Hydraulic fracturing
AssigneeCommonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation
InventorBrice Lecampion
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
Method and apparatus for monitoring growth of fracture during hydraulic fracturing treatment of a ground formation. A series of tiltmeters are positioned at spaced apart tiltmeter stations at which tilt changes due to hydraulic fracturing treatment are measurable by those tiltmeters. Tilt measurements obtained from the tiltmeters at progressive times during the fracture treatment are compared with estimated tilt changes estimated from an assumed hydraulic fracturing propagation. Useful values for initially undetermined values of parameters of the model are derived using an inverse procedure. The data analysis may be performed in real time as the hydraulic treatment progresses using differing propagation models to determine a most probable model.
Claims26
A method of monitoring growth of a fracture during hydraulic fracturing treatment of a ground formation comprising:
- measuring at progressive times through an extended time interval during the treatment values of physical variables dependent on propagation of the fracture;
- estimating, from an assumed hydraulic fracturing propagation model that is reliant on initially undetermined parameters, values of the variables at said progressive times through the extended time interval for differing values of said parameters;
- and
- comparing the estimated values of said variables with the measured values to derive useful values of said parameters.
A method of monitoring growth of a fracture during hydraulic fracturing treatment of a ground formation comprising:
- positioning a series of tiltmeters at spaced apart tiltmeter stations at which tilt changes caused by the hydraulic fracture growth are measurable by those tiltmeters;
- estimating, from an assumed hydraulic fracturing propagation model, tilt changes at the tiltmeter stations at progressive times through an extended time interval during the treatment;
- obtaining, from the tilmeters, tilt measurements at said progressive times throughout the extended time interval;
- and
- comparing the estimated tilt changes through said time interval with the actual tilt measurements throughout that time interval.
Apparatus for monitoring growth of a fracture during hydraulic fracturing treatment of a ground formation comprising:
- instruments to measure physical variables dependent on propagation of the fracture;
- and
- a signal processing unit to receive measurement signals from the instruments at progressive times through an extended time interval during the fracturing treatment and operable to estimate, from an assumed fracturing propagation model that is reliant on initially undetermined parameters, values of said physical variables at said progressive times through the extended time interval for differing values of said parameters and by comparison of the estimated values with the measurement signals to derive useful values of said parameters.
Apparatus for monitoring growth of a fracture during hydraulic fracturing treatment of a ground formation comprising:
- a series of tiltmeters positionable at spaced apart tiltmeter stations to measure tilt changes due to hydraulic fracturing treatment;
- and
- a signal processing unit to receive tilt measurement signals from the tiltmeters at progressive times through an extended time interval during the fracturing treatment and operable to estimate from an assumed hydraulic fracturing propagation model tilt changes at the tiltmeter stations at progressive times through an extended time interval during the treatment and to compare the estimated tilt changes through said time interval with said tilt measurement signals.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.