scholarly journals Sensitivity of the Seismic Moment Released During Fluid Injection to Fault Hydromechanical Properties and Background Stress

2021 ◽  
Vol 9 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nicolas Wynants-Morel ◽  
Louis De Barros ◽  
Frédéric Cappa

Fluid pressure perturbations in subsurface rocks affect the fault stability and can induce both seismicity and aseismic slip. Nonetheless, observations show that the partitioning between aseismic and seismic fault slip during fluid injection may strongly vary among reservoirs. The processes and the main fault properties controlling this partitioning are poorly constrained. Here we examine, through 3D hydromechanical modeling, the influence of fault physical properties on the seismic and aseismic response of a permeable fault governed by a slip-weakening friction law. We perform a series of high-rate, short-duration injection simulations to evaluate the influence of five fault parameters, namely the initial permeability, the dilation angle, the friction drop, the critical slip distance, and the initial proximity of stress to failure. For sake of comparison between tests, all the simulations are stopped for a fixed rupture distance relative to the injection point. We find that while the fault hydraulic behavior is mainly affected by the change in initial permeability and the dilation angle, the mechanical and seismic response of the fault strongly depends on the friction drop and the initial proximity of stress to failure. Additionally, both parameters, and to a lesser extent the initial fault permeability and the critical slip distance, impact the spatiotemporal evolution of seismic events and the partitioning between seismic and aseismic moment. Moreover, this study shows that a modification of such parameters does not lead to a usual seismic moment-injected fluid volume relationship, and provides insights into why the fault hydromechanical properties and background stress should be carefully taken into account to better anticipate the seismic moment from the injected fluid volume.

2021 ◽  
Vol 40 (6) ◽  
pp. 413-417
Author(s):  
Chunfang Meng ◽  
Michael Fehler

As fluids are injected into a reservoir, the pore fluid pressure changes in space and time. These changes induce a mechanical response to the reservoir fractures, which in turn induces changes in stress and deformation to the surrounding rock. The changes in stress and associated deformation comprise the geomechanical response of the reservoir to the injection. This response can result in slip along faults and potentially the loss of fluid containment within a reservoir as a result of cap-rock failure. It is important to recognize that the slip along faults does not occur only due to the changes in pore pressure at the fault location; it can also be a response to poroelastic changes in stress located away from the region where pore pressure itself changes. Our goal here is to briefly describe some of the concepts of geomechanics and the coupled flow-geomechanical response of the reservoir to fluid injection. We will illustrate some of the concepts with modeling examples that help build our intuition for understanding and predicting possible responses of reservoirs to injection. It is essential to understand and apply these concepts to properly use geomechanical modeling to design geophysical acquisition geometries and to properly interpret the geophysical data acquired during fluid injection.


2001 ◽  
Vol 281 (3) ◽  
pp. H1085-H1092 ◽  
Author(s):  
Helge Wiig ◽  
Tjøstolv Lund

There is clinical and experimental evidence that lack of thyroid hormones may affect the composition and structure of the interstitium. This can influence the relationship between volume and pressure during changes in hydration. Hypothyrosis was induced in rats by thyroidectomy 8 wk before the experiments. Overhydration was induced by infusion of acetated Ringer, 5, 10, and 20% of the body weight, while fluid was withdrawn by peritoneal dialysis with hypertonic glucose. Interstitial fluid pressure (Pi) in euvolemia (euvolemic control situation) and experimental situation was measured with micropipettes connected to a servocontrolled counterpressure system. The corresponding interstitial fluid volume (Vi) was found as the difference between extracellular fluid volume measured as the distribution volume of 51Cr-labeled EDTA and plasma volume measured using125I-labeled human serum albumin. In euvolemia, Vi was similar or lower in the skin and higher in skeletal muscle of hypothyroid than in euthyroid control rats, whereas the corresponding Pi was higher in all tissues. During overhydration, Pi rose to the same absolute level in both types of rats, whereas during peritoneal dialysis there was a linear relationship between volume and pressure in all tissues and types of rats. Interstitial compliance (Ci), calculated as the inverse value of the slope of the curve relating changes in volume and pressure in dehydration, did not differ significantly in the hindlimb skin of hypothyroid and euthyroid rats. However, in skeletal muscle, Ci was 1.3 and 2.0 ml · 100 g−1 · mmHg−1 in hypothyroid and euthyroid rats ( P < 0.01), with corresponding numbers for the back skin of 2.7 and 5.0 ml · 100 g−1 · mmHg−1 ( P < 0.01). These experiments suggest that lack of thyroid hormones in rats changes the interstitial matrix, again leading to reduced Ci and reduced ability to mobilize fluid from the interstitium.


