A New Approach for Well Spacing Optimisation and Its Application to Various Shale Gas Resources

2013 ◽  
Author(s):  
A. Boulis ◽  
R. Jayakumar ◽  
R. Rai
Keyword(s):  
Shale Gas ◽  
New Approach ◽  
Well Spacing

Study Evaluates Fracturing Interference for Multiwell Pads in Shale Gas Reservoirs

2021 ◽  
Vol 73 (08) ◽  
pp. 67-68
Author(s):  
Chris Carpenter
Keyword(s):  
Hydraulic Fracturing ◽  
Shale Gas ◽  
Technical Conference ◽  
Gas Production ◽  
Gas Reservoirs ◽  
Well Drilling ◽  
Recovery Potential ◽  
Shale Gas Reservoirs ◽  
Well Spacing ◽  
Southwest Region

This article, written by JPT Technology Editor Chris Carpenter, contains highlights of paper SPE 201694, “Interwell Fracturing Interference Evaluation of Multiwell Pads in Shale Gas Reservoirs: A Case Study in WY Basin,” by Youwei He, SPE, Jianchun Guo, SPE, and Yong Tang, Southwest Petroleum University, et al., prepared for the 2020 SPE Annual Technical Conference and Exhibition, originally scheduled to be held in Denver, Colorado, 5–7 October. The paper has not been peer reviewed. The paper aims to determine the mechanisms of fracturing interference for multiwell pads in shale gas reservoirs and evaluate the effect of interwell fracturing interference on production. Field data of 56 shale gas wells in the WY Basin are applied to calculate the ratio of affected wells to newly fractured wells and understand its influence on gas production. The main controlling factors of fracturing interference are determined, and the interwell fracturing interacting types are presented. Production recovery potential for affected wells is analyzed, and suggestions for mitigating fracturing interference are proposed. Interwell Fracturing Interference Evaluation The WY shale play is in the southwest region of the Sichuan Basin, where shale gas reserves in the Wufeng-Longmaxi formation are estimated to be the highest in China. The reservoir has produced hydrocarbons since 2016. Infill well drilling and massive hydraulic fracturing operations have been applied in the basin. Each well pad usually is composed of six to eight multifractured horizontal wells (MFHWs). Well spacing within one pad, or the distance between adjacent well pads, is so small that fracture interference can occur easily between infill wells and parent wells. Fig. 1 shows the number of wells affected by in-fill well fracturing from 2016 to 2019 in the basin. As the number of newly drilled wells increased between 2017 and 2019, the number of wells affected by hydraulic fracturing has greatly increased. The number of wells experiencing fracturing interaction has reached 65 in the last 4 years at the time of writing.

scholarly journals Method for Visualizing Fractures Induced by Laboratory-Based Hydraulic Fracturing and Its Application to Shale Samples

Energies ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 11 (8) ◽  
pp. 1976 ◽  
Author(s):  
Youqing Chen ◽  
Makoto Naoi ◽  
Yuto Tomonaga ◽  
Takashi Akai ◽  
Hiroyuki Tanaka ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Hydraulic Fracturing ◽  
Ultraviolet Light ◽  
Shale Gas ◽  
Laboratory Method ◽  
Oil Reservoirs ◽  
Thermosetting Resin ◽  
Fluorescent Substance ◽  
New Approach ◽  
Induced Fractures ◽  
Observation Method

A better understanding of the process of stimulation by hydraulic fracturing in shale gas and oil reservoirs is necessary for improving resource productivity. However, direct observation of hydraulically stimulated regions including induced fractures has been difficult. In the present study, we develop a new approach for directly visualizing regions of shale specimens impregnated by fluid during hydraulic fracturing. The proposed laboratory method uses a thermosetting resin mixed with a fluorescent substance as a fracturing fluid. After fracturing, the resin is fixed within the specimens by heating, and the cut sections are then observed under ultraviolet light. Based on brightness, we can then distinguish induced fractures and their surrounding regions impregnated by the fluid from other regions not reached by the fluid. Polarization microscope observation clearly reveals the detailed structures of tortuous or branched fractures on the micron scale and interactions between fractures and constituent minerals. The proposed experimental and observation method is useful for understanding the process of stimulation by hydraulic fracturing and its relationship with microscopic rock characteristics, which is important for fracturing design optimization in shale gas and oil resource development.

