Numerical Simulation of Multi-Cluster Fracture Propagation in Marine Natural Gas Hydrate Reservoirs
Natural gas hydrates (NGHs) are promising energy resources, although their marine exploitation is limited by low reservoir permeability and hydrate decomposition efficiency. Multi-cluster fracturing technology can enhance reservoir permeability, yet complex properties of hydrate sediments render the...
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| Main Authors: | , , , , , , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
MDPI AG
2025-06-01
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| Series: | Journal of Marine Science and Engineering |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2077-1312/13/7/1224 |
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| Summary: | Natural gas hydrates (NGHs) are promising energy resources, although their marine exploitation is limited by low reservoir permeability and hydrate decomposition efficiency. Multi-cluster fracturing technology can enhance reservoir permeability, yet complex properties of hydrate sediments render the prediction of fracture behavior challenging. Therefore, we developed a three-dimensional (3D) fluid–solid coupling model for hydraulic fracturing in NGH reservoirs based on cohesive elements to analyze the effects of sediment plasticity, hydrate saturation, fracturing fluid viscosity, and injection rate, as well as the stress interference mechanisms in multi-cluster simultaneous fracturing under different cluster spacings. Results show that selecting low-plastic reservoirs with high hydrate saturation (<i>S<sub>H</sub></i> > 50%) and adopting an optimal combination of fracturing fluid viscosity and injection rate can achieve the co-optimization of stimulated reservoir volume (SRV) and cross-layer risk. In multi-cluster fracturing, inter-fracture stress interference promotes the propagation of fractures along the fracture plane while suppressing it in the normal direction of the fracture plane, and this effect diminishes significantly till 9 m cluster spacing. This study provides valuable insights for the selection of optimal multi-cluster fracturing parameters for marine NGH reservoirs. |
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| ISSN: | 2077-1312 |