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Modeling Fracture Tip Screenout and Application for Fracture Height Growth Control
M. Bai, TerraTek; R.H. Morales, SPE, Dowell Schlumberger; R. Suarez-Rivera, SPE, TerraTek, W. D. Norman, SPE,
ChevronTexaco; S. Green, TerraTek
Copyright 2003, Society of Petroleum Engineers Inc.
This paper was prepared for presentation at the SPE Annual Technical Conference and
Exhibition held in Denver, Colorado, U.S.A., 5 8 October 2003.
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Abstract
This paper discusses the use of numerical simulations for
predicting the onset and development of fracture tip screenout
(TSO). It presents a parametric study for fracture containment
to prevent height growth into water boundaries or a gas cap,
under conditions that approximately simulate Gulf of Mexico
reservoirs (weakly consolidated, high permeability soft
formations). Different typical field cases were analyzed to
demonstrate height containment at TSO conditions. The
perforation interval is critical to height containment, with
perforation height of only a fraction of the total pay interval
required in some cases in order to create TSO.
Introduction
As background, this section summarizes (1) under what
conditions a TSO occurs; (2) how the planar threedimensional simulator TerraFRAC, used in this analysis,
models that mechanism; and (3) how simulations can provide
an understanding of the mechanisms occurring during the frac
and pack operation.
A typical TSO treatment consists of pumping a volume of
proppant free fracturing fluid (pad) followed by a volume of
proppant laden slurry. The pad, although small in volume,
may develop most of the final fracture geometry. The slurry
upon entering the fracture dehydrates due to rapid leakoff of
the fracturing fluid and packs the fracture with proppant
particularly near the fracture tip. The packed fracture creates a
pressure drop along the fracture that eventually restrains
and/or arrests fracture growth once most or the entire fracture
tip is packed; i.e. a tip screenout. When this happens the net
pressure near the well bore increases, usually rapidly.
SPE 84218
4300
100
28
750000
1000000
0.23
0.32
62.4
0.5
0.056
0.02
0.03
120
10040 ~
10080
10010 ~
10050
10000
9900
10120
Case 1
Figures 1 through 4 show the net pressure versus pumping
time and fracture length, height, and width also as a function
of pumping time. Three sequential events are apparent and
marked on the Figures, including (a) the onset of TSO, (b)
complete TSO (not marked but the point where net pressure
increases sharply), and (c) a first fracture re-growth and a
second fracture re-growth. At about 3 minutes after the slurry
injection begins, the pressure-time curve (i.e. in log-log format
showed in Figure 1) shows a rising trend representing the
onset of TSO. The proppant concentration at this time shows
a substantial portion of the fracture tip region has reached the
critical proppant packing whereby no further proppant
concentration is physically possible for that fracture width.
It should be noted that the industry standard suggests TSO
occurs when the pressure-time log-log plot approaches a slope
of one1 (or slightly greater depending on the formation
properties). However based on the simulation results here, the
onset of TSO seems to occur before the curve reaches unit
slope, since the proppant has already fully packed along a
substantial part of the fracture tip. Therefore, the transition
period between the onset of TSO and the time when the
SPE 84218
Stage
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
Conclusions
From the Cases investigated here, the following conclusions
can be made.
References
1.
2.
3.
SPE 84218
5.
6.
200
re-growth (2)
re-growth (1)
TSO
150
Fracture Length (ft)
4.
100
50
1.E+03
0
re-growth (2)
re-growth (1)
10
Time (min)
TSO
1.E+02
1.E+01
1.E-02
1.E-01
1.E+00
1.E+01
Upper Shale
Time (min)
Sand
0.5
re-growth (1)
0.4
TSO
0.3
Lower Shale
0.2
0.1
0.0
0
10
Time (min)
Sand
150
boundary of shale
120
90
TSO
re-growth (1)
re-growth (2)
60
30
Lower Shale
0
0
Time (min)
10
SPE 84218
120
boundary of shale
Upper Shale
Sand
Fracture Height (ft)
90
re-growth (1)
TSO
60
re-growth (2)
30
Lower Shale
10
Time (min)
1.E+03
re-growth (2)
120
Fracture Length (ft)
re-growth (1)
TSO
1.E+02
re-growth (2)
80
40
0
0
1.E+01
1.E-02
10
Time (min)
1.E-01
1.E+00
1.E+01
Time (min)
Upper Shale
re-growth (2)
0.5
re-growth (1)
0.4
TSO
0.3
0.2
Sand
0.1
0.0
0
10
Lower Shale
Time (min)
SPE 84218
Upper Shale
Sand
Lower Shale
Upper Shale
Sand
Lower Shale