Experimental Studies on Shale Cracks and Permeability Evolution Based on Acoustic Emission Monitoring

The matrix permeability of shale reservoirs is extremely low. Therefore, massive volume fracturing is needed to form a complex crack network and get adequate sufficient capacity during the well completion. After fracturing, the effective stimulated reservoir volume (ESRV) is vital for developing shale reservoirs, mainly determined by stimulated reservoir volume (SRV) and the increase in permeability. Microseismic monitoring is widely used in the field to describe the crack shape and determine the SRV, to evaluate the stimulation effect. However, no studies have been conducted on the relationship between microseismic parameters and permeability. Thereby, we conducted uniaxial compression tests on Longmaxi shale samples and measured their changes in porosity and permeability before and after loading combining the microseismic monitoring under a laboratory scale (acoustic emission (AE)). Results show that porosity has little influence on the permeability before and after loading, while the propagation and connection of cracks are the most critical factors. As the loading stress increases, the crack volume and sample connectivity both grow. Besides, for the Longmaxi shale, when the stress is loaded to 30 similar to 50% of uniaxial compressive strength (UCS), the cracks start to propagate steadily (dilation), the permeability begins to increase rapidly, and percolation occurs, which indicates that the dilation point is closely related to the percolation threshold. The AE rate and accumulative ringing number both increase when it is larger than the percolation threshold value. The variation of AE characteristics can be used to identify the percolation threshold. Finally, the graphic model including AE parameters, crack, and permeability evolution is established based on the experimental results, which could help us understand the relationship between microseismic parameters and permeability and provide a methodological basis for the ESRV evaluation in the field.

Automated summary

The matrix permeability of shale reservoirs is very low, requiring massive volume fracturing during well completion to form a complex crack network. Effective stimulated reservoir volume (ESRV) is crucial for developing shale reservoirs, determined mainly by stimulated reservoir volume (SRV) and permeability increase. Microseismic monitoring is commonly used in the field to evaluate the stimulation effect, but the relationship between microseismic parameters and permeability has not been studied. Experimentation on Longmaxi shale samples showed that crack propagation and connectivity are critical factors affecting permeability, with cracks starting to propagate steadily and permeability increasing rapidly at 30-50% of the uniaxial compressive strength (UCS). AE characteristics can be used to identify the percolation threshold, which is crucial for understanding the relationship between microseismic parameters and permeability.