Geophysical and Mineralogical Controls on the Rheology of Fracture Slip and Seal Breaching (Final Report)

Technical Report · Mon Dec 17 00:00:00 EST 2018

DOI:https://doi.org/10.2172/1487035· OSTI ID:1487035

Elsworth, Derek ^[1]; Peters, Catherine ^[2]; Fitts, Jeffrey ^[2]; Fang, Yi ^[1]; Im, Kyungjae ^[1]; Li, Ziyan ^[1]; Spokas, Kasparas ^[2]; Wang, Chaoyi ^[1]

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1. Pennsylvania State Univ., University Park, PA (United States)
2. Princeton Univ., NJ (United States)

This work explores the geophysical and mineralogical controls on the rheology of fractures and faults to define the modes of permeability evolution and the potential for the breaching of seals for subsurface reservoirs. In particular, the work is arranged to determine the dynamic response of faults to shear reactivation (Parts I-III), their post slip and inter-seismic healing (Parts IV-V), their response to chemically reactive alteration (Parts VI-VII) and then upscaling via digital rock physics models (Parts IIX-XI). The work first defines the principal controls on frictional strength and stability in caprocks and unconventional reservoirs and their consequences for permeability evolution in shales (Part I). This linkage is extended to explore the impact of both mineralogy (Part II) and fracture roughness (Part III) on permeability evolution and to link this to the frictional and stability behavior of faults. The important impacts of post-slip healing during interseismic periods is then delineated (Part IV) and constrained using tightly controlled observations of reactivation displacements and permeability measurement (Part V). The role of corrosive fluids in both dissolving (Part VI) and transforming (Part VII) minerals within the fracture walls and cements is then explored, together with impacts on friction, stability and permeability. Finally, process-based models are applied to upscale the friction-stability-permeability response of both gouge-filled faults (Parts VIII and IX) and rough fractures (Part X) together with chemically-driven compaction impacting long-term interseismic sealing (Part XI).

• Research Organization: Pennsylvania State Univ., University Park, PA (United States)
• Sponsoring Organization: USDOE Office of Fossil Energy and Carbon Management (FECM)
• DOE Contract Number: FE0023354
• OSTI ID: 1487035
• Report Number(s): Project-DE-FE0023354
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

58 GEOSCIENCES
Permeability
Friction
Stability
CO2 Sequestration
Caprocks
Seals
Mineralogy
Dilation
Healing
Sealing
Faults
Fractures