Challenging Assumptions About Fracture Stimulation Placement Effectiveness Using Fiber Optic Distributed Sensing Diagnostics: Diversion, Stage Isolation and Overflushing

Ugueto, Gustavo; Huckabee, Paul; Molenaar, Mathieu M.

doi:10.2118/173348-ms

Cited by 50 publications

(4 citation statements)

References 7 publications

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“…More recently, larger-scale studies have been conducted that present results in a broader spectrum (Ugueto et al, 2015). This study takes that perspective a step further.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 94%

Fiber-optic Monitoring: Stimulation Results from Unconventional Reservoirs

Holley¹,

Kalia²

2015

Unconventional Resources Technology Conference

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Fiber-optic-based sensing technologies were first trialed for upstream oil and gas applications in the 1990s to monitor injection allocation of steam (Karaman, 1996). Beginning in the early 2000s, a broader range of applications was trialed from water injection profiling (Rahman et al., 2011) to acid injection profiling (Glasbergen et al., 2009) to hydraulic fracture diagnostics (Sierra et al., 2008). Since 2008, the use of fiber optics to analyze hydraulic fracturing has diversified substantially across unconventional reservoirs in North America. There has also been a diversification and maturity of the technologies. The primary technology used in the early works was distributed temperature sensing (DTS). To date, this technology is still the primary resource for fracture and production results for unconventional wells. However, technologies such as distributed acoustic sensing (DAS) (Molenaar et al., 2011) are becoming necessary to obtain complementary diagnostics to generate a more robust answer product. This paper focuses on the fundamental value of information gained during the hydraulic fracturing process using fiber optics and the impact those learnings have had on future completion designs and decision making. There have been two dominant horizontal completion strategies in the unconventional market-cemented plug and perforation (PnP) completions and uncemented packer and sleeve (PnS) completions. Each of these types is reviewed to illustrate the value of information fiber optics has demonstrated, from the fracturing perspective. In this study, approximately 40 horizontal wells and 400 fracture stages are considered to provide an overview of the impact this technology has had on the industry understanding of completion effectiveness.

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“…More recently, larger-scale studies have been conducted that present results in a broader spectrum (Ugueto et al, 2015). This study takes that perspective a step further.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 94%

Fiber-optic Monitoring: Stimulation Results from Unconventional Reservoirs

Holley¹,

Kalia²

2015

Unconventional Resources Technology Conference

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“…Many fiber-optic case studies of plug-and-perf completions show examples of stages where lack of isolation is observed (Holley and Kalia 2015;Raterman et al 2017;Sookprasong et al 2014;Spain et al 2015;Ugueto et al 2015;Wheaton et al 2016). However, none of these references include discussion or any information relating these observations to fiber failures.…”

Section: Current Industry Observationmentioning

confidence: 99%

One Stage Forward or Two Stages Back, What are We Treating? Identification of Internal Casing Erosion During Hydraulic Fracturing - A Montney Case Study Using Ultrasonic and Fiber-Optic Diagnostics

White

Friehauf

Cramer

et al. 2020

Day 2 Tue, October 27, 2020

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Plug-and-perf multi-stage hydraulic fracturing completions in unconventional reservoirs rely upon complete hydraulic isolation from the previous stage to ensure effective treatment of the active stage. Failure to isolate stages can be a result of partially set plugs, plugs set in wellbore debris or deformed casing, unqualified pressure/temperature rating of plugs, etc. This paper presents a case study with field examples where unexpected casing erosion occurred at the setting depths of the dissolvable frac plugs during hydraulic fracturing and subsequently resulted in loss of inter-stage isolation. A 12-well, 4-layer, cube pilot was designed with permanent fiber optic cable to collect Distributed Acoustic Sensing (DAS), Distributed Temperature Sensing (DTS) and Distributed Strain Sensing (DSS) data as well as downhole pressure gauges for development insight and future completion optimization. The cable was mapped, and oriented perforation techniques placed entry holes opposite the fiber along the wellbore, and no loss of communication was observed during perforating operations. However, fiber optic signal was lost during hydraulic fracturing operations on one or more stages in all four instrumented horizontal wells. Real-time DAS/DTS analysis indicated the fiber breaks were consistently occurring below the lowermost perforation cluster in the stage, at or very near the frac plug setting depth. Step-down tests were also performed and showed significantly enlarged effective treating area. Based on this observation, post-frac downhole imaging tools were deployed to investigate potential casing and perforation erosion. Downhole imaging data clearly showed the casing was severely eroded at several locations. Additional interrogation of the damage with respect to plug design components indicated that damage always occurred near the plug sealing element. By integrating the analysis of DAS/DTS, step-down tests and ultrasonic imaging, it was determined that the frac plug bypass is creating a loss of casing integrity at the plug set location. Casing integrity loss resulted in multiple fiber optic cable breaks and lowered the ability to evenly distribute slurry into treatment clusters. Fiber optic data analysis showed that 50% of the larger OD dissolvable frac plugs had bypass compared to 100% bypass for the smaller OD high-expansion dissolvable plugs. To establish key patterns and identify critical variables that influence stimulation effectiveness, it is important to obtain several different diagnostic datasets and perform an integrated evaluation using all available information. This study also reinforces the need for operators and manufacturers to work together to design and qualify frac plugs against realistic downhole conditions, particularly in areas with potential casing deformation issues. Industry innovation is required to enable fracturing operations to continue through deformed casing. This includes advancing equipment, tools, and techniques for plug-and-perf and other multi-stage completion methods.

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“…Studies suggest that the temperature difference between fracturing water and formation rock can affect the failure behaviors of fractures during fracturing treatment [2][3][4][5]. Recently, it has been demonstrated that temperature analysis can qualitatively provide early insights into fracture characterization [6] and fracturing optimization [7][8][9][10]. Bottomhole temperature data were reported to be monitored by distributed sensors behind the wellbore (casing or tubing) during, and shortly after, the fracturing treatment [10,11].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The Effect of Temperature on Flowback Data Analysis in Shale Gas Reservoirs: A Simulation-Based Study

Yang

Lai

et al. 2019

Energies

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During hydraulic fracturing, there is a temperature difference between the injected water and formation rock for shale gas wells. The objective of this study is to investigate how this temperature difference changes with time, and how it affects multiphase-flow modeling during the shut-in and flowback periods. We conducted numerical simulations to investigate the behaviors of fracture temperature in shale gas wells. The results show a significant increase in fracture temperature during the shut-in and flowback periods. Sensitivity analysis suggests that this temperature increase is strongly related to the thermal conductivity of formation rock, matrix permeability, and initial reservoir temperature. Simulation scenarios were further compared to investigate the effect of temperature on flowback data analysis. Without considering the thermal effect, flowback data analysis may yield an earlier fracture cleanup and overestimated fracture volume. In addition, this study suggests that the thermal effect may also have implications for optimizing flowback operations.

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Challenging Assumptions About Fracture Stimulation Placement Effectiveness Using Fiber Optic Distributed Sensing Diagnostics: Diversion, Stage Isolation and Overflushing

Cited by 50 publications

References 7 publications

Fiber-optic Monitoring: Stimulation Results from Unconventional Reservoirs

Fiber-optic Monitoring: Stimulation Results from Unconventional Reservoirs

One Stage Forward or Two Stages Back, What are We Treating? Identification of Internal Casing Erosion During Hydraulic Fracturing - A Montney Case Study Using Ultrasonic and Fiber-Optic Diagnostics

The Effect of Temperature on Flowback Data Analysis in Shale Gas Reservoirs: A Simulation-Based Study

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