Stress Testing

Stefano Cantini Reservoir Engineer

16 January 2014

Agenda

Stress Test (Microfrac): Background Info and Applications

Basics of hydraulic fracturing

Overview of acquisition methods

Case Histories

UGS
Nuclear Waste Deposit
Shale Gas (Barnett)
Heavy Oil

2
2

Microfrac vs Minifrac

Microfrac (MDT stress test): provides breakdown and stress over a limited
interval of pay or shale / salt (< 1m). It is run by wireline with the MDT or
equivalent tools. Injection rate of the order of 1 liter/minute, with total
injected fluid around 10-20 liters (few gallons).

Minifrac: stress tests performed by a hydraulic fracturing crew. It is a pre

fracturing calibration treatment and includes determination of closure
pressure" over the height of the pay 10 to 30 m (10s to 100 of bbl are used
at fracturing rate of 5 to 20 bpm).

Stress Test with MDT (Microfrac)

With MDT Stress Tests in-situ minimum stress is

determined from closing/reopening of an induced
fracture. Estimate of breakdown pressure is also
provided.

Minimum stress is on the horizontal plane

(except for very shallow wells/active tectonic
areas)

In general a fracture grows perpendicularly

to the direction of minimum stress, so it is
vertical

Applications of Minimum Stress

KEY INPUT FOR GEOMECHANICAL MODELS

Hydraulic Fracturing design

UGS (Underground Gas Storage) design and caprock integrity
CO2 sequestration
Waste disposal sites
Gas or water flood reservoir management
Coal Bed Methane
Steam Injection
Wellbore Stability
Sand Production

Geomechanic Assessment from Logs/Cores

Determination of Dynamic Elastic Modulus from Sonic and Density Logs:

Poissons Ratio

Tc is the compressional delta time

Ts is the shear delta time

is the density
Youngs Modulus

Dynamic modulus are converted into static through calibration with core data

Geomechanic Assessment from Logs/Cores

Overburden
Minimum Stress
(estimated from sonic and density logs)

Biots Poro-Elastic Model

h =

Poissons ratio

Biots constant

pp

Pore Pressure

Overburden

pp ) + pp

Geomechanic Assessment from Logs/Cores

In Situ Minimum Stress

Measurement from MDT
Microfrac

Calibration of Stress
Profile derived from
sonic and density logs

Stress Applications: Hydraulic Fracturing Design

it is the contrast in stresses
between layers that causes fractures to be
contained in the reservoir

Stress Applications: UGS Design

Geomechanics is essential for UGS , especially if overpressured (injection pressure

exceeding discovery pressure) . If an existing fracture/defect is pressurized above the
minimum stress, it opens compromising caprock integrity, with gas leakage and
possible reactivation of faults causing induced earthquakes

Injection and withdrawal cycles induce expansion and shrinkage of reservoir with
consequent caprock movement. Need coupled modelling approach: petrophysical and
geomechanical data should converge into a model able to simulate the reservoir fluid
dynamics , the stress strain rock behaviour and their interrelations. Example of coupled
modelling outputs:

10

maximum safe injection pressure

volume changes
stress-dependent permeability
saturation-dependent rock strengths
subsidence

Workflow

Conventional approach: focus on reservoir

Petrophysical and geomechanical focus on

reservoir AND caprock/overburden

11

Agenda

Stress Test (Microfrac): Background Info and Applications

Basics of hydraulic fracturing

Overview of acquisition methods

Case Histories

UGS
Nuclear Waste Deposit
Shale Gas (Barnett)
Heavy Oil

12
12

Hydraulic Fracturing/In Situ Stresses

overburden

minimum stress

13

Hydraulic Fracturing/In Situ Stress

overburden

1
Pi
Pi

minimum stress

14

Hydraulic Fracturing Theory

pressure

flow
rate

15

time

Hydraulic Fracturing Theory

pressure

3
flow
rate

16

time

Hydraulic Fracturing Theory

pressure

3
flow
rate

17

time

Hydraulic Fracturing Theory

pressure

3
Fracture
Propagation

3
flow
rate

18

time

Hydraulic Fracturing Theory

pressure

minimum in-situ stress

flow
rate
19

time

Interpretation Methodolgy
pressure
CLOSURE
PRESSURE

PROPAGATION
ISIP

ISIP
REOPENING

flow
rate

20

time

Agenda

Stress Test (Microfrac): Background Info and Applications

Basics of hydraulic fracturing

Overview of acquisition methods

Case Histories

UGS
Nuclear Waste Deposit
Shale Gas (Barnett)
Heavy Oil

21
21

Methods to Measure Stress Magnitude and Direction

Direct Methods: Measure Fracture Open/Close Pressures

Standard Extended Leak-Off Tests (ELOTs)
Step Rate Tests Creation Of Large Hydraulic Fractures
Micro-hydraulic fracturing technique (MDT)

