Influences of clean fracturing fluid viscosity and horizontal in-situ stress difference on hydraulic fracture propagation and morphology in coal seam

The viscosity of fracturing fluid and in-situ stress difference are the two important factors that affect the hydraulic fracturing pressure and propagation morphology. In this study, raw coal was used to prepare coal samples for experiments, and clean fracturing fluid samples were prepared using CTAB surfactant. A series of hydraulic fracturing tests were conducted with an in-house developed triaxial hydraulic fracturing simulator and the fracturing process was monitored with an acoustic emission instrument to analyze the influences of fracturing fluid viscosity and horizontal in-situ stress difference on coal fracture propagation. The results show that the number of branched fractures decreased, the fracture pattern became simpler, the fractures width increased obviously, and the distribution of AE event points was concentrated with the increase of the fracturing fluid viscosity or the horizontal in-situ stress difference. The acoustic emission energy decreases with the increase of fracturing fluid viscosity and increases with the increase of horizontal in situ stress difference. The low viscosity clean fracturing fluid has strong elasticity and is easy to be compressed into the tip of fractures, resulting in complex fractures. The high viscosity clean fracturing fluids are the opposite. Our experimental results provide a reference and scientific basis for the design and optimization of field hydraulic fracturing parameters.

Multistage hydraulic fracturing of a horizontal well for hard roof related coal burst control:Insights from numerical modelling to field application

Multistage hydraulic fracturing of horizontal wells(MFHW)is a promising technology for controlling coal burst caused by thick and hard roofs in China.However,challenges remain regarding the MFHW control mechanism of coal burst and assessment of the associated fracturing effects.In this study,these challenges were investigated through numerical modelling and field applications,based on the actual operating parameters of MFHW for hard roofs in a Chinese coal mine.A damage parameter(D)is proposed to assess the degree of hydraulic fracturing in the roof.The mechanisms and effects of MFHW for controlling coal burst are analyzed using microseismic(MS)data and front-abutment stress distribution.Results show that the degree of fracturing can be categorized into lightly-fractured(D≤0.3),moderately fractured(0.3<D≤0.6),well-fractured(0.6<D≤0.9),and over-fractured(0.9<D≤0.95).A response stage in the fracturing process,characterized by a slowdown in crack development,indicates the transition to a wellfractured condition.After MFHW,the zone range and peak value of the front-abutment stress decrease.Additionally,MS events shift from near the coal seam to the fractured roof layers,with the number of MS events increases while the average MS energy decreases.The MFHW control mechanisms of coal bursts involve mitigating mining-induced stress and reducing seismic activity during longwall retreat,ensuring stresses remain below the ultimate stress level.These findings provide a reference for evaluating MFHW fracturing effects and controlling coal burst disasters in engineering.

Comparative assessment of mechanical and chemical fluid diversion techniques during hydraulic fracturing in horizontal wells

The application of fluid diversion during hydraulic fracturing is an evolving technology and has become popular amongst E&P operators over the past few years.The primary objective of the fluid diversion is to improve hydraulic fracturing treatment by increasing stimulated reservoir volume and improving hydrocarbon recovery.This is possible by achieving any of the following objectives:creating uniform distribution of treatment slurry within the target zone;treating unstimulated and under-stimulated zones;or by increasing fracture density by creating a complex fracture network.The fluid diversion application is also helpful in decreasing the number of stages(by increasing stage length)for multi-stage plug-n-perf(PnP)fracturing treatment.It is also applied to prevent fracture-driven interactions between adjacent wells,which is currently a major issue,especially in shale.In addition,for successful refracturing treatment,the diverter application is essential for isolating the existing fractures and redirecting the treatment slurry to the desired unstimulated zones.The diversion methods can be broadly categorized into the mechanical and chemical diversion.Several established mechanical diversion techniques are frac plugs,expandable casing patches,expandable liners,swellable packers,straddle packer assembly,sand plugs,frac sleeves,perforation ball sealers,and limited entry technique.The different chemical diversion techniques are particulates,fibers,gels,surfactants,perforation pods,and composite diverting.This paper describes the current status of established mechanical and chemical diverter technologies and examines their comparative advantages and challenges.Various techniques are suitable for diverter application,but the technique is selected based on the desired objective and conditions of the wellbore and reservoir.The general guidelines for selecting diversion techniques and operational considerations are also provided in the paper.The diagnosis of diversion treatment plays an essential role in diversion technique selection and optimization of selection parameters for the subsequent treatments.Therefore,the application of conventional surface pressure monitoring techniques and advanced diagnostic tools to evaluate diversion effectiveness are briefly described.Presently no standard laboratory testing method is established for the performance evaluation of diverting agents.Therefore,researchers have implemented various laboratory methods,which are briefly summarized in the paper.Significant insight into the diversion technology and guidelines for its selection and successful implementation is provided to help engineers to increase the effectiveness of hydraulic fracturing treatments.The limitations of individual diversion techniques are clarified,which provide the future scope of research for improvement in various diversion technologies.

