Impact of Mechanical Stratigraphy on Hydraulic Fracture Containment In the Delaware Basin, USA: Comparing Fracture Toughness versus Anisotropic Poroelastic and Viscous Relaxation Stress Barriers

ABSTRACT: Finite/discrete element coupled hydro-mechanical modeling is used to illustrate the relative impact of material properties versus tectonic stress contrasts on hydraulic fracture growth and development. Propagation of a single stimulated fracture assuming a Mode I continuum damage stress-strain model is examined for Bone Spring versus Wolfcamp landing zones in the Delaware Basin, USA. The dependence of fracture height growth on elevated fracture toughness due to confinement and different (poroelastic- versus creep-based) theoretical models for lateral stress prediction is assessed and compared with actual subsurface observations of fracture geometries derived from real-time sensor monitoring. Petrophysical wireline logs combined with laboratory core testing are used to quantify heterogeneous stacking of mechanical properties and tectonic stresses associated with realistic stratigraphic variability and comparison of modeled versus LF-DAS measured fracture heights provides useful inferences regarding likely mechanisms and boundary conditions controlling the distribution of subsurface horizontal stresses with depth.