Characterizing hydraulic fractures in shale gas reservoirs using transient pressure tests

Hydraulic fracturing combined with horizontal drilling has been the technology that makes it possible to economically produce natural gas from unconventional shale gas or tight gas reservoirs.Hydraulic fracturing operations,in particular,multistage fracturing treatments along with horizontal wells in unconventional formations create complex fracture geometries or networks,which are difficult to characterize.The traditional analysis using a single vertical or horizontal fracture concept may be no longer applicable.Knowledge of these created fracture properties,such as their spatial distribution,extension and fracture areas,is essential information to evaluate stimulation results.However,there are currently few effective approaches available for quantifying hydraulic fractures in unconventional reservoirs.This work presents an unconventional gas reservoir simulator and its application to quantify hydraulic fractures in shale gas reservoirs using transient pressure data.The numerical model incorporates most known physical processes for gas production from unconventional reservoirs,including two-phase flow of liquid and gas,Klinkenberg effect,non-Darcy flow,and nonlinear adsorption.In addition,the model is able to handle various types and scales of fractures or heterogeneity using continuum,discrete or hybrid modeling approaches under different well production conditions of varying rate or pressure.Our modeling studies indicate that the most sensitive parameter of hydraulic fractures to early transient gas flow through extremely low permeability rock is actually the fracture-matrix contacting area,generated by fracturing stimulation.Based on this observation,it is possible to use transient pressure testing data to estimate the area of fractures generated from fracturing operations.We will conduct a series of modeling studies and present a methodology using typical transient pressure responses,simulated by the numerical model,to estimate fracture areas created or to quantity hydraulic fractures with traditional well testing technology.The type curves of pressure transients from this study can be used to quantify hydraulic fractures in field application.

Test and Study of the Rock Pressure Sensitivity for KeLa-2 Gas Reservoir in the Tarim Basin

KeLa-2 gas reservoir is the largest uncompartimentalized gas field so far discovered in China, with a reserve of hundreds of billions of cubic meters of dry gas. It has such features as extremely long interval (550m), high pressure (74.5MPa) and pressure coefficient (2.022). Gas reservoirs with a pressure coefficient of over 2.0 are not commonly found. The abnormal high-pressure reservoirs are quite different in characteristic and performance during the process of depletion exploitation. Therefore, it is necessary to know the property of pressure sensitivity for this abnormal high-pressure reservoir. The aim of this paper is to test the reservoir pressure sensitivity and to analyze its effect on the deliverability of gas. Through some experiments, the permeability change with the confining pressure of rock samples from KeLa-2 abnormal high-pressure gas reservoir is measured. A power function is used to match the measured data, and to derive an empirical equation to describe the change of permeability through the change of the reservoir pressure or effective overburden pressure. Considering the permeability change during the development of reservoirs, a conventional deliverability equation is modified, and the deliverability curve for KeLa-2 gas reservoir is predicted. The research indicates that the extent of the pressure sensitivity of rock samples from KeLa-2 is higher than that from the Daqing oilfield. KeLa-2 reservoir rock has the feature of an undercompaction state. The pressure sensitivity of a reservoir may decrease the well deliverability. It is concluded that for KeLa-2 reservoir the predicted absolute open flow (AOF), when the pressure sensitivity is taken into account, is approximately 70% of the AOF when permeability is constant and does not change with pressure.

Wireless distributed test system based on transient pressure signal detection and recognition

During the test on transient pressure signal in explosion field,false trigger caused by field interference can lead to test failure.To improve the stability of test system,a signal detection and recognition technology is proposed for transient pressure test system.In the process of signal acquisition,firstly,electrical levels are monitored in real time to find effective abrupt changes and mark them;then the effective data segments are detecdted totected;thus the effective signals can be acquired in turn finally.The experimental results show that the shock wave signal can be collected effectively and the reliability of the test system can be improved after removal of interferences.

Al/Hf ratio-dependent mechanisms of microstructure and mechanical property of nearly fully dense Al—Hf reactive material

This study proposed three types of Al—Hf reactive materials with particle size ratios(a),which were almost completely dense(porosity of<5.40%)owing to their preparation using hot-pressing technology.Microstructure characteristics and phase composition were analyzed,and the influence of particle size ratios on dynamic mechanical behavior and damage mechanism were investigated.The prepared sample with a=0.1 exhibited continuous wrapping of the Hf phase by the Al phase.Hf—Hf contact(continuous Hf phase)within the sample gradually increased with increasing a,and a small amount of fine Hf appeared for the sample with a=1.The reactive materials exhibited clear strain-rate sensitivity,with flow stressσ0.05and failure strainεfincreasing approximately linearly with increasing strain rate.ε.It is found that the plastic deformation of the material increased with increasing strain rate.As a increased from 0.1 to 1,the flow stress gradually increased.Impact failure of the material was dominated by ductile fracture with a large Al phase plastic deformation band for lower a,while brittle fracture with crushed Hf particles occurred at higher a.Finally,a constitutive model based on BP neural network was proposed to describe the stress-strain relationships of the materials,with an average relative error of 2.22%.