Factors Influencing Fracture Propagation in Collaborative Fracturing ofMultiple HorizontalWells

Horizontal well-stimulation is the key to unconventional resource exploration and development.The development mode of the well plant helps increase the stimulated reservoir volume.Nevertheless,fracture interference between wells reduces the fracturing effect.Here,a 2D hydro-mechanical coupling model describing hydraulic fracture(HF)propagation is established with the extended finite element method,and the effects of several factors on HF propagation during multiple wells fracturing are analyzed.The results show that with an increase in elastic modulus,horizontal principal stress difference and injection fluid displacement,the total fracture area and the reservoir stimulation efficiency are both improved in all three fracturing technologies.After a comparison of the three technologies,the method of improved zipper fracturing is proposed,which avoids mutual interference between HFs,and the reservoir stimulation effect is improved significantly.The study provides guidance for optimizing the fracturing technology of multiple horizontal wells.

Practice and development suggestions of hydraulic fracturing technology in the Gulong shale oil reservoirs of Songliao Basin, NE China

This paper reviews the multiple rounds of upgrades of the hydraulic fracturing technology used in the Gulong shale oil reservoirs and gives suggestions about stimulation technology development in relation to the production performance of Gulong shale oil wells.Under the control of high-density bedding fractures,fracturing in the Gulong shale results in a complex fracture morphology,yet with highly suppressed fracture height and length.Hydraulic fracturing fails to generate artificial fractures with sufficient lengths and heights,which is a main restraint on the effective stimulation in the Gulong shale oil reservoirs.In this regard,the fracturing design shall follow the strategy of"controlling near-wellbore complex fractures and maximizing the extension of main fractures"Increasing the proportions of guar gum fracturing fluids,reducing perforation clusters within one fracturing stage,raising pump rates and appropriately exploiting stress interference are conducive to fracture propagation and lead to a considerably expanded stimulated reservoir volume(SRV).The upgraded main hydraulic fracturing technology is much more applicable to the Gulong shale oil reservoirs.It accelerates the oil production with a low flowback rate and lifts oil cut during the initial production of well groups,which both help to improve well production.It is suggested to optimize the hydraulic fracturing technology in six aspects,namely,suppressing propagation of near-wellbore microfractures,improving the pumping scheme of CO_(2),managing the perforating density,enhancing multi-proppant combination,reviewing well pattern/spacing,and discreetly applying fiber-assisted injection,so as to improve the SRv,the distal fracture complexity and the long-term fracture conductivity.

Influence of Bedding and Mineral Composition on Mechanical Properties and Its Implication for Hydraulic Fracturing of Shale Oil Reservoirs

