1. Controlling Hydraulic Fracture Growth Through Precise Vertical Placement of Lateral Wells: Insights from HFTS Experiment and Numerical Validation.
- Author
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Fu, W., Morris, J. P., Sherman, C. S., Fu, P., and Huang, J.
- Subjects
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HYDRAULIC control systems , *DRILL core analysis , *HYDRAULIC fracturing , *INFORMATION modeling , *DATA logging - Abstract
Vertical placement of the lateral portion of a wellbore in shale formations is crucial for the optimization of hydraulic fracture geometry and the resultant well production. It is common to design the trajectory of a well specifically to target a certain zone in the formation. However, the variations of the vertical positions of individual stages relative to the pay zone thickness along the horizontal section are generally overlooked. Such variations are a combined effect of the 3D trajectory of the well and the dips in the reservoir layers. Using field data from the Hydraulic Fracturing Test Site 1 (HFTS 1) experiment, we reveal that along a single horizontal well, a relatively minor variation of vertical locations among the stimulation stages can induce quite significant differences in the resultant fracture geometries. We also conduct field-scale numerical simulations to further study this phenomenon. Specifically, we incorporate the reservoir's layering information in the geomechanical model by considering the relative distance between the landing point of each stage and the surface of the 3D geological layers. Through high-fidelity simulations, our study shows that the variations of stages' relative vertical positions, even within a small range, can lead to distinct fracture geometries within the same well. Results from this study can inform practical methods to design well trajectories more precisely and optimize hydraulic fractures stagewise. Highlights: Combined field tests, core sample observations, log data, microseismic mapping, and high-fidelity simulations. Accounted for hydraulic fracture swarming effects in field-scale simulations through upscaling modeling approach. Revealed small variations of stages' relative vertical positions can lead to distinct fracture geometries. Provided motivation and workflow for precise well placement and stagewise optimization based on relative vertical depth. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
- Published
- 2022
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