Modeling of GPR Clutter Caused by Soil Heterogeneity

In small-scale measurements, ground-penetrating radar (GPR) often uses a higher frequency to detect a small object or structural changes in the ground. GPR becomes more sensitive to the natural heterogeneity of the soil when a higher frequency is used. Soil heterogeneity scatters electromagnetic waves, and the scattered waves are in part observed as unwanted reflections that are often referred to as clutter. Data containing a great amount of clutter are difficult to analyze and interpret because clutter disturbs reflections from objects of interest. Therefore, modeling GPR clutter is useful to assess the effectiveness of GPR measurements. In this paper, the development of such a technique is discussed. This modeling technique requires the permittivity distribution of soil (or its geostatistical properties) and gives a nominal value of clutter power. The paper demonstrates the technique with the comparison to the data from a GPR time-lapse measurement. The proposed technique is discussed in regard to its applicability and limitations based on the results.