The premise of hydraulic fracturing is to have an accurate and detailed understanding of the rock mechanical properties and fracture propagation law of shale reservoirs. In this paper,a comprehensive evaluation of the mechanical properties of the shale oil reservoir in the south of Songliao Basin is carried out. Based on the experiments and the in-situ stress analysis, the fracture propagation law of three types of shale reservoirs is obtained,and the suggestions for fracturing are put forward. The results have shown that the fracture propagation of pure shale and low mature reservoir is easy to open along the bedding plane under compression loading,which is greatly influenced by the bedding. Sand-bearing shale is slightly better,the fractures of which are not easy to open along the bedding plane. The mechanical experimental results show that all the samples have the characteristics of low compressive strength,low Young’s modulus and strong anisotropy,indicating that the shale oil reservoir is certain plastic,which is related to its high clay mineral content and controlled by the bedding development. Compared with pure shale and low mature shale,the sandbearing shale has less clay content and less developed bedding,which maybe the main reason for its slightly better brittleness. Overall,the expansion of hydraulic fracture is controlled by in-situ stress and bedding. Because of the development of bedding,it is easy to form horizontal fractures. Thus it is not suitable for horizontal well fracturing.Because of the high content of clay minerals,the applicability of conventional slick hydraulic fracturing fluid is poor. It is suggested to use vertical well or directional well to carry out volume fracturing. In this way,the effect of bedding can be effectively used to open and connect the bedding and form a larger fracture network.

Hydraulic Fracturing Stress Measurements and Their Implication for the Design of the First Concrete Lined Pressure Shaft in Sri Lanka

The Urea Oya Multipurpose Development Project （UMDP） is a water transfer, hydropower and irrigation in the south-eastern part of the central highland region of Sri Lanka. During geotechnical site investigation program 42 hydraulic fracture tests and 42 impression packer tests were carried out in 3 boreholes to about 840 m depth. Based on the stress measurements the minimum and maximum horizontal stress ratios were calculated. In situ stress computations at all the tests were based on the assumption that the principal stress components were vertical （σv） and horizontal （σH and σh, the maximum and minimum, respectively）. The results of the measurements had a direct impact on the design of the major openings bearing a high overburden--the underground powerhouse and the transformer cavern--and revealed a significant optimization potential concerning the selection of the lining system of the pressure shaft.

Optimization of integrated geological-engineering design of volume fracturing with fan-shaped well pattern

According to the variable toe-to-heel well spacing, combined with the dislocation theory, discrete lattice method, and finite-element-method(FEM) based fluid-solid coupling, an integrated geological-engineering method of volume fracturing for fan-shaped well pattern is proposed considering the geomechanical modeling, induced stress calculation, hydraulic fracturing simulation, and post-frac productivity evaluation. Besides, we propose the differential fracturing design for the conventional productivity-area and the potential production area for fan-shaped horizontal wells. After the fracturing of the conventional production area for H1 fan-shaped well platform, the research shows that the maximum reduction of the horizontal principal stress difference in the potential productivity-area is 0.2 MPa, which cannot cause the stress reversal, but this reduction is still conducive to the lateral propagation of hydraulic fractures. According to the optimized fracturing design, in zone-Ⅰ of the potential production area, only Well 2 is fractured, with a cluster spacing of 30 m and an injection rate of 12 m^(3)/min per stage;in zone-Ⅱ, Well 2 is fractured before Well 3, with a cluster spacing of 30 m and an injection rate of 12 m^(3)/min per stage. The swept area of the pore pressure drop in the potential production area is small, showing that the reservoir is not well developed. The hydraulic fracturing in the toe area can be improved by, for example, properly densifying the fractures and adjusting the fracture distribution, in order to enhance the swept volume and increase the reservoir utilization.

Pressure transient analysis of a finite-conductivity multiple fractured horizontal well in linear composite gas reservoirs

Faulted gas reservoirs are very common in reality,where some linear leaky faults divide the gas reservoir into several reservoir regions with distinct physical properties.This kind of gas reservoirs is also known as linear composite(LC)gas reservoirs.Although some analytical/semi-analytical models have been proposed to investigate pressure behaviors of producing wells in LC reservoirs based on the linear composite ideas,almost all of them focus on vertical wells and studies on multiple fractured horizontal wells are rare.After the pressure wave arrives at the leaky fault,pressure behaviors of multiple fractured horizontal wells will be affected by the leaky faults.Understanding the effect of leaky faults on pressure behaviors of multiple fractured horizontal wells is critical to the development design.Therefore,a semi-analytical model of finite-conductivity multiple fractured horizontal(FCMFH)wells in LC gas reservoirs is established based on Laplace-space superposition principle and fracture discrete method.The proposed model is validated against commercial numerical simulator.Type curves are obtained to study pressure characteristics and identify flow regimes.The effects of some parameters on type curves are discussed.The proposed model will have a profound effect on developing analytical/semi-analytical models for other complex well types in LC gas reservoirs.

