Simulation of non‐planar three‐dimensional hydraulic fracture propagation

Hydraulic fracturing is the method of choice to enhance reservoir permeability and well efficiency for extraction of shale gas. Multi‐stranded non‐planar hydraulic fractures are often observed in stimulation sites. Non‐planar fractures propagating from wellbores inclined from the direction of maximum horizontal stress have also been reported. The pressure required to propagate non‐planar fractures is in general higher than in the case of planar fractures. Current computational methods for the simulation of hydraulic fractures generally assume single, symmetric, and planar crack geometries. In order to better understand hydraulic fracturing in complex‐layered naturally fractured reservoirs, fully 3D models need to be developed. In this paper, we present simulations of 3D non‐planar fracture propagation using an adaptive generalized FEM. This method greatly facilitates the discretization of complex 3D fractures, as finite element faces are not required to fit the crack surfaces. A solution strategy for fully automatic propagation of arbitrary 3D cracks is presented. The fracture surface on which pressure is applied is also automatically updated at each step. An efficient technique to numerically integrate boundary conditions on crack surfaces is also proposed and implemented. Strongly graded localized refinement and analytical asymptotic expansions are used as enrichment functions in the neighborhood of fracture fronts to increase the computational accuracy and efficiency of the method. Stress intensity factors with pressure on crack faces are extracted using the contour integral method. Various non‐planar crack geometries are investigated to demonstrate the robustness and flexibility of the proposed simulation methodology. Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

某水电站地应力场数值模拟与工程区稳定性分析

根据黄河上游某水电站地下厂房区工程地质勘探资料和原地应力测量资料,用Marc Mentat软件建立了有限元计算模型.利用应力回归分析方法模拟该地区地应力场:首先确定自重和构造应力因素为待回归因素,然后采用回归法原理计算待回归因素的系数,从而模拟出工程区地应力场.对比实测值和模拟值,表明两者在数值和方位上差距均不大.厂房...     

The structure of methane gas hydrate bearing sediments from the Krishna-Godavari Basin as seen from Micro-CT scanning

The Indian National Gas Hydrate Program (NGHP) Expedition 1, of 2006, cored through several methane gas hydrate deposits on the continental shelf around the coast of India. The pressure coring techniques utilized during the expedition (HYACINTH and PCS) enabled recovery of gas hydrate bearing, fine-grained, sediment cores to the surface. After initial characterization core sections were rapidly depressurized and submerged in liquid nitrogen, preserving the structure and form of the hydrate within the host sediment. Once on shore, high resolution X-ray CT scanning was employed to obtain detailed three-dimensional images of the internal structure of the gas hydrate. Using a resolution of 80 μm the detailed structure of the hydrate veins present in each core could be observed, and allowed for an in depth analysis of orientation, width and persistence of each vein. Hydrate saturation estimates could also be made and saturations of 20-30% were found to be the average across the core section with some portions showing highs of almost 60% saturation. The majority of hydrate veins in each core section were found to be orientated between 50 and 80° to the horizontal. Analysis of the strikes of the veins suggested a slight preferential orientation in individual sample sections, although correlation between individual sections was not possible due to the initial orientation of the sections being lost during the sampling stage. The preferred vein orientation within sample sections coupled with several geometric features identified in individual veins, suggest that hydraulic fracturing by upward advecting pore fluids is the main formation mechanism for the veined hydrate deposits in the K-G Basin.     

