A NOVEL MOBILE MULTIPOLE SYSTEM (MUCEP) FOR SHALLOW (0-3M) GEOELECTRICAL INVESTIGATION - THE VOL-DE-CANARDS ARRAY

The aim of this paper is to point out the advantages of multipoles for the exploration of the very near subsurface (0-3m) by continuous prof iling. We propose a new geometry with eight poles for a MUltipole Cont inuous Electrical Profiling (MUCEP) measuring system, where the array has a V-shape and is thus called 'Vol-de-canards'. A series of criteri a including 3D numerical simulations are performed (direct and inverse modelling) to determine the optimal geometry and to compare its perfo rmance (in terms of depth of investigation and resolution of the geome try of the targets) with the other arrays (quadrupoles or rectangular- type multipoles). This multipole was built together with a real-time a cquisition system. The multidepth maps obtained confirm the characteri stics predicted by numerical simulations.