Numerical Modeling of the Conductivity of the Particle Monolayer with Reduced Size

Fractures filled with a proppant monolayer play an important role in the hydraulic fracture network. Predicting the conductivity of these fractures is the basis of fracture network optimization. However, little attention has been paid to the conductivity of the proppant monolayer. The change of cond...

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Main Authors: Yuxuan Liu, Jiandong Wang, Jianchun Guo, Haiyan Zhu, Jie Zeng
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Wiley 2018-01-01
Series:Geofluids
Online Access:http://dx.doi.org/10.1155/2018/7073091
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author Yuxuan Liu
Jiandong Wang
Jianchun Guo
Haiyan Zhu
Jie Zeng
author_facet Yuxuan Liu
Jiandong Wang
Jianchun Guo
Haiyan Zhu
Jie Zeng
author_sort Yuxuan Liu
collection DOAJ
description Fractures filled with a proppant monolayer play an important role in the hydraulic fracture network. Predicting the conductivity of these fractures is the basis of fracture network optimization. However, little attention has been paid to the conductivity of the proppant monolayer. The change of conductivity under various conditions is currently not fully understood. Therefore, in this paper, the conductivity variation under different conditions are simulated. The reduction of particle size was calculated by existing analytical models. The permeability variation was calculated through computational fluid dynamics (CFD) combined with COMSOL Multiphysics. The controlling factors of conductivity under a proppant monolayer were identified. Simulation results indicate that elastic parameters, closure pressure, and proppant distribution have significant influence on conductivity, while creep parameters, such as rock viscosity and time, have limited influence on conductivity. Moreover, the changes in permeability, porosity, and tortuosity with variation of embedment were analyzed. Results indicated that with an increase in embedment, the permeability and porosity decrease as expected. The main reduction (nearly half) emerges in the first 20% of proppant embedment. Furthermore, the permeability of a single particle deviates largely from the prediction of Carman-Kozeny (CK) equation. The tortuosity of proppant particle increases with a decrease in particle size due to embedment. A modification of the Carman-Kozeny equation is proposed to address this influence.
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spelling doaj-art-1d32586668e842d49f2e8bfcca8d72982025-08-20T02:01:39ZengWileyGeofluids1468-81151468-81232018-01-01201810.1155/2018/70730917073091Numerical Modeling of the Conductivity of the Particle Monolayer with Reduced SizeYuxuan Liu0Jiandong Wang1Jianchun Guo2Haiyan Zhu3Jie Zeng4State Key Laboratory of Oil and Gas Reservoir Geology and Exploitation, Southwest Petroleum University, Chengdu 610500, ChinaState Key Laboratory of Oil and Gas Reservoir Geology and Exploitation, Southwest Petroleum University, Chengdu 610500, ChinaState Key Laboratory of Oil and Gas Reservoir Geology and Exploitation, Southwest Petroleum University, Chengdu 610500, ChinaState Key Laboratory of Oil and Gas Reservoir Geology and Exploitation, Southwest Petroleum University, Chengdu 610500, ChinaSchool of Mechanical and Chemical Engineering, University of Western Australia, Perth, WA 6009, AustraliaFractures filled with a proppant monolayer play an important role in the hydraulic fracture network. Predicting the conductivity of these fractures is the basis of fracture network optimization. However, little attention has been paid to the conductivity of the proppant monolayer. The change of conductivity under various conditions is currently not fully understood. Therefore, in this paper, the conductivity variation under different conditions are simulated. The reduction of particle size was calculated by existing analytical models. The permeability variation was calculated through computational fluid dynamics (CFD) combined with COMSOL Multiphysics. The controlling factors of conductivity under a proppant monolayer were identified. Simulation results indicate that elastic parameters, closure pressure, and proppant distribution have significant influence on conductivity, while creep parameters, such as rock viscosity and time, have limited influence on conductivity. Moreover, the changes in permeability, porosity, and tortuosity with variation of embedment were analyzed. Results indicated that with an increase in embedment, the permeability and porosity decrease as expected. The main reduction (nearly half) emerges in the first 20% of proppant embedment. Furthermore, the permeability of a single particle deviates largely from the prediction of Carman-Kozeny (CK) equation. The tortuosity of proppant particle increases with a decrease in particle size due to embedment. A modification of the Carman-Kozeny equation is proposed to address this influence.http://dx.doi.org/10.1155/2018/7073091
spellingShingle Yuxuan Liu
Jiandong Wang
Jianchun Guo
Haiyan Zhu
Jie Zeng
Numerical Modeling of the Conductivity of the Particle Monolayer with Reduced Size
Geofluids
title Numerical Modeling of the Conductivity of the Particle Monolayer with Reduced Size
title_full Numerical Modeling of the Conductivity of the Particle Monolayer with Reduced Size
title_fullStr Numerical Modeling of the Conductivity of the Particle Monolayer with Reduced Size
title_full_unstemmed Numerical Modeling of the Conductivity of the Particle Monolayer with Reduced Size
title_short Numerical Modeling of the Conductivity of the Particle Monolayer with Reduced Size
title_sort numerical modeling of the conductivity of the particle monolayer with reduced size
url http://dx.doi.org/10.1155/2018/7073091
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AT jiandongwang numericalmodelingoftheconductivityoftheparticlemonolayerwithreducedsize
AT jianchunguo numericalmodelingoftheconductivityoftheparticlemonolayerwithreducedsize
AT haiyanzhu numericalmodelingoftheconductivityoftheparticlemonolayerwithreducedsize
AT jiezeng numericalmodelingoftheconductivityoftheparticlemonolayerwithreducedsize