1000 m long gas blow-out pipes

This study presents seismic observation of pipe anomalies from offshore Nigeria, outcrops of blow-out pipes from Rhodes, Greece, and geophysical modelling of an acoustic pipe. The studies give insight into how pipes form, their internal structure, the seismic image and geophysical artefacts related to the pipes. Over one hundred seafloor craters, 100 m-700 m wide and up to 30 m deep, have been observed on the seafloor offshore Nigeria. They are underlain by interpreted cones and seismic pipe anomalies that can be traced down to reservoir zones at 1000 m-1300 m below the seafloor. The seismic pipe anomalies are 50 m-150 m wide and almost vertical. They are interpreted as up-scaled pipes found in outcrops on Rhodes, Greece. The outcrops show pipe-related structures at three levels. Lowest, the reservoir rock contains metre-sized cavities which are filled with a mixture of clay derived from the overlying cap rock. In the middle, several circular to oval structures in plane view of pipes are observed in the lowest part of the cap rock. Highest, 15 m into the clay cap rock, strongly sheared country rock forms circular structures with a core of structureless clay. Based on outcrop observation on Rhodes we constructed an acoustic model of a 50 m wide and 1000 m long pipe. Seismic modelling proves that such pipes would be expressed in seismic data, that they are similar to the seismic pipe anomalies offshore Nigeria but this study also revealed that prominent intra-pipe reflections are artefacts. A formation model for the pipes is suggested: High fluid overpressure in the reservoir generated hydro fractures from the reservoir to seafloor where a mixture of gas and fluid flowed at high speed to form pipes, cones and seafloor craters. After hours to weeks of gas and fluid flow through the pipe the pore pressure in the reservoir dropped and the blow-out terminated. Muddy slurry fell back and plugged the cavity in the reservoir and the pipe.     

川西致密砂岩气藏试井曲线特征分析

川西致密砂岩气藏属于典型的致密低渗复式气藏，气藏类型及其压力恢复曲线形态复杂，其解释模型也各不相同，这给试井解释工作带来了极大的困难。结合静动态资料、压裂作业、测试工艺，应用4种储层模型、3种井模型及边界模型组合的试井解释模型，对川西致密砂岩气藏200多井层压力恢复资料进行了，并根据试井曲线特征对曲线类型进行了分类，为今后的试井解释工作提供了一种可资借鉴的解释方法和工作思路。     

Comprehensive study on stability of deep crust and unstable behavior of earthquake source by both failure mechanism and frictional sliding mechanism

In this paper the relation between fault movement and stress state in deep crust is discussed, based on synthetic analysis of the crustal stresses measured over the world and the concerned data of focal mechanism. Using Coulomb criterion for shear failure and frictional slip, analytical expressions for estimating stabilities of intact rock and existing fault in the crust and for identifying the type of faulting (normal, strike-slip or thrust fault) are derived. By defining the Failure FunctionF _m and the Fraction FunctionF _f, which may describe steadiness of crustal rock and existing fault, respectively, a synthetic model is set up to consider both fracturing mechanism and the sliding mechanism. By this model, a method to study stability and unstable behavior of crustal rock and fault at different depths is given. According to the above model, quantitative study on the crustal stability in the North China plain is made in terms of the measured data of hydraulic fracturing stress, pore-fluid pressure, terrestrical heat flow in this region. The functionsF _m andF _f and the shear stresses on faults with different strike angle and dip angle at various depths in this region are calculated. In the calculation the constraint condition of fault movement obeys Byerlee’s Law, and the depth-dependent nonlinear change in the vertical stress due to inhomogeneity of crustal density and the high anomalous pore-fluid pressure in deep crust of this region are considered. The conclusions are: the unstable behavior of the crust in the North China plain is not failure of crustal rock but slip on existing fault; the depth range where stick-slip of fault may happen is about from 8 to 20 km or more; stability of steep fault is lower than that of gentle sloping fault; the shear stresses in the range where may occur stick-slip are nearly horizontal; the steep faults trending from NNE to NE in this region are liable to produce strong earthquakes, whose co-seismic faultings are, for the most part, right lateral slip; the change in pore-fluid pressure in depth remarkably affects the stability of the crust and the increase in pore-fluid pressure, therefore, would be an important factor exciting strong earthquake in this region. The above theoretical inferences are consistent with the data measured in this region. The Chinese version of this paper appeared in the Chinese edition ofActa Seismologia Sinica,13, 450–461, 1991. This work is supported by Chinese Joint Seismological Science Foundation.     

