Outcrop studies have revealed the presence of abundant cemented fractures in many low permeable formations. Recovered cores have also revealed the opening of some of these smaller size fractures on the wall surface of main hydraulic fractures. Furthermore, earlyproduction well-testing analysis in some of these cases provide estimates for hydraulically induced fracture surface areas which are mu...

The global oil industry has entered into a period of debilitating uncertainty. Two forces – renewable energy and price volatility call question the profitability investing in massive, decades-long conventional projects which form backbone production. Facing volatile, unknown future, financiers are retracting from long-term projects. United States (US) hydraulic fracturing offered partial soluti...

Microbial activity in the produced water from hydraulically fractured oil and gas wells may potentially interfere with hydrocarbon production and cause damage to the well and surface infrastructure via corrosion, sulfide release, and fouling. In this study, we surveyed the microbial abundance and community structure of produced water sampled from 42 Marcellus Shale wells in southwestern Pennsyl...

The water leak-off during hydraulic fracturing in shale gas reservoirs is a complicated transport behavior involving thermal (T), hydrodynamic (H), mechanical (M) and chemical (C) processes. Although many leak-off models have been published, none of the models fully coupled the transient fluid flow modeling with heat transfer, chemical-potential equilibrium and natural-fracture dilation phenome...

Abstract Along with horizontal drilling techniques, multi-stage hydraulic fracturing has improved shale gas production significantly in past decades. In order to understand the mechanism of and improve treatment designs, it is critical conduct modelling predict stimulated fractures. this paper, related physical processes are firstly discussed their effects on analysed. Then historical state art...

There is a push to increase production of unconventional gas in Australia, which would intensify the use of the controversial technique of hydraulic fracturing. The uncertainties surrounding the health implications of unconventional gas, when considered together with doubts surrounding its greenhouse gas profile and cost, weigh heavily against proceeding with proposed future developments. The h...