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Characteristic of In Situ Stress and Its Control on the Coalbed Methane Reservoir Permeability in the Eastern Margin of the Ordos Basin, China

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Abstract

Coalbed methane (CBM) development faces many challenges, among which in situ stress and permeability are two of the most important and fundamental factors. Knowledge of the characteristics of these factors is crucial to CBM exploration and development. Based on measured injection/falloff and in situ stress well test data of 55 CBM wells in the eastern margin of the Ordos Basin, correlations between parameters including initial reservoir pressure, in situ stress, lateral stress coefficient, well test permeability, and burial depth were determined. The distribution of in situ stress was analyzed systematically and its influence on permeability was also addressed. The results indicate that the maximum horizontal principal stress (σ H 10.13–37.84 MPa, average 22.50 MPa), minimum horizontal principal stress (σ h 6.98–26.88 MPa, average 15.04 MPa) and vertical stress (σ v 12.30–35.72 MPa, average 22.48 MPa) all have positive correlations with coal burial depth. Stress ratios (σ H/σ h, σ H/σ v, and σ h/σ v) and lateral stress coefficient slowly attenuated with depth. With increase of horizontal principal stresses, coal reservoir permeability (0.01–3.33 mD, average 0.65 mD) decreases. The permeability variation is basically consistent with change of stress state at a certain burial depth, the essence of which is the deformation and destruction of coal pore structures under the action of stresses. Three types of stress fields exist in the area: in the shallow coal seam at burial depths <700 m, the horizontal principal stress is dominant, revealing a strike slip regime (σ H > σ v > σ h), with average permeability 0.89 mD; from 700 to 1000 m depths, there is a stress transition zone (σ H ≈ σ v > σ h) with average permeability 0.73 mD; in the deep coal seam with burial depths >1000 m, the vertical principal stress is dominant, demonstrating a normal stress regime (σ v > σ H > σ h) with average permeability 0.11 mD.

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Abbreviations

α :

Coefficient depended on the principal stress type

a :

Undetermined coefficient

b :

Undetermined coefficient

CBM:

Coalbed methane

H :

Burial depth

ISIP:

Instantaneous shut-in pressure

k :

Permeability of a given stress condition

k 0 :

Permeability of the initial stress condition

p :

Pressure

p 0 :

Rock pore pressure (initial reservoir pressure)

p c :

Closing pressure

p f :

Fracturing pressure

p i :

Injection pressure

p i,max :

Maximum injection pressure at the surface

p r :

Refracturing pressure

γ :

Rock bulk density

δ 0 :

Initial reservoir pressure gradient

δ c :

Closing pressure gradient

δ f :

Fracturing pressure gradient

ε h :

Minimum horizontal principal stress gradient

ε H :

Maximum horizontal principal stress gradient

λ :

Lateral stress coefficient

t :

Time

T :

Tensile strength of the rock around borehole

t i :

Injection time

t lp :

Last pumping time

t s :

Well shut-in time

t :

Time interval between the two adjacent cycles

Temp:

Temperature

V i :

Total injection volume

v i,ave :

Average injection rate at the surface

V r :

Backflow volume

σ h :

Minimum horizontal principal stress

σ H :

Maximum horizontal principal stress

σ v :

Vertical stress

σ :

Effective stress difference changed from initial to some stressed state

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Acknowledgments

This work was financially supported by the National Natural Science Foundation Project (Grant Nos. 41272175, 41530314), the Special Funds for Scientific Research on Public Causes of the Ministry of Land and Resources of the People’s Republic of China (Grant No. 201311015), the Key Project of the National Science & Technology (Grant No. 2016ZX05042-002), the Beijing Higher Education Young Elite Teacher Project and the Fundamental Research Funds for the Central Universities (Grant 2652015331). The authors are grateful to anonymous reviewers and the editor Dr. Giovanni Barla for their careful reviews and detailed comments that helped to substantially improve the manuscript.

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Zhao, J., Tang, D., Xu, H. et al. Characteristic of In Situ Stress and Its Control on the Coalbed Methane Reservoir Permeability in the Eastern Margin of the Ordos Basin, China. Rock Mech Rock Eng 49, 3307–3322 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00603-016-0969-1

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