Investigation of low water recovery based on gas-water two-phase low-velocity Non-Darcy flow model for hydraulically fractured horizontal wells in shale

Various mechanisms are employed to interpret the low water recovery during the shale-gas production period,such as extra-trapped water in the fracture network,water imbibition due to osmotic pressure and capillary pressure.These lead to the difficulty of water flow,which could be described by lowvelocity non-Darcy's law known as threshold pressure gradient(TPG).In this paper we firstly employ the low-velocity non-Darcy's law to describe the water flow and use Darcy flow accounting for slip flow and free molecular flow mechanisms to model gas flow in the shale formation.The sensitive study using numerical simulation shows that the proposed flow model could model the low fracturing liquid recovery and that large pseudo TPG leads to lower fracturing liquid recovery.Thus,the proposed model would give new insight to model the low water recovery in shale formations.

A simulation study comparing the Texas two-step and the multistage consecutive fracturing method

Multistage hydraulic fracturing in horizontal wells is a critical technique for developing unconventional oil and gas resources.Stress interactions among neighboring fractures cause immature fracture development.The Texas two-step fracturing(TTSF)method is a new technique that aims to enhance fracture complexity and conductivity.This paper compares the fracture development of consecutive fracturing and the TTSF.The fracturing sequence in the multistage fracturing method has a significant effect on the fracture length,fracture width and injection pres sure.The consecutive fracturing results in relatively uneven fracture length and width.Certain fractures in consecutive fracturing are restrained to be closed due to the strong stress shadowing effect.In contrast,TTSF has considerable potential for alleviating the negative effects of stress interactions and producing a larger stimulated reservoir volume.

Numerical Simulation Study on the Effect of Horizontal Well Reservoir Stimulation for Gas Hydrate Production

A new gas hydrate reservoir stimulation method of in-situ fracturing with transient heating is proposed, in line with analysis of the technological bottlenecks faced by marine gas hydrate production. This method injects the developed chemical reagents into a hydrate reservoir through hydraulic fracturing, releasing heat during the chemical reaction to increase the hydrate decomposition rate. The chemical reaction product furthermore has a honeycomb structure to support fractures and increase reservoir permeability. Based on the geological model of natural gas hydrate in the South China Sea, three development methods are simulated to evaluate hydrate production capacity, consisting of horizontal well, fractured horizontal well and in-situ fracturing with transient heating well. Compared with the horizontal well, the simulation results show that the cumulative gas production of the fractured horizontal well in one year is 7 times that of the horizontal well, while the cumulative gas production of in-situ fracturing with transient heating well is 12 times that of the horizontal well, which significantly improves daily efficiency and cumulative gas production. In addition, the variation patterns of hydrate saturation and temperature-pressure fields with production time for the three exploitation plans are presented, it being found that three sensitive parameters of fracture conductivity, fracture half-length and fracture number are positively correlated with hydrate production enhancement. Through the simulations, basic data and theoretical support for the optimization of gas hydrate reservoir stimulation scheme has been provided.

Selection of candidate wells for re-fracturing in tight gas sand reservoirs using fuzzy inference

An artificial-intelligence based decision-making protocol is developed for tight gas sands to identify re-fracturing wells and used in case studies. The methodology is based on fuzzy logic to deal with imprecision and subjectivity through mathematical representations of linguistic vagueness, and is a computing system based on the concepts of fuzzy set theory, fuzzy if-then rules, and fuzzy reasoning. Five indexes are used to characterize hydraulic fracture quality, reservoir characteristics, operational parameters, initial conditions, and production related to the selection of re-fracturing well, and each index includes 3 related parameters. The value of each index/parameter is grouped into three categories that are low, medium, and high. For each category, a trapezoidal membership function all related rules are defined. The related parameters of an index are input into the rule-based fuzzy-inference system to output value of the index. Another fuzzy-inference system is built with the reservoir index, operational index, initial condition index and production index as input parameters and re-fracturing potential index as output parameter to screen out re-fracturing wells. This approach was successfully validated using published data.

