Mechanical Factors Controlling the Development of Orthogonal and Nested Fracture Network Geometries

Orthogonal fracture networks form an arrangement of open well-connected fractures which have perpendicular abutment angles and sometimes show topological relations by which fracture sets abut against each other, thus forming a nested network. Previous modelling studies have shown that orthogonal fractures may be caused by a local stress...

Fluid flow from matrix to fractures in Early Jurassic shales

The potential of shale reservoirs for gas extraction is largely determined by the permeability of the rock. Typical pore diameters in shales range from the μm down to the nm scale. The permeability of shale reservoirs is a function of the interconnectivity between the pore space and the natural fracture network present. We have measured the...

2-D to 3-D Fracture Network Detection and Forecasting in a Carbonate Reservoir Analogue Using Multiple Point Statistics (MPS)

Signature of seismic wave attenuation during fracture network formation

Fracture-fault networks and role of nested Topology on the mechanical response and Connectivity for tight gas extraction

Our aim is to quantify the role of intermediate length scale pre-existing faults and fractures on the critical loading of first order faults and on the potential for enhancement of fracture network. The arrangement of smaller scale natural fractures relative to larger-scale faults is subject of our combined outcrop and numerical modelling study....

Quantifying rock's structural fabric: A multi-scale hierarchical approach to natural fracture systems and stochastic modelling

Outcrops as analog of fractured reservoirs: Capture explicit geometries, derive statistics and model behaviour

Adapted from extended abstract prepared in conjunction with oral presentation at AAPG Hedberg Conference.

A Geologically Consistent Permeability Model of Fractured Folded Carbonate Reservoirs: Lessons from Outcropping Analogue

Presently adopted fracture-related permeability models of large folded reservoirs are simplistic and often unrelated to the geological setting and evolution of the considered structure. In order to improve predictions of fluid flow in more complex subsurface fractured reservoirs, we build a 3D fracture network model of an outcropping fold in...

Predicting multiscale fracture patterns in buried reservoirs: The importance of outcrop data in a coherent workflow

Fracture data from outcropping analogs are often acquired but rarely used to improve permeability predictions in buried reservoirs. To improve this we present a systematic workflow which includes i) the building of a geometric model of the investigated structure, ii) the execution of mechanical simulations to determine state of stress and strain...

Quantifying Fracture Heterogeneity in Different Domains of Folded Carbonate Rocks to Improve Fractured Reservoir Analog Fluid Flow Models

Fluid flow in carbonate reservoirs is largely controlled by multiscale fracture networks. Significant variations of fracture network porosity and permeability are caused by the 3D heterogeneity of the fracture network characteristics, such as intensity, orientation and size. Characterizing fracture network heterogeneity is therefore essential in...

Small-scale convection at a continental back-arc to craton transition: Application to the southern Canadian Cordillera

A step in the depth of the lithosphere base, associated with lateral variations in the upper mantle temperature structure, can trigger mantle flow that is referred to as edge-driven convection. This paper aims at outlining the implications of such edge-driven flow at a lateral temperature transition from a hot and thin to a cold and thick...