Effects of fracture evolution and non-Darcy flow on the thermal performance of enhanced geothermal system in 3D complex fractured rock

In fractured geothermal reservoirs,the fracture networks and internal fluid flow behaviors can significantly impact the thermal performance.In this study,we proposed a non-Darcy rough discrete fracture network(NR-DFN)model that can simultaneously consider the fracture evolution and non-Darcy flow dynamics in studying the thermo-hydro-mechanical(THM)coupling processes for heat extraction in geothermal reservoir.We further employed the model on the Habanero enhanced geothermal systems(EGS)project located in Australia.First,our findings illustrate a clear spatial-temporal variation in the thermal stress and pressure perturbations,as well as uneven spatial distribution of shear failure in 3D fracture networks.Activated shear failure is mainly concentrated in the first fracture cluster.Secondly,channeling flow have also been observed in DFNs during heat extraction and are further intensified by the expansion of fractures driven by thermal stresses.Moreover,the combined effect of non-Darcy flow and fracture evolution triggers a rapid decline in the resulting heat rate and temperature.The NR-DFN model framework and the Habanero EGS's results illustrate the importance of both fracture evolution and non-Darcy flow on the efficiency of EGS production and have the potential to promote the development of more sustainable and efficient EGS operations for stakeholders.

Simulations of THM processes in buffer-rock barriers of high-level waste disposal in an argillaceous formation

The main objective of this paper is to investigate and analyse the thermo-hydro-mechanical（THM） coupling phenomena and their influences on the repository safety.In this paper,the high-level waste（HLW） disposal concept in drifts in clay formation with backfilled bentonite buffer is represented numerically using the CODE BRIGHT developed by the Technical University of Catalonia in Barcelona.The parameters of clay and bentonite used in the simulation are determined by laboratory and in situ experiments.The calculation results are presented to show the hydro-mechanical（HM） processes during the operation phase and the THM processes in the after-closure phase.According to the simulation results,the most probable critical processes for the disposal project have been represented and analyzed.The work also provides an input for additional development regarding the design,assessment and validation of the HLW disposal concept.

Performance of free gases during the recovery enhancement of shale gas by CO_(2) injection:a case study on the depleted Wufeng–Longmaxi shale in northeastern Sichuan Basin,China

In this work, a novel thermal–hydraulic–mechanical (THM) coupling model is developed, where the real geological parameters of the reservoir properties are embedded. Accordingly, nine schemes of CO_(2) injection well (IW) and CH_(4) production well (PW) are established, aiming to explore the behavior of free gases after CO_(2) is injected into the depleted Wufeng–Longmaxi shale. The results indicate the free CH4 or CO2 content in the shale fractures/matrix is invariably heterogeneous. The CO_(2) involvement facilitates the ratio of free CH_(4)/CO_(2) in the matrix to that in the fractures declines and tends to be stable with time. Different combinations of IW–PWs induce a difference in the ratio of the free CH4 to the free CO_(2), in the ratio of the free CH_(4)/CO_(2) in the matrix to that in the fractures, in the content of the recovered free CH_(4), and in the content of the trapped free CO_(2). Basically, when the IW locates at the bottom Wufeng–Longmaxi shale, a farther IW–PWs distance allows more CO2 in the free phase to be trapped;furthermore, no matter where the IW is, a shorter IW–PWs distance benefits by getting more CH_(4) in the free phase recovered from the depleted Wufeng–Longmaxi shale. Hopefully, this work is helpful in gaining knowledge about the shale-based CO_(2) injection technique.

Thermal-hydro-mechanical coupling damage model of brittle rock

Based on fluid mechanics, thermodynamics and damage mechanics, thermal-hydro-mechanical （THM） coupling damage model of brittle rock is established by analyzing THM coupling mechanism, where THM coupling damage variable DTHM is dominated by TH coupling damage variable DTH, TM coupling damage variable DTM and HM coupling damage variable DHM, and DTH is firstly expressed in term of dimensionless total thermal conductivity of the water Nu. Permeability test, uni-axial compression test and THM coupling test are conducted to measure the permeability, elastic modulus and THM coupling stress-strain curves of brittle rock. The tested values of THM coupling elastic modulus E＇HM are in good agreement with the predicted values of THM coupling elastic modulus ETHM, which can verify the newly established THM coupling damage model.