2008 ◽  
Vol 294 (2) ◽  
pp. R651-R659 ◽  
Author(s):  
R. M. Dongaonkar ◽  
C. M. Quick ◽  
R. H. Stewart ◽  
R. E. Drake ◽  
C. S. Cox ◽  
...  

Under physiological conditions, interstitial fluid volume is tightly regulated by balancing microvascular filtration and lymphatic return to the central venous circulation. Even though microvascular filtration and lymphatic return are governed by conservation of mass, their interaction can result in exceedingly complex behavior. Without making simplifying assumptions, investigators must solve the fluid balance equations numerically, which limits the generality of the results. We thus made critical simplifying assumptions to develop a simple solution to the standard fluid balance equations that is expressed as an algebraic formula. Using a classical approach to describe systems with negative feedback, we formulated our solution as a “gain” relating the change in interstitial fluid volume to a change in effective microvascular driving pressure. The resulting “edemagenic gain” is a function of microvascular filtration coefficient ( K f), effective lymphatic resistance ( R L), and interstitial compliance ( C). This formulation suggests two types of gain: “multivariate” dependent on C, R L, and K f, and “compliance-dominated” approximately equal to C. The latter forms a basis of a novel method to estimate C without measuring interstitial fluid pressure. Data from ovine experiments illustrate how edemagenic gain is altered with pulmonary edema induced by venous hypertension, histamine, and endotoxin. Reformulation of the classical equations governing fluid balance in terms of edemagenic gain thus yields new insight into the factors affecting an organ's susceptibility to edema.


2020 ◽  
Vol 143 (8) ◽  
Author(s):  
Nan Zhang ◽  
Boyun Guo

Abstract Frac-driven interactions (FDIs) often lead to sharp decline in gas and oil production rates of wells in shale gas/oil reservoirs. How to minimize the FDI is an open problem in the oil and gas industry. Xiao et al.’s (2019, “An Analytical Model for Describing Sequential Initiation and Simultaneous Propagation of Multiple Fractures in Hydraulic Fracturing Shale Oil/Gas Formations,” Energy Sci Eng., 7(5), pp. 1514–1526.) analytical model for two-fracture systems was extended in this study to obtain a general model for handling multiple fractures. The general model was used to identify engineering factors affecting the maximum permissible stage fluid injection time for minimizing FDI. On the basis of model results obtained, we found that increasing fluid injection rate can create more short fractures and thus increase the maximum permissible stage injection time before FDI occurs. Use of dilatant type of fracturing fluid (n &gt; 1) can reduce the growth of long fractures, promote the creation of more short fractures, and thus increase the maximum permissible stage injection time before FDI occurs. It is also expected that injecting dilatant type of fracturing fluid at high rate will allow for longer injection time and thus larger injection volume, resulting in larger stimulated reservoir volume (SRV) with higher fracture intensity and thus higher well productivity and hydrocarbon recovery factor.


Energies ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 13 (22) ◽  
pp. 5878
Author(s):  
Grazia De Landro ◽  
Ortensia Amoroso ◽  
Guido Russo ◽  
Aldo Zollo

The monitoring of rock volume where offshore exploitation activities take place is crucial to assess the corresponding seismic hazard. Fluid injection/extraction operations generate a pore fluid pressure perturbation into the volume hosting the reservoir which, in turn, may trigger new failures and induce changes in the elastic properties of rocks. Our purpose is to evaluate the feasibility of reconstructing pore pressure perturbation diffusion in the host medium by imaging the 4D velocity changes using active seismic. We simulated repeated active offshore surveys and imaged the target volume. We constructed the velocity model perturbed by the fluid injection using physical modeling and evaluated under which conditions the repeated surveys could image the velocity changes. We found that the induced pressure perturbation causes seismic velocity variations ranging between 2–5% and 15–20%, depending on the different injection conditions and medium properties. So, in most cases, time-lapse tomography is very efficient in tracking the perturbation. The noise level characterizing the recording station sites is a crucial parameter. Since we evaluated the feasibility of the proposed 4D imaging strategy under different realistic environmental and operational conditions, our results can be directly applied to set up and configure the acquisition layout of surveys aimed at retrieving fluid-induced medium changes in the hosting medium. Moreover, our results can be considered as a useful starting point to design the guidelines to monitor exploitation areas.


