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Mechanism of the Two-Phase Flow Model for Water and Gas Based on Adsorption and Desorption in Fractured Coal and Rock

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Abstract

Coalbed methane (CBM) is an important high-efficiency, clean-energy raw material with immense potential for application; however, its occurrence in low-permeability reservoirs limits its application. Hydraulic fracturing has been used in low-permeability CBM exploration and as a new technique for preventing gas hazards in coal mines. Fractures are the main pathways of fluid accumulation and migration, and they exert some control over the stability of rock mass. However, the differences in progression between the original fractures of the coal mass and the new discrete fractures caused by hydraulic fracturing remain unclear, and the unsaturated seepage flows require further study. Therefore, a cross-scale hydraulic fractured rock mass numerical model was developed by using the 3D fractured extrusion coupling variables reconstruction technique. This paper uses fracture surface parameters combined with the fractal dimension and multi-medium theory to provide a high-precision characterization and interpretation of the fracture mechanics. The mechanism of the permeability evolution of fractured coal and rock under stress-releasing mining combined with water injection was studied by considering gas adsorption and desorption as well as the coupling characteristic of seepage-stress in fractured rock masses. Aperture, contact area ratio, and stress in permeability and fracture development have a strong influence on the permeability and seepage path, which in turn control the effective radius by absolute water injection. All of these factors should be considered when studying the structural characteristics of rock masses.

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Acknowledgments

The authors thank the editor and the anonymous reviewers for the valuable comments on this study. The financial support of the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Nos. 51304161, 51574059, and 51304037) and the Fundamental Research Funds for the Central University (No. 2682015CX014) is gratefully acknowledged. This work was also supported by the State Scholarship Fund by China Scholarship Council (CSC).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Faculty of Geosciences and Environmental Engineering, South-west Jiaotong University, High Technical Zone, Chengdu, 610065, Sichuan, China

    Shikuo Chen

  2. Center for Rock Instability and Seismicity Research, North-eastern University, Shenyang, 110819, China

    Tianhong Yang & Chenhui Wei

  3. Monash University, Building 60, Clayton Campus, Melbourne, VIC, 3800, Australia

    P. G. Ranjith

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  1. Shikuo Chen
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Correspondence to Tianhong Yang.

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Chen, S., Yang, T., Ranjith, P.G. et al. Mechanism of the Two-Phase Flow Model for Water and Gas Based on Adsorption and Desorption in Fractured Coal and Rock. Rock Mech Rock Eng 50, 571–586 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00603-016-1119-5

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