Damage constitutive model of lunar soil simulant geopolymer under impact loading

Lunar base construction is a crucial component of the lunar exploration program,and considering the dynamic characteristics of lunar soil is important for moon construction.Therefore,investigating the dynamic properties of lunar soil by establishing a constitutive relationship is critical for providing a theoretical basis for its damage evolution.In this paper,a split Hopkinson pressure bar(SHPB)device was used to perform three sets of impact tests under different pressures on a lunar soil simulant geopolymer(LSSG)with sodium silicate(Na_(2)SiO_(3))contents of 1%,3%,5%and 7%.The dynamic stressestrain curves,failure modes,and energy variation rules of LSSG under different pressures were obtained.The equation was modified based on the ZWT viscoelastic constitutive model and was combined with the damage variable.The damage element obeys the Weibull distribution and the constitutive equation that can describe the mechanical properties of LSSG under dynamic loading was obtained.The results demonstrate that the dynamic compressive strength of LSSG has a marked strain-rate strengthening effect.Na_(2)SiO_(3) has both strengthening and deterioration effects on the dynamic compressive strength of LSSG.As Na_(2)SiO_(3) grows,the dynamic compressive strength of LSSG first increases and then decreases.At a fixed air pressure,5%Na_(2)SiO_(3) had the largest dynamic compressive strength,the largest incident energy,the smallest absorbed energy,and the lightest damage.The ZWT equation was modified according to the stress response properties of LSSG and the range of the SHPB strain rate to obtain the constitutive equation of the LSSG,and the model’s correctness was confirmed.

Adsorption mechanism of different coal ranks under variable temperature and pressure conditions

Variable temperature and pressure adsorption tests were conducted on four coal samples with different coal ranks, under simulated temperatures and pressures corresponding to coal reservoirs at different depths. The regularity of the variation in the amounts of adsorption by coals under variable temperature and pressure and 30 ℃ isothermal conditions are compared and the adsorption characteristics of coal under the composite effect of temperature and pressure were obtained. The adsorption test and data processing method of coal under variable temperature and pressure are presented and the effect of the mechanism of temperature and pressure on the adsorption capacity of coal has been studied. The research results are of significant importance in the investigation of coalbed methane storage mechanism and for the prediction of the amounts of coalbed methane at various depths.

Approach to minish scattering of results for split Hopkinson pressure bar test

Split Hopkinson pressure bar（SHPB） apparatus, usually used for testing behavior of material in median and high strain-rate, is now widely used in the study of rock dynamic constitutive relation, damage evolvement mechanism and energy consumption. However, the possible reasons of sampling disturbance, machining error and so on often lead to the scattering of test results, and bring ultimate difficulty for forming general test conclusion. Based on the stochastic finite element method, the uncertain parameters of specimen density ps, specimen radius Rs, specimen elastic modulus Es and specimen length Ls in the data processing of SHPB test were considered, and the correlation between the parameters and the test results was analyzed. The results show that the specimen radius Rs has direct correlation with the test result, improving the accuracy in preparing and measuring of specimen is an effective way to improve the accuracy of test and minish the scattering of results for SHPB test.

Model test study of frost heaving pressures in tunnels excavated in fractured rock mass in cold regions

Based on the similarity theory, taking the horseshoe, city-gate and round linings as examples, the value and distribution regularities of normal frost heaving pressures （hereinafter as frost heaving pressures） in tunnels excavated in fractured rock mass in cold regions under different constraints and freezing depths were studied by a test model. It was found that the larger the frozen depth, the larger the frost heaving pressure, and the stronger the top constraint, the larger the frost heaving pressure. For the horseshoe lining and city-gate lining, the top constraint has a greater effect on the frost heaving pressures on the arch and the inverted arch. For the round lining, the influences of the top constraint on the frost heaving pressure in all linings are almost the same. The frost heaving pressure is maximum on the city-gate lining and minimal on the round lining. The largest frost heaving pressure all occur near the foot of the inverted arch for the three kinds of lining. Thus, the test data basically coincide with the observed in situ data.

