Numerical investigation on the propagation behavior of hydraulic fractures in shale reservoir based on the DIP technique

Li, Zhichao; Li, Lianchong; Huang, Bo; Zhang, Liaoyuan; Li, Ming; Zuo, Jianping; Li, Aishan; Yu, Qìng

doi:10.1016/j.petrol.2017.04.034

Cited by 53 publications

(36 citation statements)

References 29 publications

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“…However, the production rate of a fractured well typically declines over time (Al-Rbeawi 2018; Wang 2016), due to depletion of the reservoir and possibly due to fracture closure processes (Cerasi et al 2017;Wang 2016). Fracture closure is affected by confining pressure (Niandou et al 1997;Petley 1999;Naumann et al 2007;Kuila et al 2011;Islam and Skalle 2013), temperature (Johnston 1987;Masri et al 2014), non-isostatic stress conditions (Swan et al 1989;Chong and Boresi 1990;Ibanez and Kronenberg 1993;Kwon and Kronenberg 1994;Sone and Zoback 2013a;Rybacki et al 2015Rybacki et al , 2017 and petrophysical and mechanical properties such as mineralogy, porosity, permeability and brittleness of the reservoir rocks (Rybacki et al 2016;Morley et al 2017;Li et al 2017;Teixeira et al 2017;Cerasi et al 2017). Therefore, knowledge of the geomechanical behavior of shale rocks with respect to the above-mentioned parameters is important to better understand their fracture closure behavior (Morley et al 2017;Ilgen et al 2017;Kikumoto et al 2017;Li et al 2017;Cerasi et al 2017).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Deformation Experiments on Bowland and Posidonia Shale—Part I: Strength and Young’s Modulus at Ambient and In Situ pc–T Conditions

et al. 2018

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The production of hydrocarbons from unconventional reservoirs, like tight shale plays, increased tremendously over the past decade. Hydraulic fracturing is a commonly applied method to increase the productivity of a well drilled in these reservoirs. Unfortunately, the production rate decreases over time presumably due to fracture closure. The fracture closure rate induced by proppant crushing and embedment depends on mechanical properties of shales and proppants that are influenced by confining pressure (p c), temperature (T), and shale composition. We performed constant strain rate deformation tests at ambient and in situ conditions of a typical shale reservoir (p c ≤ 100 MPa, T ≤ 125 °C) using European shale samples exhibiting variable mineralogy, porosity and maturity. We focused on a comparison of Posidonia shale with Bowland shale, which is believed to be the most prospective shale formation in the United Kingdom. Compression tests were performed perpendicular to bedding orientation. Stress-strain curves show that Bowland shales are relatively strong and brittle compared to Posidonia shale which display semibrittle deformation behavior. Brittleness estimated from elastic properties is in good agreement with the recorded stress-strain behavior but shows no clear relation to composition. Compressive strengths (σ UCS = uniaxial compressive strength, σ TCS = triaxial compressive strength) and static Young's moduli, E, reveal a strong confining pressure and mineralogy dependence, whereas temperature and strain rate only have a minor influence on σ TCS and E. The coefficient of internal friction for both shales is ≈ 0.42 ± 0.03. With increasing amount of weak minerals (e.g., clay, mica) σ UCS , σ TCS and E strongly decrease. This may be related to a shift from deformation supported by a load-bearing framework of hard minerals to deformation of interconnected weak minerals at about 25-30 vol% of weak phases. At the applied conditions, the triaxial compressive strength and Young's moduli of most shales deformed normal to bedding are close to the Reuss bound. To our knowledge, this is the first study, which presents results of experimental investigations carried out to characterize the mechanical behavior of Bowland shale. The observed results are helpful to estimate the potential of the Bowland reservoir with respect to the economical extraction of hydrocarbons. Keywords Shale • Compressive strength • Young's modulus • Brittleness • Effective medium theories • P c-T conditions List of Symbols ϕ Porosity ρ Density p c Confining pressure T Temperature T a Absolute temperature σ UCS Uniaxial compressive strength σ TCS Triaxial compressive strength E Static Young's moduluṡ Strain rate ε max Maximum axial strain before failure of specimen µ i Coefficient of internal friction M Specific mechanical property (e.g., triaxial compressive strength, Young's modulus) f Volumetric fraction J Scaling parameter K Bulk modulus µ Shear modulus B min Brittleness determined from mineralogy B E Brittleness determined from Young's modulu...