2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Philip Meredith ◽  
Nicolas Brantut ◽  
Patrick Baud

&lt;p&gt;Compaction of porous sandstones is generally associated with a reduction in permeability. Depending on porosity and other microstructural characteristics, compaction may be diffuse or localised in bands. Compaction bands have been shown to act as barriers to fluid flow and therefore reduce permeability perpendicular to the band orentiation, and thus also introduce permeability anisotropy. Additionally, the localised nature of compaction bands should also introduce strong permeability heterogeneity. We present new experimental data on sandstone compaction combining acoustic emission monitoring and spatially distributed pore fluid pressure measurements, allowing us to establish how permeability heterogeneity develops during progressive compaction. Three sandstones were tested in the compactant regime: Locharbriggs sandstone, which is microstructurally heterogeneous with beds of higher and lower initial permeability; a low porosity (21%) Bleurville sandstone, which is microstructurally homogeneous and produces localised compaction bands; and a high porosity (24%) Bleurville sandstone, which is also homogeneous but produces compaction in a more diffuse pattern. At regular intervals during compactive deformation, a constant pore pressure difference was imposed at the upper and lower boundaries of the cylindrical samples, and steady-state flow allowed to become established. Following this, local pore pressure measurements were made at four locations, allowing us to derive estimates of the local permeability. In all samples, progressive compaction produced overall reductions in permeability. In addition, localised compaction also produced internal reorganisation of the permeability structure. Localised compaction bands caused local decreases in permeability, while more diffuse compaction produced a more homogeneous overall reduction in permeability.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;&amp;#160;&lt;/p&gt;


2006 ◽  
Vol 85 (5) ◽  
pp. 442-446 ◽  
Author(s):  
A. Bletsa ◽  
T. Nedrebø ◽  
K.J. Heyeraas ◽  
E. Berggreen

Lowering of interstitial fluid pressure (Pif) is an important factor that explains the rapid edema formation in acute inflammation in loose connective tissues. Lipopolysaccharide (LPS) and the pro-inflammatory cytokines interleukin-1beta (IL-1β) and tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-α) are pathogenetic in gingivitis. To test if these substances induce lowering of Pif in rat oral mucosa, we measured Pif with a micropuncture technique. IL-1β and TNF-α caused lowering of Pif, whereas LPS induced an immediate increase in Pif, followed by lowering after 40 min. Measurements of fluid volume distribution showed a significant change in interstitial fluid volume (Vi) 1.5 hr after LPS exposure as Vi changed from 0.41 ± 0.02 to 0.51 ± 0.03 mL/g wet weight ( p < 0.05), confirming edema. These findings show that LPS, IL-1β, and TNF-α induce lowering of Pif in the rat oral mucosa and contribute to edema formation in LPS-induced gingivitis.


Author(s):  
L. C. Auton ◽  
C. W. MacMinn

The radially outward flow of fluid through a porous medium occurs in many practical problems, from transport across vascular walls to the pressurization of boreholes in the subsurface. When the driving pressure is non-negligible relative to the stiffness of the solid structure, the poromechanical coupling between the fluid and the solid can control both the steady state and the transient mechanics of the system. Very large pressures or very soft materials lead to large deformations of the solid skeleton, which introduce kinematic and constitutive nonlinearity that can have a non-trivial impact on these mechanics. Here, we study the transient response of a poroelastic cylinder to sudden fluid injection. We consider the impacts of kinematic and constitutive nonlinearity, both separately and in combination, and we highlight the central role of driving method in the evolution of the response. We show that the various facets of nonlinearity may either accelerate or decelerate the transient response relative to linear poroelasticity, depending on the boundary conditions and the initial geometry, and that an imposed fluid pressure leads to a much faster response than an imposed fluid flux.


2009 ◽  
Vol 297 (1) ◽  
pp. R6-R16 ◽  
Author(s):  
R. M. Dongaonkar ◽  
G. A. Laine ◽  
R. H. Stewart ◽  
C. M. Quick

The individual processes involved in interstitial fluid volume and protein regulation (microvascular filtration, lymphatic return, and interstitial storage) are relatively simple, yet their interaction is exceedingly complex. There is a notable lack of a first-order, algebraic formula that relates interstitial fluid pressure and protein to critical parameters commonly used to characterize the movement of interstitial fluid and protein. Therefore, the purpose of the present study is to develop a simple, transparent, and general algebraic approach that predicts interstitial fluid pressure ( P i) and protein concentrations ( C i) that takes into consideration all three processes. Eight standard equations characterizing fluid and protein flux were solved simultaneously to yield algebraic equations for P i and C i as functions of parameters characterizing microvascular, interstitial, and lymphatic function. Equilibrium values of P i and C i arise as balance points from the graphical intersection of transmicrovascular and lymph flows (analogous to Guyton's classical cardiac output-venous return curves). This approach goes beyond describing interstitial fluid balance in terms of conservation of mass by introducing the concept of inflow and outflow resistances. Algebraic solutions demonstrate that P i and C i result from a ratio of the microvascular filtration coefficient (1/inflow resistance) and effective lymphatic resistance (outflow resistance), and P i is unaffected by interstitial compliance. These simple algebraic solutions predict P i and C i that are consistent with reported measurements. The present work therefore presents a simple, transparent, and general balance point characterization of interstitial fluid balance resulting from the interaction of microvascular, interstitial, and lymphatic function.


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