Sonic Logs Allow Inference of Stress Properties:

shorizontal = F(Vp/Vs,sv),
sh /sH inferred from Shear Wave Anistropy

Stress Direction from Image analysis and Calipers (borehole ovality, breakouts,
fault slip, drilling induced fractures)

Core relaxation techniques

22

Direct Stress Measurement Methods

LOT Stress measurements seldom made in oil industry:

Tools usually conveyed on pipe, costly

Uncertainty of initiating fracture in the preferred layer
Wellbore storage effects
Only one test possible per run
Often doing FIT (Formation Integrity Tests) without fracturing

MDT (MODULAR DYNAMICS TOOL)

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Wireline conveyed
Several Tests during the same trip in the hole
Test interval is 1 m., with rigorous depth control
Downhole Pump reducing wellbore storage
Real time control of injected rates and pressures

MDT MicroHydraulic Fracturing Overview

Fracture
initiation

Breakdown pressure

square root of the shut-in time

Pressure record during a micro-hydraulic fracturing test

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Induced fractures detected

and oriented on FMI image

MDT Stress Test in Cased Hole

Ensure cement bonding is good: USIT-CBLVDL

1 to 2 ft Perforation with HSD Gun , deep penetrating charges, 12 spf,

phased

25

MDT Dual Packer positioned across the perforated interval

MDT Stress Test Environment

Vertical wellbore (less than 30o deviation) or wellbore aligned with a principle
stress

Permeability under 100 md. Higher permeability needs viscous fluids to fracture

Pressure Differential under 5500 psi and temperature < 350 degF

Hole size limitations: ovality < 20%, low rugosity and borehole diameter in the
range 6 8.5 (12 1/4)

Open and cased hole

26

Agenda

Stress Test (Microfrac): Background Info and Applications

Basics of hydraulic fracturing

Overview of acquisition methods

Case Histories

UGS
Nuclear Waste Deposit
Shale Gas (Barnett)
Heavy Oil

27
27

Case History 1: UGS

Evaluate on UGS (Underground Gas Storage) in South West of France:

Maximum safe pressure at which gas can be reinjected (reservoir pressure is
above original to displace water; is actual reservoir pressure of 1.5 bar/10m
safe?)
Overburden Integrity through different pressure regimes
North

South

Ground surface

Molasse (shaly
limestones) overburden
Gas Reservoir
GWC
Aquiferous Sands

28

Case History 1: UGS

31 valid MDT stress measurements allowed detailed characterization of field

stress profile between 520 and 150m:

29

Well LUG 34 (Cased): 4 tests attempted, 3 successful

Well LUG 201(Open): 12 tests , 10 successful
Well IZA 203 (Open):11 tests , 9 successful
Well LUG 202 (Open):12 tests , 9 successful

Case History 1: UGS, Test Example

30

Case History 1: UGS, Test Example

31

Case History 1: UGS, Test Example

32

Case History 1: UGS, Results

31 representative minimum stress tests from

MDT in UGS field overburden (4 wells)

In situ minimum horizontal stress gradient is

2.19 Bar/10 m, giving a large safety ratio

Input for 3D geomechanical model:

gas overpressure is converted into
displacement and strain in the reservoir
sands where the vertical effective
stress is drastically decreased upon
gas injection. The overburden appears
moving up and down elastically in one
piece, without stress or pore pressure
change.
The vertical uplift of the overburden is
estimated in 20 cm after first injection,
and 10 cm during the following summer
injections. Same values occur in
subsidence during winter withdrawals.
Neither shear nor tensile failure occurs
during cycles
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2.19 Bar /10 m

reservoir pressure 1.5

bar/10m

Case History 2: Nuclear Waste Storage Site Design

The complete state of stress is required as a necessary

input for building the caverns in the shales and to assess
their long term stability

Detailed investigation on 150 m. thickness shale (CallovoOxfordien) and surrounding carbonate formations

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Case History 2 : MDT Induced Fractures

Vertical fracture (limestone)

Magnitude (MPa)
6
300

10

12

14

16

Sigma
hh
Weight
of sediments
Weight of sediments

350

Limestone
400

450

Shale
500

550

600

Depth
650m.
35

Limestone
Horizontal fracture (Shale)

Case History 2 : MDT Induced Fractures

6 inches

TOP VIEW
MDT vertical hydraulic fractures mined back during the sinking of the shafts

36

Case History 2: Test Example

Fracture Closure=Minimum Stress

37

Case History 3: Barnett Shale Gas

Extensive MDT stress test measurements for

fracturing design

Ellenberger is the major source of

water production in wells where
hydraulic fracture growth is
allowed to expand into the aquifer
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Case History 4: Heavy Oil

Need to avoid steam

release at surface!!

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Case History 4: Heavy Oil

In order to contain the steam , need to asses geomechanic behaviour of

caprock: stress profile required

Canada: more than 80 MDT stress tests job performed to this

purpose so far
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