Seismic earth pressures on flexible cantilever retaining walls with deformable inclusions

In this study, the results of 1-g shaking table tests performed on small-scale flexible cantilever wallmodels retaining composite backfill made of a deformable geofoam inclusion and granular cohesionlessmaterial were presented. Two different polystyrene materials were utilized as deformable inclusions.Lateral dynamic earth pressures and wall displacements at different elevations of the retaining wallmodel were monitored during the tests. The earth pressures and displacements of the retaining wallswith deformable inclusions were compared with those of the models without geofoam inclusions.Comparisons indicated that geofoam panels of low stiffness installed against the retaining wall modelaffect displacement and dynamic lateral pressure profile along the wall height. Depending on the inclusioncharacteristics and the wall flexibility, up to 50% reduction in dynamic earth pressures wasobserved. The efficiency of load and displacement reduction decreased as the flexibility ratio of the wallmodel increased. On the other hand, dynamic load reduction efficiency of the deformable inclusionincreased as the amplitude and frequency ratio of the seismic excitation increased. Relative flexibility ofthe deformable layer （the thickness and the elastic stiffness of the polystyrene material） played animportant role in the amount of load reduction. Dynamic earth pressure coefficients were compared withthose calculated with an analytical approach. Pressure coefficients calculated with this method werefound to be in good agreement with the results of the tests performed on the wall model having lowflexibility ratio. It was observed that deformable inclusions reduce residual wall stresses observed at theend of seismic excitation thus contributing to the post-earthquake stability of the retaining wall. Thegraphs presented within this paper regarding the dynamic earth pressure coefficients versus the wallflexibility and inclusion characteristics may serve for the seismic design of full-scale retaining walls withdeformable polystyrene inclusions. 2014 Institute of Rock and Soil Mechanics, Chinese Academy of Sciences. Production and hosting byElsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Modular zonal fluid sampling and pressure testing technology for production well

To accurately obtain development dynamic data such as zonal pressure and fluid parameters of each oil layer in the late development stage of a high water-cut old oilfield, a modular zonal sampling and testing technology with the characteristics of modularization, full electronic control and rapidity was proposed and developed. Lab testing and on-site testing was carried out. The modular zonal sampling and testing system is composed of 10 functional modules, namely ground control system, downhole power supply module, drainage pump, electronically controlled anchor, electronically controlled packer, electronically controlled sampler, magnetic positioning sub, terminal sub, adapter cable, and quick connector. Indoor tests have confirmed that the performance parameters of each module meet the design requirements. The downhole function modules of the system can withstand pressures up to 35 MPa and temperatures up to 85 ℃. The rubber cylinder of the electronically controlled packer can withstand a pressure difference of more than 10 MPa. The electronically controlled anchor has an anchoring force of greater than 6.9 t, and can be forcibly detached in the event of an accident. The discharge pump has a displacement of 0.8 m;/d and a head of 500 m. The electronically controlled sampler can meet the requirement of taking 500 mL of sample in each of the 3 chambers. Field tests in Jilin Oilfield show that the system can realize rapid isolation and self-check of isolation of a certain production interval downhole, as well as layer-by layer pressure build-up test. The drainage pump can be used to discharge the mixed liquid between the upper and lower packers and near the wellbore to obtain real fluid samples of the tested formation interval. The data obtained give us better understanding on the pay zones in old oilfields, and provide important basis for development plan adjustment, reservoir stimulation, and EOR measures.

Study on Swell Pressure Stress of Bentonite in Geosynthetic Clay Liners

The geosynthetic clay liner （GCL） is a kind of waterproofing material used widely in engineering. The waterproof mechanism is understood in terms of bentonite particles becoming water-obstruct colloid layers after they sorb water and swell. The swell pressure stress, however, has not been determined directly till now. In our experiment, swell pressure stress of the GCL under saturated water-sorbing condition was measured directly using a custom-made instrument. The results show that （1） the instrument designed by the authors performs satisfactorily and the test results are reproducible; and （2） the trend line of swell pressure stress variation with time can be divided into three segments. The first segment is characterized by a quick increase of the swell force in the first 0-50 hours. The swell pressure stress increases by 7.00×10^-4-1.00×10^-3 MPa/h. The second segment shows a slow increase of the swell pressure stress from the 50th to 1730th hour. The swell force increases by 7.54×10^-6-2.02×10^-5 MPa/h. The third segment is characterized by a little variation in swell pressure stress after 1730 hours. In this segment, the average value of the swell pressure stress measurements is 0.0719 MPa and the maximum value is 0.0729 MPa. It is suggested that the swell pressure stress is mainly raised by water entering pores among montmorillonite particles and interstitial layers in individual montmorillonite crystals, leading to an increase of volume.

