Experimental and numerical investigation of proppant embedment and conductivity reduction within a fracture in the Caney Shale, Southern Oklahoma, USA
- Oklahoma State University, Stillwater, OK (United States)
- Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (LBNL), Berkeley, CA (United States)
The current worldwide energy supply is insufficient to meet the rising demand. As a result, the energy prices are expected to keep soaring despite the recent increases in a variety of renewable energy resources. Although not renewable, shale oil and gas — “unconventional” hydrocarbon resources are relatively clean forms of energy resources, which still hold a vast share of the energy market. For many oil and gas companies, meeting profitable production goals from shale reservoirs is sometimes challenging, due to the loss of fracture conductivity and premature declines in the production. In this paper we investigate the stress-dependent changes in the hydraulic conductivity of proppant-filled fractures and mechanical fracture–proppant interactions in Caney Shale, a calcareous, organic-rich mudrock, through laboratory experiments and numerical modeling. American Petroleum Institute (API) fracture conductivity tests were conducted using 2% KCl on five locations within the Caney Shale that consisted of selecting three brittle (reservoir) zones and two ductile zones. Confining pressures ranged from 1,000 psi to 12,000 psi at 210 °F. Conductivity, permeability as well as embedment were measured during the test. Also, an additional, laboratory in-situ visualization test was conducted to examine the detailed proppant-shale matrix interaction under elevated stress (3,920 psi effective stress) and temperature (252 °F), with a synthetic reservoir fluid. Our experimental results have confirmed that improved fracture conductivity is attributed to proppant size, and that the increase in porosity of the proppant pack, closure pressure changes and the reduction in fracture conductivity are a function of many factors such as fracture closure stress.
- Research Organization:
- National Energy Technology Laboratory (NETL), Pittsburgh, PA, Morgantown, WV, and Albany, OR (United States)
- Sponsoring Organization:
- USDOE Office of Fossil Energy and Carbon Management (FECM)
- Grant/Contract Number:
- FE0031776; AC02-05CH11231
- OSTI ID:
- 2997265
- Alternate ID(s):
- OSTI ID: 1923829
OSTI ID: 2323897
- Journal Information:
- Fuel, Journal Name: Fuel Vol. 341; ISSN 0016-2361
- Publisher:
- Elsevier BVCopyright Statement
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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