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A Simulation study of the impact of stresses on fluid flow through Variable Aperture Fractures
- Publisher: European Association of Geoscientists & Engineers
- Source: Conference Proceedings, 79th EAGE Conference and Exhibition 2017, Jun 2017, Volume 2017, p.1 - 3
Abstract
Understanding the flow inside fractures is critical for a wide range of petroleum and ground water applications. Fractured reservoir rocks have a rough, undulated rough surface with its aperture continuously undergoing change in the dimensions throughout its length. The behavior of reservoir fluids is governed by Cubic law of fluid flow inside the fractures under the increasing overburden stress. Although many investigators have analysed the fluid flow through fractures and its deviations from cubic law in detail, few have provided a definite image of modelling both rough surfaces and the associated roughness factor with it. Multiphase flow in fractures is not well understood till date and the complexity of interplay between flow, roughness and variable apertures complicates the problem further. Our work involves determination of fracture aperture, under the impact of overburden stresses and the modelling of multiphase flow in such fractures under the condition of laminar flow. Work performed here claims an approximate reduction of 0.005 cm in fracture aperture with a 1000 psi increase in overburden pressure. In this work, a numerical model is built using mathematical tools and equations that are used to compute the fluid flow through the reservoir matrix and fracture at different overburden pressures.