Formation mechanism of fault accommodation zones under combined stress in graben basin:Implications from geomechanical modeling

A fault accommodation zone is a type of structure that is defined as regulating displacement and strain between faults structure.Increasing numbers of fault accommodation zones are being identified in graben basins,indicating the potential exploration target and petroleum accumulation areas.This study aims to analyze the formation mechanism and development of fault accommodation zones under combined stress by a numerical simulation method considering geomechanical modeling.Using three-dimensional(3-D)seismic interpretation and fractal dimension method,exampled with the Dongxin fault zone,the fault activity and fault combination pattern were conducted to quantitatively characterize the activity difference in fault accommodation zones.Combined with mechanical experiment test,a geomehcanical model was established for fault accommodation zones in a graben basin.Integrating the paleostress numerical simulations and structural physical simulation experiment,the developmental characteristics and genetic mechanism of fault accommodation zones were summarized.Influenced by multi movements and combined stresses,three significant tectonic evolution stages of the Dongxing Fault Zone(DXFZ)were distinguished:During the E_(s)^(3)sedimentary period,the large difference in the stress,strain,and rupture distribution in various faults were significant,and this stage was the key generation period for the prototype of the DXFZ,including the FAZ between large-scale faults.During the E_(s)^(2)sedimentary period,the EW-trending symmetric with opposite dipping normal faults and the NE-SW trending faults with large scale were furtherly developed.The junction area of two secondary normal faults were prone to be ruptured,performing significant period for inheriting and developing characteristics of fault accommodation zones.During the Es1 sedimentary period,the high-order faults in the DXFZ exhibited the obvious fault depressions and strike-slip activity,and the fault accommodation zones were furtherly inherited and developed.This stage was the molded and formative period of the FAZ,the low-order faults,and the depression in the DXFZ.

Fault reactivation in No.4 structural zone and its control on oil and gas accumulation in Nanpu sag,Bohai Bay Basin,China

Based on seismic and drilling data,the reactivation mechanism of the pre-existing basement F4 strike-slip faultin Nanpu sag and its controlling effect on hydrocarbon accumulation difference are systematically studied.By defining fault activation stages,back-stripping fault throw and physical modeling,it is found that the Nanpu No.4 structural zone formed by the Cenozoic reactivity of the F4 fault grew from south to north,with strike-slip deformation dominated in the south and extensional deformation dominated in the north.Faults in the No.4 structural zone and those in the adjacent No.2 and No.3 structural zones were different fault systems,which grew separately,contacted and connected,and finally interwove under the action of unified stress field.By constructing the identification chart of deformation mechanisms of reactivation of pre-existing faults,it is concluded that during the sedimentary period of the Paleogene Shahejie Formation,F4 fault was reactivated by strike-slip faulting,and during the sedimentary period of Paleogene Dongying Formation and Neogene Guantao-Minghuazhen formations,it was reactivated by oblique extension.The controlling effects of Cenozoic reactivation of F4 fault on hydrocarbon accumulation include:(1)As the oil-source fault,it controlled the vertical cross-layer migration of oil and gas.(2)It gave rise to strike-slip transfer zone to control the distribution of sand bodies.(3)It grew upward and interacted with faults in the neighboring area,controlling the formation of two types of traps,and was favorable for oil and gas accumulation.

Overlying strata movement of recovering standing pillars with solid backfilling by physical simulation

To analyze the overlying strata movement law of recovering room mining standing pillars with solid backfilling.Physical simulation experiments with sponge and wood as the backfilling simulation material were tested.The results show that:(i) The covering-rock mechanics of the overly strata comes from "two-arch structures + hinged girder + bend beam" to "backfilling material + hinged girder + bent beam" by increasing the fill ratio from 0%to 85%,the beginning of overlying strata movement appears later and the total duration of subsidence velocity increased from zero to the highest value increases.The trend of "single polarization" of the subsidence velocity curves becomes noticeable and the velocity variation trend becomes stable,(ii) The equiponderate aeolian sand was added to improve the anti-pressure ability of the loess,and the corresponding ground processing & transportation system was designed.

Physical simulation experiment and numerical inversion of the full life cycle of shale gas well

The ultra-low porosity and permeability,as well as complex occurrence and transport state of shale reservoir make it possess special L-type production characteristic curve and complicated shale gas flow mechanism.To solve the difficulty of collecting complete production data due to short production time and operation discontinuity,a full-diameter core physical simulation experiment on the full lifecycle production process of shale gas well depletion is conducted with the purpose of obtaining many important production data including complete pressure and daily gas output in the simulated production process of shale gas well.The experimental results show the production characteristic from simulation is consistent with those from gas well.Based on the simulation data,the critical desorption pressure(12 MPa)of core,free gas production(3820.8 mL),adsorbed gas production(2151.2 mL),the proportion of the daily gas production between free and absorbed gas under different time and formation pressure,as well as the production time and final recovery rate corresponding to abandoned pressure,can be determined accurately.Numerical inversion is carried out to calculate the production performance curve of shale gas well and predict the development effect of gas well based on well testing and similarity analysis of the dimensionless time between core experiment and gas well production.Finally,the permeability and the fracturing effect(fracture network density)as the keys to the effective development of shale gas reservoirs are proposed.The permeability is the fundamental factor and the fracturing technology is the major means.

Geothermal extraction performance in fractured granite from Gonghe Basin,Qinghai province,China:Long-term injection and production experiment

The efficient exploitation of geothermal energy through enhanced geothermal systems(EGS)has been a relevant topic for hot dry rock(HDR)geothermal resources.When cryogenic fluid is injected into a thermal reservoir,improving heat exchange efficiency is key to achieving the optimal exploitation of HDR.In this paper,granite outcrops from Gonghe Basin were used as the testing sample.The natural fractures in the granite samples were relatively well developed.To simulate long-term injection and production from multi-wells in situ,physical ex-periments were performed in a newly-developed,in-house large-scale true triaxial experimental system.Geothermal extraction performance of an HDR was simulated for long-term injection and production operations.Simultaneously,the mode of one-injection and multiple-production wells was represented.In the paper,the ef-fects of the production-injection well spacing,the number of production wells and the injection rate on the production temperature and flow rate are discussed.The results show that,during long-term injection and pro-duction,there are two stages of production temperature variation,namely stabilization and attenuation.When the number of the production wells is increased,the heat extraction efficiency is accelerated.Moreover,competitive diversion of fluid among fractures occurred due to different conductivities.Furthermore,under different pro-duction modes,the production flow rate contributed differently to the heat extraction.Finally,the effect of the production-injection wells spacing on the heat exchange performance was analyzed;this is mainly reflected in the change of the effective heat exchange area between the rock and the injected fluid.The results emphasize the importance of designing an appropriate production mode and optimizing the injection-production parameters to ensure efficient HDR exploitation.