TN1041 : Laboratory investigatons on the effect of orientation and spacing of fractures on fluid flow in reservoir condition
Thesis > Central Library of Shahrood University > Mining, Petroleum & Geophysics Engineering > PhD > 2021
Authors:
[Author], Ahmad Ramezanzadeh[Supervisor]
Abstarct: Studies on rock fractures, especially those hosting oil reservoirs, have always been a fascinating topic for researchers and companies active in the oil and mineral fields, and have increased significantly in recent decades; Because despite its scientific status, it is also a practical issue. In fractured reservoirs, the study of fractures is crucial in the exploration, exploitation and design of enhanced recovery. One of the main objectives in the study of reservoir fractures is to study the fluid behavior and the relationship between flow rate and the most important geomechanical properties of fractures including aperture, continuity, orientation, fracture length and surface roughness. Also, by knowing the effect of each of the mentioned cases on the hydraulic conductivity of the fluid, a more accurate prediction can be made in the desired goal. According to previous studies in this field, in this study, the effect of spacing and orientation on the hydraulic conductivity of the fluid was investigated. Studying the effect of fracture geometry on hydraulic conductivity or permeablity on a laboratory scale requires the selection of a suitable sample in terms of physical and mechanical properties. Therefore, in this study, in the first place, in order to investigate the effect of fracture geometry on a laboratory scale, an artificial sample made of concrete was selected. The choice of concrete mixing plan is one of the important factors for preparing a suitable concrete sample. In addition to concrete samples, other synthetic samples made of flax fiber and phenolic resin known as fibrous fiber were also considered. The sample was cut into cylinders with a diameter of 38 millimeters and a length of 100 millimeters using CNC technology. Also, the physical and mechanical parameters of the samples, including density, water absorption, porosity, compressive and shear wave velocity, hydraulic conductivity, uniaxial compressive strength were measured and compared with each other. The measurement of hydraulic conductivity is baxsed on the Darcy relation and in the vertical direction. The results of the experiments showed that the concrete sample could not be a suitable sample for this study due to its porosity, water absorption, high hydraulic conductivity and fragility. On the other hand, the sample made of fibrous fiber not only has desirable physical and mechanical properties to study the effect of orientation and spacing, but also due to its more flexible behavior, to create fractures with different angles and different spacings is suitable. After making samples and performing experiments, the results showed that increasing the number of fractures or in other words reducing the spacing has a significant effect on the amount of hydraulic conductivity, especially for larger oriented fractures. The highest effect of orientation and spacing is related to the samples with 60 ° fracture orientation and the number of two fractures or when spacing is 12 millimeters and the lowest effect is related to the samples with zero-degree fracture orientation and the number of one fracture or spacing is greater than 50 millimeters. Also, with increasing orientation and decreasing spacing, the amount of hydraulic conductivity increases exponentially. This increase is greater for fractures larger than 30 degrees.  
Keywords:
#Keywords: hydraulic conductivity #Fracture geometry #Fibrous fiber #Orientation #Spacing. Keeping place: Central Library of Shahrood University
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