裂隙岩体强度试验单点法及其前景

本文在回顾裂隙岩体强度试验的基础上，用大量原位测试数据对裂隙岩体直剪破坏机理和裂隙岩体直剪破坏的基本规律及其成因进行了深入探讨；总结出一套行之有效的试验技术；给出了裂隙岩体直剪破坏时的充分必要条件并加以量化。     

围压条件下岩石的抗拉强度

用水压致裂法对7种岩石的厚壁圆筒试件进行不同围压下的抗拉强度实验,并从试件致裂瞬间的内壁环向应力σt,环向应变εt等五种参数随围压变化的角度,对围压条件下岩石的抗拉强度进行研究。结果表明,若用σt表示岩石的应力抗拉强度,则σt随围压的增加而减少,并由低围压时的拉应力逐渐过渡为高围压时的压应力。高围压时,虽然试件已处于三向受压状态,但其破裂仍表现为典型的张性破裂。从另一意义上讲,处于高围压环境中的岩石,其内部不可能存在拉应力,拉应力只在低围压状态中存在。若岩石的应变抗拉强度由εt表示,即使岩石三向受压,张性破裂的εt始终是拉应变,岩石的抗拉强度由应变来表征似乎更合理。εt先随围压的增大而增大,当围压超过某一特征值后,εt反随围压的增大而有所减少。 将上述结果应用于岩体(或地震)破裂,可以证明,当岩体内存在σ_3<μ(σ_1+σ_2)的应力状态时,即使三向受压,岩体照样会出现张性破裂。由此认为,地震的震源也存在着张性破裂的可能。     

中国页岩气成藏和潜在产能与对环境的污染分析

基于当今化石能源的需求还在扩展,它的紧缺势态波及全球,而中国的确需要更多的页岩气。为此,非常规油、气能源,特别是页岩油、气的勘探、开发和利用就必然地提上了社会进步和经济发展的议程上,并得到世界各个国家的高度重视。因此,页岩油、气现已成为中国能源界和科技界及政府部门的热门话题。在经过了一段时间的"热炒"和依据尚不充分的评估后,本文通过对中外有关资料的分析和讨论认为,(1)必须在了解世界各国、特别是北美页岩油、气赋存与开发的条件下,独立自主地、依据充分地认识中国页岩的分布状态和页岩气的潜能;(2)在理解其他国家页岩属性、页岩气前景和勘查及储存背景下,在中国必须较全面的进行页岩和页岩气存储的地球物理勘探,并选择远景好的典型地区进行示范性研究与探索;(3)厘定页岩气的开采过程与条件及其对环境的污染程度和多个国家对开发页岩气质疑的核心;(4)集理念与实践认识综合制定研究中国页岩气切实可行的方案与怎样发展的路线图;(5)中国目前尚不宜大力投入和急于实施对页岩气的开采,其前景不容过于乐观。     

筠连地区煤层气低产低效井成因及增产改造措施

四川筠连地区煤层气田开发潜力较好,但大量低产低效井的存在制约了产能提升。为查明低效井成因,针对性地提高煤层气井产能,从地质、工程一体化的角度,结合地质条件并从工程因素出发,剖析高产井与地质因素的耦合关系,揭示地质、排采及工程3个方面影响下的低效井成因,并针对性提出相应的改造措施。结果表明,低效井主要分布在研究区北部、西部,受含气性、断层分布、开采层位、排采节奏及压裂窜井的影响,而高产井主要位于研究区中、南部,其产水量多低于1 m³/d,普遍具有流压低、持续产气时间长、产煤粉量低、矿化度高的特点。综合分析低效井治理效果发现,酸洗效果较好,震荡解堵效果不明显,二次压裂应严格控制施工参数。解决煤层气井低产低效问题,应从井位部署着手,围绕地质-工程-排采一体化开展井位设计和施工,开展有效合理的增产改造措施。