Earth, Atmosphere & Environment Sciences
Title : | Development of Advection-Diffusion Based Chemo-Thermo-Physical Model for Post-fracturing Pressure Build-up in Shale Formations |
Area of research : | Earth, Atmosphere & Environment Sciences |
Focus area : | Geophysics and Mathematical Modeling |
Principal Investigator : | Dr. Vinay Kumar Rajak, Indian Institute Of Technology (Indian School Of Mines) Dhanbad, Jharkhand |
Timeline Start Year : | 2024 |
Timeline End Year : | 2027 |
Contact info : | vinayrajak@iitism.ac.in |
Details
Executive Summary : | Shale formations have unique characteristics in comparison to other formations such as sandstone and carbonate rocks. The reactivity and chemical behavior of shale in presence of water depends on the in-situ presence of clay minerals, pH, temperature, and pressure (Lalji et al., 2021). The destabilization of shale formation due to presence of water poses various hazards during the drilling, completion, and production operations (Al-Arfaj et al., 2014). Nonetheless, researchers have shown that the capillary saturation induces the formation of micro-fractures in the pore matrix. Additionally, studies suggest that the evolution of micro-fractures is not only dependent on in-situ and operational parameters, but also dynamic in nature. Experimental studies show that the transport of ions from the shale formation to the water coincides with the micro-fracture initiation and propagation (Hayatdavoudi et al., 2015). These phenomena can be captured using second-order differential diffusivity equation. Past studies have focused on approximate solution of this equation along with the concentration trend of various ions involved. The concentration trend of the ions is generally incorporated using Pitzer-interaction model. However, the limitation of such model is dependent on the range of parameters based on which virial coefficients are calculated. Considering these parametric range limitations, the Pitzer theory virial coefficients with reliable temperature and pressure dependencies needs to be incorporated for representative model. Additionally, the role of advection phenomena cannot be ignored in such models as the transport of chemical species from the shale system to the frac water will change and consequently, the hydraulic conductivity of shale. It is worth mentioning here that the hydraulic conductivity is crucial for the post-frac gas production in the shale formations. Therefore, we propose to develop the generalized solution based on advection-diffusion model in addition to the inclusion of various interaction parameters for chemical species present in the shale formation with water. Keeping these interdisciplinary physical phenomena in mind, it becomes pertinent to develop a suitable model to characterize the behavior of shale which can be used for development of robust drilling process for better wellbore construction and design of compatible fracturing fluid for efficient production system. |
Total Budget (INR): | 6,60,000 |
Organizations involved