A fully coupled thermo-hydro-mechanical model for unsaturated porous media

In examining potential host rocks for such purposes as the disposal of high-level radioactive wastes,it is important to understand the coupled thermo-hydro-mechanical（THM） behavior of a porous medium.A rigorous and fully unified coupled thermo-hydro-mechanical model for unsaturated porous media is required to simulate the complex coupling mechanisms involved.Based on modified Darcy＇s and Fourier＇s laws,equations of mechanical equilibrium,mass conservation and energy conservation are derived by introducing void ratio and volumetric liquid water content into the model.The newly derived model takes into account the effects of temperature on the dynamic viscosity of liquid water and void ratio,the influence of liquid flow on temperature gradient（thermo-osmosis）,the influence on mass and heat conservation equations,and the influence of heat flow on water pressure gradient and thermal convection.The new coupled THM constitutive model is constructed by a finite element program and is used to simulate the coupled behavior of a tunnel during excavation,ventilation and concrete lining stages.Oil and gas engineering,underground disposal of nuclear waste and tunnel engineering may be benefited from the development of the new model.

Numerical analysis of thermal impact on hydro-mechanical properties of clay

As is known, high-level radioactive waste （HLW） is commonly heat-emitting. Heat output from HLWwilldissipate through the surrounding rocks and induce complex thermo-hydro-mechanical-chemical（THMC） processes. In highly consolidated clayey rocks, thermal effects are particularly significantbecause of their very low permeability and water-saturated state. Thermal impact on the integrity of thegeological barriers is of most importance with regard to the long-term safety of repositories. This studyfocuses on numerical analysis of thermal effects on hydro-mechanical properties of clayey rock using acoupled thermo-mechanical multiphase flow （TH2M） model which is implemented in the finite elementprogramme OpenGeoSys （OGS）. The material properties of the numerical model are characterised by atransversal isotropic elastic model based on Hooke＇s law, a non-isothermal multiphase flow model basedon van Genuchten function and Darcy＇s law, and a transversal isotropic heat transport model based onFourier＇s law. In the numerical approaches, special attention has been paid to the thermal expansion ofthree different phases： gas, fluid and solid, which could induce changes in pore pressure and porosity.Furthermore, the strong swelling and shrinkage behaviours of clayey material are also considered in thepresent model. The model has been applied to simulate a laboratory heating experiment on claystone.The numerical model gives a satisfactory representation of the observed material behaviour in thelaboratory experiment. The comparison of the calculated results with the laboratory findings verifies thatthe simulation with the present numerical model could provide a deeper understanding of the observedeffects. 2014 Institute of Rock and Soil Mechanics, Chinese Academy of Sciences. Production and hosting byElsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Coupled thermo-hydro-mechanical simulation of CO2 enhanced gas recovery with an extended equation of state module for TOUGH2MP-FLAC3D

As one of the most important ways to reduce the greenhouse gas emission,carbon dioxide（CO2）enhanced gas recovery（CO2-EGR） is attractive since the gas recovery can be enhanced simultaneously with CO2sequestration.Based on the existing equation of state（EOS） module of TOUGH2 MP,extEOS7C is developed to calculate the phase partition of H2O-CO2-CH4-NaCl mixtures accurately with consideration of dissolved NaCI and brine properties at high pressure and temperature conditions.Verifications show that it can be applied up to the pressure of 100 MPa and temperature of 150℃.The module was implemented in the linked simulator TOUGH2MP-FLAC3 D for the coupled hydro-mechanical simulations.A simplified three-dimensional（3D）1/4 model（2.2 km×1 km×1 km） which consists of the whole reservoir,caprock and baserock was generated based on the geological conditions of a gas field in the North German Basin.The simulation results show that,under an injection rate of 200,000 t/yr and production rate of 200,000 sm3/d,CO2breakthrough occurred in the case with the initial reservoir pressure of 5 MPa but did not occur in the case of 42 MPa.Under low pressure conditions,the pressure driven horizontal transport is the dominant process;while under high pressure conditions,the density driven vertical flow is dominant.Under the considered conditions,the CO2-EGR caused only small pressure changes.The largest pore pressure increase（2 MPa） and uplift（7 mm） occurred at the caprock bottom induced by only CO2injection.The caprock had still the primary stress state and its integrity was not affected.The formation water salinity and temperature variations of ±20℃ had small influences on the CO2-EGR process.In order to slow down the breakthrough,it is suggested that CO2-EGR should be carried out before the reservoir pressure drops below the critical pressure of CO2.

A new numerical model of ring shear tester for shear band soil considering friction-induced thermal pressurization

In this study,a new numerical model of ring shear tester for shear band soil of landslide was established.The special feature of this model is that it considers the mechanism of friction-induced thermal pressurization,which is potentially an important cause of high-speed catastrophic landslides.The key to the construction of this numerical ring shear model is to realize the THM(thermo-hydro-mechanical)dynamic coupling of soil particles,which includes the processes of frictional heating,thermal pressurization,and strength softening during shearing of solid particles.All of these are completed by using discrete element method.Based on this new model,the characteristics of shear stress change with shear displacement,as well as the variation of temperature and pore pressure in the specimen,are studied at shear rates of 0.055 m/s,0.06 m/s,0.109 m/s and 1.09 m/s,respectively.The results show that the peak strength and residual strength of specimen are significantly reduced when the mechanism of frictioninduced thermal pressurization is considered.The greater the shear rate is,the higher the temperature as well as the pore pressure is.The effect of shear rate on the shear strength is bidirectional.The simulation results demonstrate that this model can effectively simulate the mechanism of friction-induced thermal pressurization of shear band soil during ring shear process,and the shear strength softening in the process.The new numerical ring shear model established in this study is of great significance for studying the dynamic mechanism of high-speed catastrophic landslides.

