Lecture:Proppant Transport Equations and Their Application for Hydraulic Fracturing in Multilayered Reservoirs

Lecturer: Professor Zhang Xi (China University of Geosciences (Wuhan))

Time: 9:00 AM, Dec. 31^st, 2021.

Avenue: A403, State Key Laboratory of Oil and Gas Reservoir Geology Exploitation

Welcome!

In this lecture we first introduce a kinematical proppant transport model for spherical suspensions in hydraulic fractures developed by Dontsov and Peirce (J. Fluid Mech., vol. 760, 2014, pp. 567-590.). Next, a pseudo-3D hydraulic fracture simulator for multilayered rocks, to capture proppant transport mechanism, is developed. For pressure-driven proppant transport, the bridges made of compact proppant particles can lead to both proppant distribution discontinuity, and higher treating pressure. The model is applied to growth of a fracture from a vertical well, which covers many thin-bedded intervals and more than one opened hydraulic fractured interval. The numerical examples demonstrate that a loss of vertical connectivity can occur among multiple fracture sections, and proppant particles are transported along the more compliant layers, leaving the layers targeted to be untapped. This talk intends to illustrate hydraulic fracturing treatments with proppant transport being affected by and interacting with reservoir lithological complexities.

Bio:

Zhang Xi is Professor and PhD supervisor from School of Engineering, China University of Geosciences (Wuhan). Since 2000, he engaged in hydraulic fracturing mechanism of crack propagation experiment and numerical simulation research, focusing on numerical model of reform in unconventional oil and gas reservoir and mining applications. Some achievements have been made in the analysis of microseismic source mechanics caused by hydraulic fracturing cracks and natural cracks interaction, multiple hydraulic fracturing crack extension, and the hydraulic fracturing of crack propagation near wellbore. He has hosted various scientific and technological projects and published more than 70 academic papers, includingJGR-Solid Earth,EPSL,SPEJand other journals.

Organizer and sponsor:

State Key Laboratory of Oil and Gas Reservoir Geology Exploitation

Scientific Research Department

Petroleum Engineering School

SPE Chengdu Section

SWPU SPE Student Chapter