Laboratory Investigation of Hydraulic Fracture Behavior of Unconventional Reservoir Rocks

The heterogeneity of the rock fabric is a significant factor influencing initiation and propagation hydraulic fracture (HF). This paper presents laboratory study HF created in six shale-like core samples provided by RITEK LLC collected from same well, but at different depths. For each tested sample, we determined breakdown pressure, growth rate, expansion sample moment when reaches surface. Correlations were established between parameters geomechanical characteristics studied samples, deviations general relationships explained influence matrix. analysis tensor inversion radiated acoustic emission (AE) signals allows us to separate AE with dominant shear component tensile component. direction microcrack opening was determined, which good agreement results post-test X-ray CT HF. Thus, it has been shown that combination several independent techniques one reliably determine can be used for verification fracturing models.