Abstract
Fracture extent and formation quality are the key parameters affecting hydraulic fracturing results. Fracture brittleness, initiation and propagation are dominantly ruled by in situ stresses and rock mechanical properties which cannot be manipulated. However, operation parameters such as injection rate, viscosity and temperature of fluid can be adjusted for fracturing treatments. This paper focuses on a thermal treatment approach that affects brittleness. We investigated fractures when fluid temperature is lower than formation. Experiments were conducted using synthetic 50-mm cubic samples in a newly built true triaxial stress cell. This cell was fitted with cooling and heating auxiliary apparatus which enabled injection of fluids of various temperatures in the presence of orthogonal stresses. The samples and test records are evaluated in details to develop and upscale the results for real applications such as tight shale gas formations. Findings indicate that brittleness of material increases when considerable temperature differences exist between rock and injection fluid.
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