Stress Field Detector

The Stress Field Detector, or SFD, is a sensor capable of detecting subsurface discontinuities including faults, fractures and hydrocarbon deposits. It is currently being used for hydrocarbon exploration in aerial surveys and surface surveys by NXT Energy Solutions of Calgary, Canada.
Device operation
According to a joint paper authored with Pakistan Petroleum the SFD "uses a unique quantum method to extract stress field anomalies and hence trapped reservoir information from gravity field."
Data from the sensors is acquired utilizing "22 sensors (6 primary, 8 secondary and 8 Research and Development) flying at an altitude of roughly 3,000 m and a
speed of approximately 500 km/h."
Neither a description of this technology or an example of its output can be found in any peer reviewed geophysical publication. It is recommended that this technology be judged by the criteria described here.
Commercial use
Over the years Pinnacle Oil used the technology in joint drilling programs with various industry partners including Calpine Canada, Renaissance Energy Ltd. and Encal Energy Ltd. Independently from Pinnacle Oil, in 2001 Spectrum Oil of Bakersfield, CA used the SFD technology in its exploration program. More recently, multiple surveys have been performed in South America, most notably by Pacific Rubiales Energy in Colombia who acquired "1,771 km of stress field detector" data in 2009. Additional SFD surveys continued in Colombia, Argentina, Guatemala, Mexico, and Pakistan.

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