In the oil field, rock testing (beyond standard core analyses) is generally limited to three classes-flow tests to determine the production characteristics of the rock in question, chemical tests to determine reactivity of the rocks, and testing the mechanical qualities of the rock to determine the resistance of the rock to forceful intrusions, such as drilling, perforating, and stimulations. Tests to determine mechanical qualities are mostly limited to static or steady state conditions; for example, Young's moduli and Poisson's ratio measurements, compressive strengths, tensile strengths, or anything that offers easily understood and useful data.This paper discusses the creation of a new test process in which time is used as an aspect of the rock mechanics science in the oil field. For example, a question such as "how much pressure is required to fracture the rock" is henceforth replaced by a question such as "how long does it take for the rock face to move from point 'A' to point 'B'?" To do so, rock testing facilities must be reformulated to include accurate motion monitors and sound detection for live capturing of events within the rock at accurate time steps, such as microseisms, etc. The paper also discusses the use of this technology to plan and create different methods of fracture stimulating a formation; in particular, creating multidirectional fractures to maximize well production is discussed.

No abstract