<p> Hydraulic fracturing is a commonly used practice in stimulation treatment, especially in low-permeability formation. The fracture complexity usually took place in relation to the interaction between fractures and natural rock fabrics. Despite many studies regarding the production simulation, diagnostic methods, and mathematical models about fracture complexity, research about the local complexity development is still needed for optimized stimulation design. Aiming to predict the local complexity development and stimulation performance, a hierarchy model is designed to make the problem more tractable, and a corresponding mathematical model is developed for numerical simulation. A case study is provided, and the comparison with the result of micro-seismic mapping indicates much discrepancy between field data and simulated result. Considering the many limitations of the model, the discrepancy is tolerable and acceptable. According to the sensitivity analysis, a high injection rate could serve to increase fracture complexity while reducing the maximum length of fractures. The sensitivity analyses regarding bottom-hole net pressure show a weak relationship between the fracture complexity and the bottom-hole net pressure, but a high injection pressure or low in-situ stress can serve to enhance the stimulation performance by increasing the maximum length of fractures. Sensitivity analyses for fluid properties indicate that using the high-viscosity fracturing fluid can add to the local complexity of fractures and reduce the maximum length of fractures, while fluid density has little to do with the fracture complexity and stimulation performance. The parametric study regarding rock surface energy indicates little effect of surface energy of different shale rocks on changing the local fracture complexity and stimulation performance.</p><p>
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:PROQUEST/oai:pqdtoai.proquest.com:10246182 |
| Date | 13 September 2017 |
| Creators | Cheng, Yuqing |
| Publisher | University of Louisiana at Lafayette |
| Source Sets | ProQuest.com |
| Language | English |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | thesis |
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