Application of Microseismic Technology in a Devonian Shale Well in the Appalachian Basin

Abstract

ABSTRACT Microseismic logging technology was applied to a Devonian Shale well in the Appalachian Basin to evaluate the height and orientation of a hydraulic fracture. The technique was used in the Sterling Drilling and Production Company Jarvis No. 1143, which is the Gas Research Institute's (GRI) Comprehensive Study Well No. 2 (CSW 2). The well, completed in the Devonian Shales, is located in Calhoun County, WV. This was the first application of the fracture mapping procedure in the Appalachian Basin; it was performed as part of GRI's efforts to understand fracture growth and orientation in the Devonian Shales. The procedure was also unique in that it was the first time the seismic data were collected in a gas-filled wellbore and after a well had been produced for an extended period of two years. The microseismic logging analysis results on CSW 2 indicate a 200-ft fracture height with an orientation trending Ν34°E. Also presented in this paper are the results obtained from a series of hydraulic fracture diagnostic tests performed on the CSW 2 prior to the microseismic logging experiment