Study on Proppant Transport and Placement in Shale Gas Main Fractures
Abstract
:1. Introduction
2. Liquid–Solid Two-Phase Flow Mathematical Model
2.1. Governing Equations
2.2. Constitutive Equation
2.3. Boundary Conditions
3. Experimental and Numerical Model Validation
3.1. Geometric Modeling and Meshing
3.2. Experimental Parameter Settings
3.3. Numerical Model Validation
4. Results
4.1. Effect of Displacement
4.2. Effect of Viscosity
4.3. Effect of Fracture Width
4.4. Effect of Shot Hole Location
5. Conclusions
- (1)
- The laboratory experiment was in good agreement with the simulation results, indicating that the Euler two-fluid method can reflect the flow of proppant in the fracture well, and the numerical model established is effective and feasible.
- (2)
- The process of proppant accumulation in the fracture can be divided into three stages. The first stage is the gravity settlement stage, which forms a small sand bank at the bottom of the fracture; The second stage is the vertical growth stage, in which the proppant accumulates in the vertical direction and the height increases. The third stage is the horizontal growth stage, when the proppant settles to the length beyond the equilibrium height.
- (3)
- The displacement mainly affects the proppant settlement distance, equilibrium height and equilibrium time in the early stage. The larger the displacement, the smaller the equilibrium height, the faster the proppant accumulation, and the farther the migration distance, but the larger the unfilled area at the inlet. Fracturing fluid viscosity mainly affects the settling rate and migration distance of the proppant. The greater the viscosity, the slower the settling rate of the proppant, which is more conducive to sending the proppant to the remote well zone.
- (4)
- The smaller the proppant particle size is, the easier it is for it to be carried deeper into the fracture by the fluid, the smaller the equilibrium height, and the smoother the inlet angle and settlement slope angle. The width of the fracture has little effect on proppant accumulation, but when the fracture is narrow, the proppant is affected more by the wall surface, and the upper end of the accumulation body will show pits. The injection position only affects the accumulation near the well, but has little influence on the far end of the fracture and the equilibrium height.
Author Contributions
Funding
Data Availability Statement
Conflicts of Interest
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Site Displacement (m3/min) | Height of Artificial Crack (m) | Height of Flatbed Unit (m) | Number of Perforation Clusters | Experimental Displacement (L/min) |
---|---|---|---|---|
12 | 30 | 0.6 | 12 | 10 |
18 | 10 | 0.6 | 6 | 90 |
Proppant Size | Displacement (L/min) | Fluid Viscosity (mPa∙s) | Width of Crack (mm) | Position of Injection |
---|---|---|---|---|
40/70, 70/140 | 70 | 2.5 | 10 | Three-hole injection |
Displacement (L/min) | Proppant Size (mesh) | Fluid Viscosity (mPa·s) | Width of Fracture (mm) |
---|---|---|---|
50 | 70/140 | 2.5 | 10 |
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Liang, T.; Xiu, N.; Fu, H.; Jian, Y.; Zhang, T.; Du, X.; Tu, Z. Study on Proppant Transport and Placement in Shale Gas Main Fractures. Energies 2024, 17, 1537. https://doi.org/10.3390/en17071537
Liang T, Xiu N, Fu H, Jian Y, Zhang T, Du X, Tu Z. Study on Proppant Transport and Placement in Shale Gas Main Fractures. Energies. 2024; 17(7):1537. https://doi.org/10.3390/en17071537
Chicago/Turabian StyleLiang, Tiancheng, Nailing Xiu, Haifeng Fu, Yinlin Jian, Tao Zhang, Xingyang Du, and Zhicheng Tu. 2024. "Study on Proppant Transport and Placement in Shale Gas Main Fractures" Energies 17, no. 7: 1537. https://doi.org/10.3390/en17071537