Novel Simulator for Wireline Mini-Fracture Testing

Wireline Mini-Fracture testing jobs consist of a short duration, small volume fracturing operation inside an open-hole borehole, where a certain amount of fluid is injected into the formation at constant rate using a Wireline Modular conveyed tool as a source of hydraulic power to pressurize the wellbore. The tool is configured with an inflatable straddle packer and an internal pump, which inflate/deflates the packers and supplies pressure to the formation until a hydraulic fracture is induced. This procedure is used to determine in–situ formation breakdown and closure pressure also known as minimum horizontal closure pressure. This provides vital information regarding hydraulic fracture design, water and gas injection management, fault re-activation, wellbore stability, sand production, rock mechanical properties, casing string design, cap and base rock integrity and gas storage design. Geomechanical and operational parameters such as, elastic properties, poro-elasticity, rock strength, formation pore pressure, far field horizontal stress, permeability/porosity distributions, borehole fluid properties among others, influences the performance of the Mini-Frac Jobs. In many cases poor understanding of the reservoir response to the fracture process, caused that the hydraulic fracture did not propagate deep into the formation. In other cases the pressure applied to the formation might be insufficient to break down the formation, leading to unsatisfactory application of the Mini-Fracture technique in the process. The objective of this thesis is to develop a Mini-Facture application simulator that uses the geomechanical and operational parameters that control the performance of a Mini-Fracture job and estimate the possibility of the occurrence of a tensile failure in the formation. The simulator is then validated by comparing its output with the results of stress test done in the field. With this simulator petrotechnical professionals and field engineers will have a platform that simulates the pressure responses and fracture initialization during Mini-Frac treatments, incorporating all the variables affecting a Wireline Mini-Fracture job, helping the design engineer to make key decisions about the ultimate or required fracture plan. Furthermore the simulator will reduce the uncertainties that limit the reliability of the Wireline Mini-Fracture treatment by allowing the selection of appropriate tool configuration based on the job objectives and the geological environmental conditions. Finally this project demonstrates that combining the appropriate constitutive relations that reflect the coupling among the tool operational performance with wellbore flow, reservoir and geomechanics modelling a Mini-Fracture simulator can be developed.

Subject

mini-frac

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Student theses

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master thesis

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