煤系水平井定向射孔压裂裂缝扩展机制

复杂含煤地层顶板水平井射孔压裂是增加煤层透气性、提升瓦斯抽采效率的关键,而地层结构和射孔位置影响裂缝扩展形态。考虑地层结构特征及射孔位置,建立压裂工程地质模型;基于有限元方法构建数值模型,研究射孔位置、地层条件、垂向应力与水平应力差对裂缝扩展的影响,并进行工程验证,提出施工建议。结果表明:射孔孔眼位置存在全部位于煤层中、全部位于顶板岩层中和部分位于顶板部分位于煤层3种情况。孔眼位于煤层中,裂缝受到界面的“阻隔”作用,对煤层改造有利;孔眼位于顶板,当顶板层理发育,垂向应力与最小水平主应力差大于2MPa时裂缝能够穿越层理和界面进入煤层,而顶板完整时,应力差大于-2MPa裂缝即可在孔眼诱导作用下进入煤层,顶板层理和界面对裂缝垂向扩展具有“阻挡”作用,结构完整地层有利于裂缝的垂向穿层扩展;孔眼部分进入煤层,对裂缝起裂、扩展产生明显诱导作用,形成沿界面的水平缝和进入煤层的垂直缝,无论顶板是否完整,都能形成有效改造裂缝。当射孔孔眼距煤层较远、孔眼与煤层间弱面发育、水平应力大于垂向应力或压裂施工规模不足时,建议采用深穿透射孔、分支孔等能够沟通煤层的工程措施,以保证压裂效果。研究结果在陕西韩城某煤矿的井下分段压裂施工中进行了应用,试验孔瓦斯抽采效果良好,可为类似地质、工程条件下的压裂施工提供借鉴。

页岩油水平井组压裂动态应力场研究

水平井组开发页岩油是基于水平单井压裂局限性提出的新型压裂方式。在水平井组压裂过程中,由于存在多口井和多条人工裂缝,且裂缝周围应力变化和井间地应力分布复杂,这种复杂的应力变化将进一步影响裂缝的扩展形态。因此,深入研究水平井组中不同压裂方式下应力场的变化机理和规律对于控制裂缝形态和提高裂缝复杂度具有重要意义。针对页岩油储层压裂改造过程中应力分布问题,通过构建水力压裂数值模型,系统地研究水平井组不同压裂方式下应力场的变化机理和规律以及裂缝扩展后的应力场变化规律,并基于裂缝的形态特点进行了压裂效果的定量评价。研究表明:①同步压裂布缝方式可以有效影响井间地应力的变化,相较于正对布缝方式,交错布缝方式在井间产生的诱导应力提高了24%,并在相同井距下更容易引起井间地应力转向;②交错布缝方式下所形成的裂缝形态更为优越,压裂效果更为显著,交错布缝能有效提高裂缝的长度和宽度,使裂缝表面积和体积增大了4.6%和21.1%;③拉链压裂所形成的裂缝形态更为优越,压裂效果优于同步压裂,进一步增大了裂缝长度和宽度,使裂缝总表面积和总体积增大了1.3%和0.1%。

页岩气井地质工程套管变形类型及影响因素研究进展

通过调研国内外大量页岩气井套管变形方面的文献,总结了页岩气井套管变形的类型,探讨了深、浅层页岩气套管变形影响因素差异及面临的问题,并提出了针对性的防治措施及下一步主要研究方向。研究结果表明:(1)页岩气井套管变形类型主要包括挤压缩径变形和剪切变形,深层页岩气井出现套管变形的概率较中浅层更大,主要为剪切变形。(2)造成套管变形的工程因素包括井筒降温、固井质量、套管疲劳、套管质量以及井眼狗腿度等,地质因素包括岩石力学特性、非均匀地应力以及天然裂缝/断层滑移等;深层页岩气井套管变形主要受天然裂缝/断层滑移的影响。(3)页岩气井套管变形风险防治措施包括控制井筒温度及注入强度,采用水泥环力学性能参数较低的水泥进行固井作业,适当减小套管外径、增大壁厚、提升钢级等提高套管质量,以及尽量让井轨迹平滑等;对深层页岩气井可通过将井眼水平段延伸方向与岩层层理方向设计为一致,掌握裂缝分布情况、尽量避开高风险剪切滑移层段,对不同级别滑移风险层段合理降低压裂规模、调整井筒方位等措施来降低套管剪切变形的风险。(4)页岩气井套管变形防治研究方向主要包括优选岩石力学特性好的压裂层段、最优井轨迹与地应力的关系分析、裂缝识别与评价、断层滑移量与套变量计算等方面。