Numerical simulation of seasonal snow in Tianshan Mountains

Snowfall in the Tianshan Mountains in China is frequent during winter;thus,avalanches have become a severe issue in snow-covered areas.Accumulation and metamorphosis,as well as hydrothermal exchanges with the environment,considerably affect the stability of snow on slopes.Therefore,a hydrothermal model of snow cover and its underlying surfaces must be developed on the basis of meteorological data to predict and help manage avalanches.This study adopted the conceptual model of snow as a porous medium and quantitatively analysed its internal physical processes on the basis of the thermal exchanges amongst its components.The effects of local meteorological factors on snow structure and the redistribution of energy and mass inside the snow cover in the Tianshan Mountains were simulated.Simulation results showed that deformation as a result of overlying snow and sublimation of snow cover at the bottom is the main cause of density variation in the vertical profile of snow cover.Temperature drives water movement in snow.The low-density area of the bottom snow is the result of temperature gradient.The simulation results of the long-term snow internal mass distribution obtained by the method established in this study are highly consistent with the actual observed trend of variation.Such consistency indicates an accurate simulation of the physical characteristics of snow cover in small and microscale metamorphism in the Tianshan Mountains during the stable period.

Parametric study of thermo-hydro-mechanical response of claystone with consideration of steel corrosion

In this paper,the thermo-hydro-mechanical(THM)response of claystone is studied via a series of parametric studies,considering the evolution of mechanical properties and deformation behavior of corroded steel.The numerical simulations are performed by using a coupled THM finite element code and two different constitutive models:a visco-elastoplastic model for geological formation and a von Mises type model for steel liner.The mechanical properties and deformation behavior of corroded steel are described in a conceptual model.Finally,a disposal tunnel supported by a steel liner is studied and a series of parametric studies is defined to demonstrate the corrosion effects of steel liner on the THM response of the claystone.The comparison of different numerical calculations exhibits that the volumetric expansion related to corrosion products has an important impact on the stress and displacement fields in the claystone surrounding the disposal tunnel.However,the evolutions of temperature and liquid pressure in the claystone are essentially controlled by its THM properties and independent of the steel corrosion.

Thermal-hydro-mechanical coupled analysis of unsaturated frostsusceptible soils

Damage caused by frost heave leads to costly maintenance in cold regions, like Hokkaido, Japan. Therefore, thestudy of the frost mechanism with experimental and numerical methods has been of great interest. Numerousmodels have been developed to describe the freezing process of saturated soil, which differs from the partiallysaturated conditions in the field. In fact, most subsurface soils are unsaturated. The freezing process of partiallysaturated soils is more complex than saturated soils, as the governing equations show strongly nonlinear characteristics. This study proposes a thermo-hydro-mechanical coupled model considering the heat transfer, waterinfiltration, and deformation of partially saturated soil to reproduce the freezing process of partially saturatedfrost susceptible soils distributed in Hokkaido. This model better considers the water-ice phase change and soilfreezing characteristic curve (SFCC) during freezing under field conditions. The results from the multiphysicssimulations agree well with the frost heave and water migration data from frost heave tests of Touryo soil andFujinomori soil. In addition, this study discussed the influence of the various factors on frost heave amount,including temperature gradients, overburden pressures, water supply conditions, cooling rates, and initial saturation. The simulation results indicate that the frost heave ratio is proportional to the initial degree of saturationand is inversely proportional to the cooling rate and overburden pressure.Moreover, simulation under the open system generates much more frost heave than under the closed system.Finally, the main features of the proposed model are revealed by simulating a closed-system frost heave test. Thesimulation results indicate that the proposed model adequately captures the coupling characteristics of water andice redistribution, temperature development, hydraulic conductivity, and suction in the freezing process. Togetherwith the decreased hydraulic conductivity, the increased suction controls the water flow in the freezing zone. Theinflow water driven by cryogenic suction gradient feeds the ice formation, leads to a rapid increase in total watercontent, expanding the voids that exceed the initial porosity and contributing to the frost heave.

