Embedded Discrete Fracture Modeling as a Method to Upscale Permeability for Fractured Reservoirs

Zhenzhen Dong, Weirong Li, Gang Lei, Huijie Wang and Cai Wang
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Zhenzhen Dong: Petroleum Engineering Department, Xi’an Shiyou University, Xi’an 710065, China
Weirong Li: Petroleum Engineering Department, Xi’an Shiyou University, Xi’an 710065, China
Gang Lei: Department of Petroleum Engineering, King Fahd University of Petroleum and Minerals, Dhahran 31261, Saudi Arabia
Huijie Wang: College of Engineering, Peking University, Beijing 100871, China
Cai Wang: Research Institute of Petroleum Exploration & Development, PetroChina, Beijing 100083, China

Energies, 2019, vol. 12, issue 5, 1-15

Abstract: Fractured reservoirs are distributed widely over the world, and describing fluid flow in fractures is an important and challenging topic in research. Discrete fracture modeling (DFM) and equivalent continuum modeling are two principal methods used to model fluid flow through fractured rocks. In this paper, a novel method, embedded discrete fracture modeling (EDFM), is developed to compute equivalent permeability in fractured reservoirs. This paper begins with an introduction on EDFM. Then, the paper describes an upscaling procedure to calculate equivalent permeability. Following this, the paper carries out a series of simulations to compare the computation cost between DFM and EDFM. In addition, the method is verified by embedded discrete fracture modeling and fine grid methods, and grid-block and multiphase flow are studied to prove the feasibility of the method. Finally, the upscaling procedure is applied to a three-dimensional case in order to study performance for a gas injection problem. This study is the first to use embedded discrete fracture modeling to compute equivalent permeability for fractured reservoirs. This paper also provides a detailed comparison and discussion on embedded discrete fracture modeling and discrete fracture modeling in the context of equivalent permeability computation with a single-phase model. Most importantly, this study addresses whether this novel method can be used in multiphase flow in a reservoir with fractures.

Keywords: permeability upscaling; fractured reservoir; EDFM (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: Q Q0 Q4 Q40 Q41 Q42 Q43 Q47 Q48 Q49 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2019
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