Unconventional resources like shale gas has been the focus of intense research and development for two decades. Apart from intrinsic geologic factors that control the gas shale productivity (e.g. organic matter conten...Unconventional resources like shale gas has been the focus of intense research and development for two decades. Apart from intrinsic geologic factors that control the gas shale productivity (e.g. organic matter content, bedding planes, natural fractures, porosity and stress regime among others), external factors like wellbore orientation and stimulation design play a role. In this study, we present a series of true triaxial hydraulic fracturing experiments conducted on Lushan shale to investigate the interplay of internal factors (bedding, natural fractures and in situ stress) and external factors (wellbore orientation) on the growth process of fracture networks in cubic specimens of 200 mm in length. We observe relatively low breakdown pressure and fracture propagation pressure as the wellbore orientation and/or the maximum in situ stress is subparallel to the shale bedding plane. The wellbore orientation has a more prominent effect on the breakdown pressure, but its effect is tapered with increasing angle of bedding inclination. The shale breakdown is followed by an abrupt response in sample displacement, which reflects the stimulated fracture volume. Based on fluid tracer analysis, the morphology of hydraulic fractures (HF) is divided into four categories. Among the categories, activation of bedding planes (bedding failure, BF) and natural fractures (NF) significantly increase bifurcation and fractured areas. Under the same stress regime, a horizontal wellbore is more favorable to enhance the complexity of hydraulic fracture networks. This is attributed to the relatively large surface area in contact with the bedding plane for the horizontal borehole compared to the case with a vertical wellbore. These findings provide important references for hydraulic fracturing design in shale reservoirs.展开更多
The performance of underground excavations is inevitably influenced by rock mass characteristics, presence of joints and their geometrical properties, depth below surface and state of in-situ stress field. The objecti...The performance of underground excavations is inevitably influenced by rock mass characteristics, presence of joints and their geometrical properties, depth below surface and state of in-situ stress field. The objective of this paper is to investigate the behaviour of deep underground tunnel opening existed between two bedding planes, Such planes weaken the strength of rock mass and may cause rock slippage/rotation along them. Therefore, the state of stress-displacement, after tunnel opening has been introduced, is examined using two-dimensional elasto-plastic finite-elements code, RS^(2D). The results indicate that, there is significant drop in the normal stress along joints over tunnel opening; slip occurs due to reversal in the direction of shear stress(e.g., inward shear displacement is produced) and there is discontinuity in the strength contours of rock surrounding tunnel after they have been intersected by bedding planes.展开更多
基金supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China(Grant Nos.52064006 and 52004072)It was.also supported by the program(Grant No.202006050112)of China Scholarship Council(CSC)for the first author's visit at the Helm-holtz Centre Potsdam,GFZ German Research Centre for Geosciences.
文摘Unconventional resources like shale gas has been the focus of intense research and development for two decades. Apart from intrinsic geologic factors that control the gas shale productivity (e.g. organic matter content, bedding planes, natural fractures, porosity and stress regime among others), external factors like wellbore orientation and stimulation design play a role. In this study, we present a series of true triaxial hydraulic fracturing experiments conducted on Lushan shale to investigate the interplay of internal factors (bedding, natural fractures and in situ stress) and external factors (wellbore orientation) on the growth process of fracture networks in cubic specimens of 200 mm in length. We observe relatively low breakdown pressure and fracture propagation pressure as the wellbore orientation and/or the maximum in situ stress is subparallel to the shale bedding plane. The wellbore orientation has a more prominent effect on the breakdown pressure, but its effect is tapered with increasing angle of bedding inclination. The shale breakdown is followed by an abrupt response in sample displacement, which reflects the stimulated fracture volume. Based on fluid tracer analysis, the morphology of hydraulic fractures (HF) is divided into four categories. Among the categories, activation of bedding planes (bedding failure, BF) and natural fractures (NF) significantly increase bifurcation and fractured areas. Under the same stress regime, a horizontal wellbore is more favorable to enhance the complexity of hydraulic fracture networks. This is attributed to the relatively large surface area in contact with the bedding plane for the horizontal borehole compared to the case with a vertical wellbore. These findings provide important references for hydraulic fracturing design in shale reservoirs.
文摘The performance of underground excavations is inevitably influenced by rock mass characteristics, presence of joints and their geometrical properties, depth below surface and state of in-situ stress field. The objective of this paper is to investigate the behaviour of deep underground tunnel opening existed between two bedding planes, Such planes weaken the strength of rock mass and may cause rock slippage/rotation along them. Therefore, the state of stress-displacement, after tunnel opening has been introduced, is examined using two-dimensional elasto-plastic finite-elements code, RS^(2D). The results indicate that, there is significant drop in the normal stress along joints over tunnel opening; slip occurs due to reversal in the direction of shear stress(e.g., inward shear displacement is produced) and there is discontinuity in the strength contours of rock surrounding tunnel after they have been intersected by bedding planes.