Comparison of numerical codes for coupled thermo-hydro-mechanical simulations of fractured media

Geo-energy and geo-engineering applications,such as improved oil recovery(IOR),geologic carbon storage,and enhanced geothermal systems(EGSs),involve coupled thermo-hydro-mechanical(THM)processes that result from fluid injection and production.In some cases,reservoirs are highly fractured and the geomechanical response is controlled by fractures.Therefore,fractures should explicitly be included into numerical models to realistically simulate the THM responses of the subsurface.In this study,we perform coupled THM numerical simulations of water injection into naturally fractured reservoirs(NFRs)using CODE_BRIGHT and TOUGH-UDEC codes.CODE_BRIGHT is a finite element method(FEM)code that performs fully coupled THM analysis in geological media and TOUGH-UDEC sequentially solves coupled THM processes by combining a finite volume method(FVM)code that solves nonisothermal multiphase flow(TOUGH2)with a distinct element method(DEM)code that solves the mechanical problem(UDEC).First,we validate the two codes against a semi-analytical solution for water injection into a single deformable fracture considering variable permeability based on the cubic law.Then,we compare simulation results of the two codes in an idealized conceptual model that includes one horizontal fracture and in a more realistic model with multiple fractures.Each code models fractures differently.UDEC calculates fracture deformation from the fracture normal and shear stiffnesses,while CODE_BRIGHT treats fractures as equivalent porous media and uses the equivalent Young’s modulus and Poisson’s ratio of the fracture.Finally,we obtain comparable results of pressure,temperature,stress and displacement distributions and evolutions for the single horizontal fracture model.Despite some similarities,the two codes provide increasingly different results as model complexity increases.These differences highlight the challenging task of accurately modeling coupled THM processes in fractured media given their high nonlinearity.

Two-phase flow thermo-hydro-mechanical modeling for a water flooding field case

Simulation of subsurface energy system involves multi-physical processes such as thermal,hydraulical,and mechanical(THM)processes,and requires a so-called THM coupled modeling approach.THM coupled modeling is commonly performed in geothermal energy production.However,for hydrocarbon extraction,we need to consider multiphase flow additionally.In this paper,we describe a three-dimensional numerical model of non-isothermal two-phase flow in the deformable porous medium by integrating governing equations of two-phase mixture in the porous media flow in the reservoir.To account for inter-woven impacts in subsurface condi-tions,we introduced a temperature-dependent fluid viscosity and a fluid density along with a strain-dependent reservoir permeability.Subsequently,we performed numerical experiments of a ten-year water flooding pro-cess employing the open-source parallelized code,OpenGeoSys.We considered different well patterns with colder water injection in realistic scenarios.Our results demonstrate that our model can simulate complex interactions of temperature,pore pressure,subsurface stress and water saturation simultaneously to evaluate the recovery per-formance.High temperature can promote fluid flow while cold water injection under non-isothermal conditions causes the normal stress reduction by significant thermal stress.Under different well patterns the displacement efficiency will be changed by the relative location between injection and production wells.This finding has provided the important reference for fluid flow and induced stress evolution during hydrocarbon exploitation under the environment of large reservoir depth and high temperature.

Drying characteristics of biological porous media during convective drying

Experiments with potatoes were carried out in order to analyze the variation of the temperature and the mean dry basis moisture content over time,the effect of the drying conditions on the drying rate,and the relationship between deformation and dry basis moisture content.A two-way sequentially coupled thermo-hydro-mechanical math model was developed on the basis of Fickian diffusion theory,Fourier’s law of heat conduction and thermoelasticity mechanics in order to analyze the spatio-temporal distributions of moisture,temperature and drying stresses in the potatoes.The transient mathematical model,composed of a system of partial differential equations,was solved by finite difference methods.The numerical results obtained by using the mathematical model were in good agreement with the experimental data.The variations in temperature and moisture distributions,drying curves and stresses within potatoes over time were simulated,and the ways in which these are affected by the drying conditions were discussed.This work could help in developing an understanding of the relationship between mass and heat transfer,shrinkage,stress,and physical degradation of biological materials.

Dynamic response of bilayered saturated porous media based on fractional thermoelastic theory

Considering the thermal contact resistance and elastic wave impedance at the interface,in this paper we theoretically investigate the thermo-hydro-mechanical(THM)coupling dynamic response of bilayered saturated porous media.Fractional thermoelastic theory is applied to porous media with imperfect thermal and mechanical contact.The analytical solutions of the dynamic response of the bilayered saturated porous media are obtained in frequency domain.Furthermore,the effects of fractional derivative parameters and thermal contact resistance on the dynamic response of such media are systematically discussed.Results show that the effects of fractional derivative parameters on the dynamic response of bilayered saturated porous media are related to the thermal contact resistance at the interface.With increasing thermal contact resistance,the displacement,pore water pressure,and stress decrease gradually.