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An Integrally Embedded Discrete Fracture Model for Flow Simulation in Anisotropic Formations

Author

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  • Renjie Shao

    (College of Engineering, Peking University, Beijing 100871, China)

  • Yuan Di

    (College of Engineering, Peking University, Beijing 100871, China)

  • Dawei Wu

    (College of Engineering, Peking University, Beijing 100871, China)

  • Yu-Shu Wu

    (Petroleum Engineering Department, Colorado School of Mines, Golden, CO 80401, USA)

Abstract

The embedded discrete fracture model (EDFM), among different flow simulation models, achieves a good balance between efficiency and accuracy. In the EDFM, micro-scale fractures that cannot be characterized individually need to be homogenized into the matrix, which may bring anisotropy into the matrix. However, the simplified matrix–fracture fluid exchange assumption makes it difficult for EDFM to address the anisotropic flow. In this paper, an integrally embedded discrete fracture model (iEDFM) suitable for anisotropic formations is proposed. Structured mesh is employed for the anisotropic matrix, and the fracture element, which consists of a group of connected fractures, is integrally embedded in the matrix grid. An analytic pressure distribution is derived for the point source in anisotropic formation expressed by permeability tensor, and applied to the matrix–fracture transmissibility calculation. Two case studies were conducted and compared with the analytic solution or fine grid result to demonstrate the advantage and applicability of iEDFM to address anisotropic formation. In addition, a two-phase flow example with a reported dataset was studied to analyze the effect of the matrix anisotropy on the simulation result, which also showed the feasibility of iEDFM to address anisotropic formation with complex fracture networks.

Suggested Citation

  • Renjie Shao & Yuan Di & Dawei Wu & Yu-Shu Wu, 2020. "An Integrally Embedded Discrete Fracture Model for Flow Simulation in Anisotropic Formations," Energies, MDPI, vol. 13(12), pages 1-21, June.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jeners:v:13:y:2020:i:12:p:3070-:d:371096
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Yongbin Zhang & Bin Gong & Junchao Li & Hangyu Li, 2015. "Discrete Fracture Modeling of 3D Heterogeneous Enhanced Coalbed Methane Recovery with Prismatic Meshing," Energies, MDPI, vol. 8(6), pages 1-24, June.
    2. Weirong Li & Zhenzhen Dong & Gang Lei, 2017. "Integrating Embedded Discrete Fracture and Dual-Porosity, Dual-Permeability Methods to Simulate Fluid Flow in Shale Oil Reservoirs," Energies, MDPI, vol. 10(10), pages 1-15, September.
    3. Renjie Shao & Yuan Di, 2018. "An Integrally Embedded Discrete Fracture Model with a Semi-Analytic Transmissibility Calculation Method," Energies, MDPI, vol. 11(12), pages 1-20, December.
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    Cited by:

    1. Mehrdad Massoudi, 2021. "Mathematical Modeling of Fluid Flow and Heat Transfer in Petroleum Industries and Geothermal Applications 2020," Energies, MDPI, vol. 14(16), pages 1-4, August.

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