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Numerical simulation of hydraulic fracture, stress shadow effects and induced seismicity in jointed rock

University of British Columbia

Hydraulic fracturing provides a means to optimize shale gas completions by enhancing the permeability of what is otherwise very tight rock. However, the coupled nature of the processes involved (e.g., thermo-hydro-mechanical-chemical), interlinked with geological variability and uncertainty, makes it extremely difficult to fully predict the spatial and temporal evolution of the hydrofrac and surrounding invaded zone. Numerical design tools have been developed to contend with this complexity, but these have largely focused on the mechanics of brittle fracture propagation at the expense of making simplifying assumptions of the host geology within which the hydraulic fracture is propagating, namely treating it as a linear elastic continuum. In contrast, the reservoir rock conditions are much more complex. Present are natural discontinuities, including bedding planes, joints, shears and faults superimposed by the in-situ stress field. The natural discontinuities under the applied in-situ stress have the potential to either enhance or diminish the effectiveness of the hydraulic fracturing treatment and subsequent hydrocarbon production. Improved understanding of the interactions between the hydraulic fracture and natural fractures under the stress field would allow designers and operators to achieve more effective hydraulic fracturing stimulation treatments in unconventional reservoirs. To better account for the presence of natural discontinuities in shale gas reservoirs, this thesis investigates the use of the 2-D commercial distinct-element code UDECTM (Itasca Consulting Group, 1999) to simulate the response of a jointed rock mass subjected to static loading and hydraulic injection. The numerical models are developed to illustrate some important concepts of hydraulic fracturing such as the effect of natural fractures in fracture connectivity, effects of stress shadowing in multiple horizontal well completion, and the effect of fluid injection in induced seismicity, so they can be used to qualitatively evaluate the effects of the in-situ environment on the design and the consequences of the design on the in-situ environment.

Text

2013-08-13

Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International

http://hdl.handle.net/2429/44779

Geological Engineering

University of British Columbia

UBCV

http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/