Detection of metallic and plastic landmines using the GPR and 2-D resistivity techniques

Abstract. Low and non-metallic landmines are one of the most difficult subsurface targets to be detected using several geophysical techniques. Ground penetrating radar (GPR) performance at different field sites shows great success in detecting metallic landmines. However significant limitations are taking place in the case of low and non-metallic landmines. Electrical resistivity imaging (ERI) technique is tested to be an alternative or confirmation technique for detecting the metallic and non-metallic landmines in suspicious cleared areas. The electrical resistivity responses using forward modeling for metallic and non-metallic landmines buried in dry and wet environments utilizing the common electrode configurations have been achieved. Roughly all the utilized electrode arrays can establish the buried metallic and plastic mines correctly in dry and wet soil. The accuracy differs from one array to the other based on the relative resistivity contrast to the host soil and the subsurface distribution of current and potential lines as well as the amplitude of the noises in the data. The ERI technique proved to be fast and effective tool for detecting the non-metallic mines especially in the conductive environment whereas the performances of the other metal detector (MD) and GPR techniques show great limitation.