Verification of Integrity of Steam Generator Tubes by Pressure Testing

This paper assessed the benefit of the in-situ pressure test to support steam generator tube integrity assessment and reviewed a conservatism of currently applied structural integrity assessment methodology against defected tubes. According to the steam generator program requirement, condition monitoring assessment was performed to the all detected flaws. For condition monitoring assessments, the limiting structural integrity requirement should be demonstrated for all detected degraded tubes at a probability of at least 0.95 at 50% confidence. Some flaws were slightly exceeded the structural integrity threshold values of the condition monitoring performance limits using analytical method. As a direct evaluation of tube integrity with degraded tubes, in-situ pressure testing performed on some selected flaws and passed all proof and leakage test criteria with no leakage. From this pressure testing, the authors have verified that degraded tubes met a specified value containing a defined safety margins. Also, the authors have confirmed that existing structural assessment methodology has enough margins to retain integrity of steam generator tubes.

Preliminary study of abnormal increase of postexercise systolic blood pressure in the diagnosis of coronary artery disease

Objectives This study sought to evaluate the diagnostic value of abnormal increase of postexercise systolic blood pressure (SBP) for detecting coronary artery disease (CAD) in patients with or without hypertension. Methods Treadmill exercise testing (TET) was conducted in 88 patients (40 CAD patients, 48 control subjects) with or without hypertension, each of whom underwent selective coronary angiography (CAG). The abnormal increase of postexercise SBP was defined as 10mmHg higher than earlier periods during the recovery phase (6 minutes) of exercise testing. Results The abnormal increase of postexercise SBP had higher sensitivity, specificity, and accuracy for detecting CAD than those of ST - segment depression in patients with or without hypertension. Its accuracy increased with the severity of CAD while decreased in patients with hypertension, and the increase value of SBP had a positive correlation with the extent of coronary artery lesion. The combination of ST - segment depression and abnormal increase of postexercise SBP diagnosed CAD most accurately in patients with hypertension. Conclusions Abnormal increase of postexercise SBP may be a useful index for diagnosing CAD.

BOP shear force evaluation under complex scenarios

As the“throat”of the drilling well control system,ram blowout preventers(BOPs)can effectively prevent blowout accidents.However,the ram shear mechanism under complex working conditions is unclear,and it is difficult to evaluate the ram BOP shear force,leading to frequent shear failure accidents in oilfields.Aiming at the above problems,this paper takes the double-V ram BOP as the research object,and integrates the methods of theoretical analysis,simulation modeling,and test verification to analyze the shear force in the pipe shear process under both static and moving conditions.A ram BOP shear force evaluation method is proposed based on equivalent stress.Finally,by comparing with calculation data and experimental data,the error between them is less than 5%,demonstrating the applicability and effectiveness of the proposed method.The research results can provide a theoretical basis for oilfield operations of ram BOPs.

Particle characteristics and rheological constitutive relations of high concentration red mud

Red mud has relatively small solid particles （d50= 13.02 μm） and will flow in paste form under high pressure during pipeline transport. Red mud belongs to a two-phase flow of materials with high viscosity and a high concentration of non-sedimentation, homogeneous solid-liquids. It is difficult to test its rheological properties under atmospheric pressure. Measurements such as rotational viscometry can not reflect the real state of the material when it is flowing in a pipe. Tested rheological parameters are somewhat higher than the actual values. In our investigation, grain shape, distinctive modality and grain size distribution of red mud were tested. Based on the principle of tube measurement, rheological experiments on red mud at different concentrations were carried out by using our independently developed tube-type pressure theology test facility, and obtained constitutive equations. We conclude that red mud behaves as non-Newtonian pseudo-plastic fluid in pipe flows. Its consistency and power-law indices vary considerably with different concentrations.

Numerical analysis of the effects of downhole dynamic conditions on formation testing while drilling

Formation testing while drilling is an innovative technique that is replacing conventional pressure testing in which the fluid sampling is conducted in a relatively short time following the drilling. At this time, mud invasion has just started, mudcake has not formed entirely and the formation pressure is not stable. Therefore, it is important to study the influence of the downhole dynamic environment on pressure testing and fluid sampling. This paper applies an oil-water two phase finite element model to study the influence of mudcake quality and mud filtrate invasion on supercharge pressure, pretest and sampling in the reservoirs of different permeability. However, the study is only for the cases with water based mud in the wellbore. The results illustrate that the mudcake quality has a significant influence on the supercharge pressure and fluid sampling, while the level of mud filtrate invasion has a strong impact on pressure testing and sampling. In addition, in-situ formation pressure testing is more difficult in low permeability reservoirs as the mud filtrate invasion is deeper and therefore degrades the quality of fluid sampling. Finally, a field example from an oil field on the Alaskan North Slope is presented to validate the numerical studies of the effects of downhole dynamic conditions on formation testing while drilling.