基于多裂缝扩展形态的水平井压裂施工参数优化

为研究多簇压裂裂缝扩展的实际形态对水平井产能预测的影响,进而科学指导压裂施工设计,基于位移不连续法(DDM)研究了布缝间距和布缝数量2个因素对多裂缝扩展形态、流量分配的影响,并采用CMG数值模拟软件结合吉林油田H区块的实际地质参数,建立了单水平井压裂均质模型,基于产能最大化,优选出最佳的压裂施工参数。结果表明,随着簇数增加,进液量百分比极差和裂缝长度极差先增大,后略微减小;当进行4簇射孔压裂时,裂缝2、3的进液量百分比和缝宽都过小;簇间距对多裂缝扩展均匀程度有着重要影响。为了保证多裂缝扩展均匀程度更高,在实际压裂施工中应采用较大的簇间距。在H区块地层参数条件下,最优裂缝簇数为3簇,最佳簇间距为40 m,最优裂缝半长为120 m,最佳裂缝导流能力为10μm^(2)·cm。该区块适合使用黏度30 MPa·s、排量6 m^(3)/min的压裂液进行压裂。

水平井射孔簇内支撑剂分布数值模拟

为研究水平井射孔簇内支撑剂的运移规律,建立了水平井筒几何模型,并采用欧拉双流体模型分析了不同注入流量、压裂液黏度和注入φ(砂粒)对支撑剂运移规律的影响。结果表明,在水平井筒中,支撑剂的分布向趾部偏移。增加注入流速能促进颗粒的分散,但会降低射孔内的均匀性;提高压裂液黏度能减缓颗粒沉降,有助于支撑剂的均匀分布;增加注入φ(砂粒)会增加井筒堵塞风险,因此选择注入φ(砂粒)<10%。此外,雷诺数与归一化标准差呈自然对数关系,较高的雷诺数有助于提高颗粒在射孔流出的均匀性。

页岩油气开采对地下水污染研究现状与动向

页岩油和页岩气开采过程产生的大量废料,如果不经过处理,将对地下水造成污染。首先,介绍了页岩油气的分布和赋存机理,以及地面干馏、水平钻井和水力压裂等开采技术;然后,阐述了页岩油气在现场准备、钻井压裂、采油采气等不同开采环节中的主要污染源;进而讨论了页岩油气开采中主要的地下水污染物,分别是有机污染物、重金属和放射性物质,同时阐述了其带来的地下水污染长期性、隐蔽性和差异性的特点;最后,从技术改进和废料处理等方面对页岩油气开采对地下水污染的防治手段进行了展望。

准噶尔盆地吉木萨尔凹陷页岩水平井水力压裂裂缝形态

准噶尔盆地吉木萨尔凹陷、四川盆地南部等地区页岩水平井的微地震侧视数据云图中均出现了平行于层理方向数据点的密度与扩展程度都远远大于垂直方向的现象,与传统的水力压裂裂缝几何形态解释结果矛盾,但是目前没有明确的三维水力压裂裂缝几何形态对这种现象做出解释。建立微地震数据反演方法,并对反演结果进行了二次重构,给出了页岩水平井三维水力压裂裂缝几何形态,并通过真三轴压裂物理模拟实验对裂缝形态以及微地震数据反演方法进行了验证。研究结果表明:反演得到的裂缝在三维空间中主要呈现出1条主裂缝与多条次生裂缝相互交错的形态,结合真三轴压裂物理模拟实验结果,说明了页岩水平井水力压裂裂缝几何形态呈水平垂直交错;通过对比声发射实验结果和吉木萨尔凹陷露头样品真三轴压裂物理模拟后呈现出的裂缝形态,验证了微地震数据反演方法的可靠性以及页岩水平井水力压裂裂缝的复杂性。