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Experimentally Informed Simulation of Creep Behavior in Shale Rocks Induced by Chemo-mechanical Loading

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Abstract

Creep deformation in shale rocks is an important factor in many applications, such as the sustainability of geostructures, wellbore stability, evaluation of land subsidence, CO2 storage, toxic waste containment, and hydraulic fracturing. One mechanism leading to this time-dependent deformation under a constant load is the dissolution/formation processes accompanied by chemo-mechanical interactions with a reactive environment. When dissolution/formation processes occur within the material phases, the distribution of stress and strain within the material microstructure changes. In the case of the dissolution process, the stress carried by the dissolving phase is distributed into neighboring voxels, which leads to further deformation of the material. The aim of this study was to explore the relationship between the microstructural evolution and time-dependent creep behavior of rocks subjected to chemo-mechanical loading. This work uses the experimentally characterized microstructural and mechanical evolution of a shale rock induced by interactions with a reactive brine (CO2-rich brine) and a non-reactive brine (N2-rich brine) under high-pressure and high-temperature conditions to compute the resulting time-dependent deformation using a time-stepping finite-element-based modeling approach. Sample microstructure snapshots were obtained using segmented micro-CT images of the rock samples before and after the reactions. Coupled nanoindentation/EDS provided spatial alteration of the mechanical properties of individual material phases due to the dissolution and precipitation processes as a result of chemo-mechanical loading of the samples. The time-dependent mechanically informed microstructures were then incorporated into a mechanical model to calculate the creep behavior caused by the dissolution/precipitation processes independent of the inherent viscous properties of the mineral phases. The results indicate the substantial role of the dissolution/precipitation processes on the viscous behavior of rocks subjected to reactive environments.

Highlights

  • A computational scheme incorporating experimental data calculated time-dependent creep strain in shale rock due to chemo-mechanical loading.

  • A time-dependent microstructural model and time-stepping finite element model were coupled to build the computational framework.

  • Micro-CT imaging and coupled nanoidentation/EDS techniques were utilized in the microstructural model to study the evolution of shale rock exposed to CO2- and N2-rich brine, at high-pressure and high-temperature conditions.

  • Creep deformation distribution varied based on the extent and spatial variability of the reaction, with different behavior observed under CO2 and N2 conditions.

  • The results highlight the important role of the interplay between the dissolution and precipitation processes on the VE/VP behavior of rocks in reactive environments.

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Data availability

The data that support the findings of this study are available from the corresponding author, Sara Abedi, upon reasonable request.

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Acknowledgements

Acknowledgment is made to the National Science Foundation (Grant CMMI-2045242) and to the donors of the American Chemical Society Petroleum Research Fund (PRF 60545-ND9) for supporting this work.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Civil Engineering, Texas A&M University, College Station, TX, 77843, USA

    Ravi Prakash & Sara Abedi

  2. Department of Petroleum Engineering, Texas A&M University, College Station, TX, 77843, USA

    Sara Abedi

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  1. Ravi Prakash
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Prakash, R., Abedi, S. Experimentally Informed Simulation of Creep Behavior in Shale Rocks Induced by Chemo-mechanical Loading. Rock Mech Rock Eng 56, 6631–6645 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00603-023-03413-0

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