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Deformation Experiments on Bowland and Posidonia Shale—Part I: Strength and Young’s Modulus at Ambient and In Situ pc–T Conditions

et al. 2018

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“…RFPA-Petrol is suitable for simulation of 3D fracture propagation problems and costs lower computation time. The capabilities of RFPA family simulators related to hydraulic fracturing problems have been verified in multiple studies [35][36][37][38][39][40].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 93%

The Influence of an Interlayer on Dual Hydraulic Fractures Propagation

Tang

Rutqvist

et al. 2020

Energies

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Multi-cluster hydraulic fracturing of long-range horizontal wells is an approach for enhancing the productivity of low-permeability shale reservoirs. In this study, RFPA-Petrol (rock failure process analysis on petroleum problems) is applied for modeling hydraulic fracture propagation in multilayered formations. RFPA-Petrol based on coupled hydraulic-mechanical-damage (HMD) modeling was first tested by modeling a laboratory scale experiment on a physical (cement) model with a single completion. The modeling demonstrated the capability of RFPA-Petrol for simulating hydraulic fracture propagation. Then, we used RFPA-Petrol to investigate how the difference in material properties between oil-bearing layers and interlayers and the fracturing fluid properties influence the propagation of dual fractures in multilayered laboratory-scale models. In this case, the models with geological discontinuities in the vertical direction are strongly heterogeneous and RFPA-Petrol simulations successfully modeled the fracture configurations.

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“…As illustrated in Figure 1, the elastic damage-based constitutive law is used to evaluate the mesomechanical damage of elements with the maximum tensile stress criterion for tensile damage and the Mohr-Coulomb criterion for shear damage. The criteria can be expressed as [30][31][32][33][34][35]…”

Section: Damage Evolution Equationmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The impact of elements damage on mesomechanical parameters is also considered. The elastic modulus and strength of a mesoelement degrade monotonically as damage evolves and can be expressed as [30][31][32][33][34][35]…”

Section: Effect Of Damage On Mechanicalmentioning

confidence: 99%

A Coupled Gas Flow-Mechanical Damage Model and Its Numerical Simulations on High Energy Gas Fracturing

2020

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High-energy gas fracturing (HEGF) and gas fracturing (GF) are considered to be efficient to enhance the permeability of unconventional gas reservoir. The existing models for HEGF mainly focus on the dynamic loading of stress wave or static loading of gas pressurization, rather than on the combined actions of them. Studies on the combination of HEGF and GF (HEGF+GF) are also few. In this paper, a damage-based stress wave propagation-static mechanical equilibrium-gas flow coupling model is established. Numerical model and determination of mesomechanical parameters in finite element analysis are described in detail. Numerical simulations on crack evolution under HEGF, GF, and HEGF+GF are carried out, and the impact of in situ stress conditions on crack evolution is discussed further. A total of 11 cracks with length of 2.3-4 m in HEGF, 4 main cracks with length of 6.5–8 m in GF, and 11 radial cracks with length of 2–11.5 m in HEGF+GF are produced. Many radial cracks around the borehole are formed in HEGF and extended further in GF. The crustal stress difference is disadvantageous for crack complexity. This study can provide a reference for the application of HEGF+GF in unconventional gas reservoirs.

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Numerical investigation on the propagation behavior of hydraulic fractures in shale reservoir based on the DIP technique

Cited by 53 publications

References 29 publications

Deformation Experiments on Bowland and Posidonia Shale—Part I: Strength and Young’s Modulus at Ambient and In Situ pc–T Conditions

Deformation Experiments on Bowland and Posidonia Shale—Part I: Strength and Young’s Modulus at Ambient and In Situ pc–T Conditions

The Influence of an Interlayer on Dual Hydraulic Fractures Propagation

A Coupled Gas Flow-Mechanical Damage Model and Its Numerical Simulations on High Energy Gas Fracturing

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