Use of Pressure Transient Analysis Method to Assess Fluid Soaking in Multi-Fractured Shale Gas Wells

Jun Zhang, Boyun Guo () and Majid Hussain
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Jun Zhang: College of Petroleum Engineering, Northeast Petroleum University, Daqing 163319, China
Boyun Guo: Department of Petroleum Engineering, University of Louisiana at Lafayette, Lafayette, LA 70504, USA
Majid Hussain: Department of Petroleum Engineering, University of Louisiana at Lafayette, Lafayette, LA 70504, USA

Energies, 2025, vol. 18, issue 3, 1-12

Abstract: Multi-stage hydraulic fracturing is a key technology adopted in the energy industry to make shale gas and shale oil fields profitable. Post-frac fluid soaking before putting wells into production has been found essential for enhancing well productivity. Finding the optimum time to terminate the fluid-soaking process is an open problem to solve. Post-frac shut-in pressure data from six wells in two shale gas fields were investigated in this study based on pressure transient analysis (PTA) to reveal fluid-soaking performance. It was found that pressure-derivative data become scattering after 1 day of well shut in. The overall trend of pressure-derivative data after the first day of well shut in should reflect the effectiveness of fluid soaking. Two wells exhibited flat (zero-slope) pressure derivatives within one week of fluid soaking, indicating adequate time of fluid soaking. Four wells exhibited increasing pressure derivatives within one week of fluid soaking, indicating inadequate time of fluid soaking. This observation is consistent with the reported well’s Estimated Ultimate Recovery (EUR). This study presents a new approach to the assessment of post-frac fluid-soaking performance with real-time shut-in pressure data.

Keywords: shale gas/oil; post-fracturing; fluid soaking; well productivity; test analysis (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: 2025
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