CHARACTERISTICS OF SHUT-IN CURVES IN HYDRAULIC FRACTURING STRESS MEASUREMENTS AND DETERMINATION OF INSITU MINIMUM COMPRESSIVE STRESS

Characteristics of pressure decay curves obtained after shut-in in hydraulic fracturing stress measurements are studied in detail in an effort to enhance the reliability of the minimum compressive in situ stress determination. The analysis utilizes linear theory of elasticity, fracture mechanics, and global mass balance of fracturing fluid after shut-in. A small amount of crack growth takes place almost instantaneously just after shut-in due to equilibration of injected-fluid pressure within the fracture. Thereafter, the fracture gradually closes commensurates with the amount of fluid leakage into the rock and the net compliance of the pressure system consisting of the rock, the fracture, and the tubing conveying pressurized fluid from the surface to the depth of testing. Theoretical considerations and laboratory and field data suggest the closure process after shut-in can be considered to consist of three major stages: from cessation of fracture growth until fracture tip closure (stage I), from just after fracture tip closure until complete fracture closure (stage II), and from just after complete fracture closure until the test is stopped (stage III). An analysis of these stages reveals that the inverse of the pressure decrease rate is linear with respect to the fluid pressure in stages I and III. It is also shown that the far-field minimum compressive stress can be determined on the basis of these characteristics. The method of determination of the in situ minimum compressive stress is successfully applied to a sampling of shut-in curves obtained in laboratory and field experiments.