Contribution of gas adsorption-desorption in Marcellus shale for different fractured well configurations

Gas adsorption onto the shale system carries significant importance in accurately forecasting gas production and estimating underground reserves. For the Marcellus shale system, the adsorption of gas also plays a critical role in ultimate recovery and overall reserves quantification. Yet, the effect of different adsorption characteristics in different Marcellus shale regions is not systematically analyzed together. In this study, the contribution of different gas adsorption phenomena in Marcellus shale for different fractured well configurations is investigated. The objective is to understand the reservoir production responses under various adsorption characteristics and well design. For this analysis, a mechanistic Marcellus shale model under confining stresses is numerically simulated with the available literature data. After that, six samples containing adsorption characteristics of different Marcellus shale regions are taken from the literature and specified in the model for accurately defining the adsorption physics in the shale system. In the end, two different well configurations including the fractured vertical and horizontal well are specified in the model separately to analyze the impact of gas desorption on production response. The analysis indicates that the gas desorption improves the overall gas production by a maximum of 5% in a single-stage multi-clustered fractured horizontal well. In addition, the effect of desorption is found to be minimal during initial flow periods, and considerable at longer flow periods. Additionally, the gas desorption is found to be more responsive towards high surface area and large fracture networks. Finally, it is determined that a fractured horizontal well is a viable option that allows high gas desorption in Marcellus shale. This study, hence, aids widely in deciding better production strategies based on adsorption characteristics for producing Marcellus shale.

Automated summary

Gas adsorption onto the shale system is crucial for forecasting gas production and estimating reserves accurately. This study investigates the impact of different gas adsorption characteristics on reservoir production responses in Marcellus shale for different fractured well configurations. The analysis shows that gas desorption can improve overall gas production by up to 5% in a single-stage multi-clustered fractured horizontal well, with a more significant effect observed during longer flow periods and in areas with high surface area and large fracture networks.