Cause analysis and solutions of water blocking damage in cracked/non-cracked tight sandstone gas reservoirs

After hydraulic fracturing treatment,a reduction in permeability caused by the invasion of fracturing fluids is an inevitable problem,which is called water blocking damage.Therefore,it is important to mitigate and eliminate water blocking damage to improve the flow capacities of formation fluids and flowback rates of the fracturing fluid.However,the steady-state core flow method cannot quickly and accurately evaluate the effects of chemical agents in enhancing the fluid flow capacities in tight reservoirs.This paper introduces a time-saving and accurate method,pressure transmission test(PTT),which can quickly and quantitatively evaluate the liquid flow capacities and gas-drive flowback rates of a new nanoemulsion.Furthermore,scanning electron microscopy(SEM)was used to analyze the damage mechanism of different fluids and the adsorption of chemical agents on the rock surface.Parallel core flow experiments were used to evaluate the effects of the nanoemulsion on enhancing flowback rates in heterogeneous tight reservoirs.Experimental results show that the water blocking damage mechanisms differ in matrices and fractures.The main channels for gas channeling are fractures in cracked cores and pores in non-cracked cores.Cracked cores suffer less damage from water blocking than non-cracked cores,but have a lower potential to reduce water saturation.The PTT and SEM results show that the permeability reduction in tight sandstones caused by invasion of external fluids can be list as guar gum fracturing fluid>slickwater>brine.Parallel core flow experiments show that for low-permeability heterogenous s andstone reservoirs with a certain permeability ratio,the nanoemulsion can not only reduce reverse gas channeling degree,but also increase the flowback rate of the fracturing fluid.The nanoemulsion system provides a new solution to mitigate and eliminate water blocking damage caused by fracturing fluids in tight sandstone gas reservoirs.

Theoretical and Applied Mechanics Letters

The placement of pressure taps on the surface of the wind tunnel test model is an important means toobtain the surface pressure distribution.However,limited by space location and experimental cost,it isdifficult to arrange enough pressure measuring taps on the surface of complex models to obtain completepressure distribution information,thus it is impossible to obtain accurate lift and moment characteristicsthrough integration.The paper proposes a refined reconstruction method of airfoil surface pressure basedon compressed sensing,which can reconstruct the pressure distribution with high precision with lesspressure measurement data.Tests on typical airfoil subsonic flow around flow show that the accuracyof lift and moment after the pressure integration reconstructed by 4-8 measuring points can meet therequirements of the national military standard.The algorithm is robust to noise,and provides a new ideafor obtaining accurate force data from sparse surface pressure tests in engineering.

Surveying on two-zone height of sublevel strip mining

The site drilling packer permeability test and TEM to the 2100 workface in Gucheng coalmine determined the two-zone height under sublevel strip mining.The conclusion considers that the lying strata deterioration law of the strip mining is similar to that of the sublevel mining.Thus, against that the actually measured data lacked, it is feasible to refer to the reservation of the waterproof coal pillar in the neighbor coalmine under sublevel situation.However, it is necessary to further launch the research on lying strata deterioration law under sublevel striping mining for the purpose of providing the right foundation for the layout of the workface not mined so far and the reservation of the waterproof coal pillar in the mining area.

Dynamic failure of dry and fully saturated limestone samples based on incubation time concept

This paper outlines the results of experimental study of the dynamic rock failure based on the comparison of dry and saturated limestone samples obtained during the dynamic compression and split tests. The tests were performed using the Kolsky method and its modifications for dynamic splitting. The mechanical data(e.g. strength, time and energy characteristics) of this material at high strain rates are obtained. It is shown that these characteristics are sensitive to the strain rate. A unified interpretation of these rate effects, based on the structuraletemporal approach, is hereby presented. It is demonstrated that the temporal dependence of the dynamic compressive and split tensile strengths of dry and saturated limestone samples can be predicted by the incubation time criterion. Previously discovered possibilities to optimize(minimize) the energy input for the failure process is discussed in connection with industrial rock failure processes. It is shown that the optimal energy input value associated with critical load, which is required to initialize failure in the rock media, strongly depends on the incubation time and the impact duration. The optimal load shapes, which minimize the momentum for a single failure impact, are demonstrated. Through this investigation, a possible approach to reduce the specific energy required for rock cutting by means of high-frequency vibrations is also discussed.