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Mechanical Modelling to Predict Fracture Density in Chalk - A Case Study from the South Arne Field
- Publisher: European Association of Geoscientists & Engineers
- Source: Conference Proceedings, 77th EAGE Conference and Exhibition 2015, Jun 2015, Volume 2015, p.1 - 5
Abstract
Chalk fields are in general of high porosity and low permeability. However, many chalk fields are heavily fractured which provides the effective permeability needed to produce from them. Understanding the geometry, density and distribution of the fractures is vital to predict fluid flow through the reservoir. An energy balance model that predicts the nucleation and propagation of fractures is tested on a chalk field in the Danish North Sea where hydrocarbons are produced from the Paleocene Ekofisk Formation and Late Cretaceous Tor Formation. Fracture densities are available from both core measurements and FMI data.
The model predicts a fracture distribution similar to what is observed and with a close match to the fracture density from FMI data. Similar to 4D seismic results it is predicted that only a few fractures connects the two reservoirs. This study shows that the use of an energy balance model is an important step forward to improve the knowledge about the fracture distribution and vertical connection between different flow units in a reservoir.