Integration of Rock Mechanics and Fluid Rheology to predict Fracture Geometry

This paper aims to amalgamate the rock elastic properties (UCS, Poisson’s ratio, yield stress), the in situ stress data obtained from correlating the log and core data and the rheological data obtained from the oscillatory testing of the fracturing fluid in order to understand the flow of the fracturing fluid in the subsurface and hence provide a method for determining the fracture geometry, especially near the fracture tip. The results obtained from the log and core data along with those obtained from testing the rheology of the fracturing fluid provided the essential parameters required to determine the deformation of the fracturing fluid flowing under different in situ stress regime. The horizontal deformation of the flowing fluid with respect to its height can be calculated from the values of G’ & the harmonic stress acting on the fluid at a particular point. Hence the extent of deformation can be calculated over the entire length of the formation by selecting data points at regular intervals and interpolating these values to predict the deformation at intermittent distances. Results obtained from this exercise can help in predicting the fracture geometry over the entire fracture length, especially at the tip of the fracture.