A Semianalytical Methodology for Pressure-Transient Analysis of Multiwell-Pad-Production Scheme in Shale Gas Reservoirs, Part 1: New Insights Into Flow Regimes and Multiwell Interference

SPE Journal ◽  
2017 ◽  
Vol 23 (03) ◽  
pp. 885-905 ◽  
Author(s):  
Cong Xiao ◽  
Yu Dai ◽  
Leng Tian ◽  
Haixiang Lin ◽  
Yayun Zhang ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Numerical Simulation ◽  
Flow Regime ◽  
Transient Response ◽  
Shale Gas ◽  
Transient Analysis ◽  
Flow Regimes ◽  
Pressure Transient ◽  
Fracture Spacing ◽  
Fracture Length ◽  
Well Spacing

Summary Recently, a multiwell-pad-production (MWPP) scheme has been the center of attention as a promising technology to improve shale-gas (SG) recovery. However, the increasing possibility of multiwell pressure interference (MWPI) in the MWPP scheme severely distorts flow regimes, which strongly challenges the traditional pressure-transient analysis methods that focus on single multifractured horizontal wells (SMFHWs) without MWPI. Therefore, a methodology to identify pressure-transient response of the MWPP scheme with and without MWPI is urgent. To fill this gap, a new semianalytical pressure-transient model of the MWPP scheme is established by use of superposition theory, Gauss elimination, and the Stehfest numerical algorithm. Type curves are generated, and flow regimes are identified by considering MWPI. Finally, a sensitivity analysis is conducted. Our results show that there are good agreements between our proposed model and numerical simulation; moreover, our semianalytical approach also demonstrates a promising calculation speed compared with numerical simulation. Some expected flow regimes are significantly distorted by MWPI. In addition, well rate determines the distortion of pressure curves, whereas fracture length, well spacing, and fracture spacing determine when the MWPI occurs. The smaller the gas rate, the more severely flow regimes are distorted. As the well spacing increases, fracture length decreases, fracture spacing decreases, and the occurrence of MWPI occurs later. The stress-sensitivity coefficient has little to no influence on the occurrence of MWPI. Similar to the concept of the dual-porosity model, three new flow regimes—the single-well flow regime, MWPI flow regime, and MWPP flow regime—are artificially defined to systematically characterize the flow regimes of the MWPP scheme. This work offers some additional insights on pressure-transient response for the MWPP scheme in the SG reservoir, which can provide considerable guidance for fracture-properties estimation and well-pattern optimization for the MWPP scheme.

scholarly journals Quantitative Storytelling: Science, Narratives, and Uncertainty in Nexus Innovations

2021 ◽  
pp. 016224392110538
Author(s):  
Louisa Jane Di Felice ◽  
Violeta Cabello ◽  
Maddalena Ripa ◽  
Cristina Madrid-Lopez
Keyword(s):  
Water Resources ◽  
Policy Change ◽  
Electric Vehicles ◽  
Shale Gas ◽  
New Approach ◽  
Eu Policy ◽  
Alternative Water ◽  
Dominant Narratives ◽  
Future Visions

Innovations are central instruments of sustainability policies. They project future visions onto technological solutions and enable win-win framings of complex sustainability issues. Yet, they also create new problems by interconnecting different resources such as water, food, and energy, what is known as the “WEF nexus.” In this paper, we apply a new approach called Quantitative Storytelling (QST) to the assessment of four innovations with a strong nexus component in EU policy: biofuels, shale gas, electric vehicles, and alternative water resources. Recognizing irreducible pluralism and uncertainties, QST inspects the relationships between the narratives used to frame sustainability issues and the evidence on those issues. Our experiences outlined two rationales for implementing QST. First, QST can be used to question dominant narratives that promote certain innovations despite evidence against their effectiveness. Second, QST can offer avenues for pluralistic processes of co-creation of alternative narratives and imaginaries. We reflect on the implementation of QST and on the role played by different uncertainties throughout these processes. Our experiences suggest that while the role of nexus assessments using both numbers and narratives may not be instrumental in directly inducing policy change, they are valuable means to open discussions on innovations outside of dominant nexus imaginaries.

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