Reconciling observed and forecasted fracture orientations

in: 25th gOcad Meeting, ASGA

Abstract

As all other fracture key parameters, fracture orientation is hardly known over a whole field. In this article, we focus on fractures observed today along well path as they represent precious geological information. They can be considered as records of failure initiated by tectonic events throughout geological time. So, in practice these data must be introduced into the fracture modeling process as geomechanical data. They are commonly used as fracture samples by geostatistical interpolation methods. This paper connects the observed orientation with geomechanical failure criterion and theory (Hooke’s law) to predict the distribution of fracture orientation over the entire studied reservoir. The proposed methodology also enables dealing with tensile and shear fracturing. This direct integration of the observed data into the prediction of fractures opens new perspectives for validation and improvement of 3D structural models.

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    BibTeX Reference

    @inproceedings{MacéRM2005,
     abstract = { As all other fracture key parameters, fracture orientation is hardly known over a whole field. In this article, we focus on fractures observed today along well path as they represent precious geological information. They can be considered as records of failure initiated by tectonic events throughout geological time. So, in practice these data must be introduced into the fracture modeling process as geomechanical data. They are commonly used as fracture samples by geostatistical interpolation methods. This paper connects the observed orientation with geomechanical failure criterion and theory (Hooke’s law) to predict the distribution of fracture orientation over the entire studied reservoir. The proposed methodology also enables dealing with tensile and shear fracturing. This direct integration of the observed data into the prediction of fractures opens new perspectives for validation and improvement of 3D structural models. },
     author = { Mace, Laetitia AND Mallet, Jean-Laurent },
     booktitle = { 25th gOcad Meeting },
     month = { "june" },
     publisher = { ASGA },
     title = { Reconciling observed and forecasted fracture orientations },
     year = { 2005 }
    }