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Title: Collapse of Reacted Fracture Surface Decreases Permeability and Frictional Strength

Abstract

Abstract Geochemical and geomechanical perturbations of the subsurface caused by the injection of fluids present risks of leakage and seismicity. This study investigated how acidic fluid flow affects hydraulic and frictional properties of fractures using experiments with 3.8‐cm‐long specimens of Eagle Ford shale, a laminated shale with carbonate‐rich strata. In low‐pressure flow cells, one set of samples was exposed to acidic brine and another set was exposed to neutral brine. X‐ray computed tomography and energy‐dispersive X‐ray spectroscopy revealed that samples exposed to acidic brine were calcite‐depleted and had developed a porous altered layer, while the other set showed no evidence of alteration. After reaction, samples were compressed and sheared in a triaxial cell that supplied normal stress and differential pore pressure at prescribed sliding velocities, independently measuring friction and permeability. During the initial compression, the porous altered layer collapsed into fine particles that filled the fracture. This effectively impeded flow and sealed the fracture, resulting in fracture permeability to decrease 1 to 2 orders of magnitude relative to the unaltered fractures. This is a favorable outcome in subsurface applications where the goal is to reduce leakage risks. However, during shear the reacted fracture had lower frictional strength because the fine‐grainedmore » particles in the collapsed layer prevented the formation of interlocking microasperities. Therefore, coupled geochemical and geomechanical processes that could favorably seal fractures could also increase the likelihood of induced seismicity. These findings have important implications for geological carbon sequestration, pressurized fluid energy storage, geothermal energy, and other subsurface technologies.« less

Authors:
 [1];  [2];  [1];  [1];  [3]
+ Show Author Affiliations
  1. Civil and Environmental Engineering Department Princeton University Princeton NJ USA
  2. Energy and Mineral Engineering, Pennsylvania State University University Park PA USA, Jackson School of Geosciences Now at University of Texas at Austin Austin TX USA
  3. Energy and Mineral Engineering, Pennsylvania State University University Park PA USA
Publication Date:
Research Org.:
Pennsylvania State Univ., University Park, PA (United States)
Sponsoring Org.:
USDOE Office of Fossil Energy (FE)
OSTI Identifier:
1580620
Alternate Identifier(s):
OSTI ID: 1580621; OSTI ID: 1799772
Grant/Contract Number:  
DE‐FE0023354; FE0023354
Resource Type:
Published Article
Journal Name:
Journal of Geophysical Research. Solid Earth
Additional Journal Information:
Journal Name: Journal of Geophysical Research. Solid Earth Journal Volume: 124 Journal Issue: 12; Journal ID: ISSN 2169-9313
Publisher:
American Geophysical Union (AGU)
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English
Subject:
58 GEOSCIENCES; Geochemistry & Geophysics

Citation Formats

Spokas, K., Fang, Y., Fitts, J. P., Peters, C. A., and Elsworth, D. Collapse of Reacted Fracture Surface Decreases Permeability and Frictional Strength. United States: N. p., 2019. Web. doi:10.1029/2019JB017805.
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Spokas, K., Fang, Y., Fitts, J. P., Peters, C. A., & Elsworth, D. Collapse of Reacted Fracture Surface Decreases Permeability and Frictional Strength. United States. https://doi.org/10.1029/2019JB017805
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Spokas, K., Fang, Y., Fitts, J. P., Peters, C. A., and Elsworth, D. Sat . "Collapse of Reacted Fracture Surface Decreases Permeability and Frictional Strength". United States. https://doi.org/10.1029/2019JB017805.
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@article{osti_1580620,
title = {Collapse of Reacted Fracture Surface Decreases Permeability and Frictional Strength},
author = {Spokas, K. and Fang, Y. and Fitts, J. P. and Peters, C. A. and Elsworth, D.},
abstractNote = {Abstract Geochemical and geomechanical perturbations of the subsurface caused by the injection of fluids present risks of leakage and seismicity. This study investigated how acidic fluid flow affects hydraulic and frictional properties of fractures using experiments with 3.8‐cm‐long specimens of Eagle Ford shale, a laminated shale with carbonate‐rich strata. In low‐pressure flow cells, one set of samples was exposed to acidic brine and another set was exposed to neutral brine. X‐ray computed tomography and energy‐dispersive X‐ray spectroscopy revealed that samples exposed to acidic brine were calcite‐depleted and had developed a porous altered layer, while the other set showed no evidence of alteration. After reaction, samples were compressed and sheared in a triaxial cell that supplied normal stress and differential pore pressure at prescribed sliding velocities, independently measuring friction and permeability. During the initial compression, the porous altered layer collapsed into fine particles that filled the fracture. This effectively impeded flow and sealed the fracture, resulting in fracture permeability to decrease 1 to 2 orders of magnitude relative to the unaltered fractures. This is a favorable outcome in subsurface applications where the goal is to reduce leakage risks. However, during shear the reacted fracture had lower frictional strength because the fine‐grained particles in the collapsed layer prevented the formation of interlocking microasperities. Therefore, coupled geochemical and geomechanical processes that could favorably seal fractures could also increase the likelihood of induced seismicity. These findings have important implications for geological carbon sequestration, pressurized fluid energy storage, geothermal energy, and other subsurface technologies.},
doi = {10.1029/2019JB017805},
journal = {Journal of Geophysical Research. Solid Earth},
number = 12,
volume = 124,
place = {United States},
year = {Sat Dec 28 00:00:00 EST 2019},
month = {Sat Dec 28 00:00:00 EST 2019}
}
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https://doi.org/10.1029/2019JB017805
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