in groundwater exploration.
For shaly sand (partially saturated)

= + (9)

= Resistivity of the rock

= Resistivity of the pore water
= Coefficient as in Archie equation
= Fractional porosity
= Fractional water saturation
= Volume of clay fraction
= Resistivity of clay (matrix) fraction

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(ix) Resistivity and Intergranular Permeability: Since porosity and Intergranular permeability are
related for a given rock or soil type as shown below, one expects a relationship between
permeability and resistivity of rocks.
For sandstone formation
= (10)
or =
For Sherwood sandstone
= (Baker, 1971)
= (Olorunfemi, 1981)

But Recall F= =

= (inverse relationship between )

Equation 10 shows a linear relationship between porosity and Intergranular Permeability (K) and
hence by inference, an inverse relationship is expected between resistivity and permeability. This
is only true for a clean formation or a saline water saturated shaly sand. At low electrolyte
concentration, the resistivity of shaly sandstone increases with permeability.

(x) Degree of Mineralization: The bulk resistivity of rocks decreases with increase in the
percentage concentration of conductive ore, provided it is massive.

APPLICATIONS OF THE RESISTIVITY METHOD

(a) Mineral Exploration: Mapping of massive conductive metallic sulphide mineralization. It
could also be used to map non-metallic ores such as graphite, kaolin, Bauxite, sand and
gravel.
(b) Geothermal Studies: Mapping of fault and fractured zones associated with geothermal
reservoir and delineation of geothermal reservoir/field.
(c) Groundwater investigation: Identification of aquifers, mapping of water table, delineation
of structures favourable to groundwater accumulation (such as faults and fractured zones,
buried river channels, basement depressions etc) and the determination of groundwater
quality.

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(d) Engineering site investigation: Determination of depth to bedrock, mapping of basement
structures, delineation of groundwater table and flow direction, identification of
construction materials, determination of nature of superficial deposits and competence of
the bedrock etc.
(e) Environmental Studies: Mapping of saline water zones, fresh/saline water interface,
chemical pollution plumes, soil corrosivity, cavity and sinkhole, electrical system
earthing.
(f) Thermal studies: mapping of coal mine fires and steam flood front.
(g) Oil Exploration: In wireline logging, for the identification of gas and oil saturated
reservoirs.