Dynamics of fluid-driven fractures in the viscous-dominated regime

Abstract

During hydraulic fracturing, the injection of a pressurized fluid in a brittle elastic medium leads to the formation and growth of fluid-filled fractures. A disc-like or penny-shaped fracture grows radially from a point source during the injection of a viscous fluid at a constant flow rate. We report an experimental study on the dynamics of fractures propagating in the viscous regime. We measure the fracture aperture and radius over time for varying mechanical properties of the medium and fluid and different injection parameters. Our experiments show that the fracture continues to expand in an impermeable brittle matrix, even after the injection stops. In the viscous regime, the fracture radius scales as t 4 / 9 during the injection. Post-shut-in, the crack continues to propagate at a slower rate, which agrees well with the predictions of the scaling arguments, as the radius scales as t 1 / 9 . The fracture finally reaches an equilibrium set by the toughness of the material. The results provide insights into the propagation of hydraulic fractures in rocks.