Elastic Characteristics of Overpressure in Shale Based on Micro-Mechanism Analysis

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dc.contributor.advisorZhou, Hua-Wei
dc.contributor.advisorHan, De-Hua
dc.contributor.committeeMemberSnow, Jonathan E.
dc.contributor.committeeMemberZheng, Yingcai
dc.contributor.committeeMemberTai, Shenghong
dc.creatorQin, Xuan 1988-
dc.date.accessioned2018-03-12T19:06:44Z
dc.date.available2018-03-12T19:06:44Z
dc.date.createdDecember 2017
dc.date.issued2017-12
dc.date.submittedDecember 2017
dc.date.updated2018-03-12T19:06:44Z
dc.description.abstractCharacterizing the overpressure of shale relies on a good understanding of its mechanism and has been of necessity and interest in pore pressure prediction for drilling safety. I provide a solution to cluster hundreds of wells by using an unsupervised algorithm (k-means) to recognize the overpressure mechanisms. Combining the model-driven feature and data-driven method delivers robust results of four clusters, corresponding to normal compaction or disequilibrium compaction, fluid expansion, fluid loss, and a mixture of fluid expansion and loss. The procedures developed can assist people to rapidly determine which model to use while performing pore pressure prediction based on the neighboring wells. Two end-member trends of smectite-to-illite transition are further categorized. The smectite-to-illite transition with fluid expansion is characterized by a decrease of sonic velocity and little change in the bulk density. In contrast, the transformation with fluid loss is characterized by an increase of density and little change in the sonic velocity. The fluid expansion typically gives rise to high magnitude overpressure and tends to happen when the overlying formations have more shaly contents and low permeability. For the fluid loss case, it has relatively deeper overpressure onsets, and its overlying formations have more sandy contents and relatively high permeability. I develop a modeling framework to capture the elastic and pore pressure evolution characteristics in shale during the smectite-to-illite transition. With proper bulk volume models, the velocity, density, and pore pressure increase of shale can be computed in the fluid expansion, fluid loss, and a mixture of these two scenarios. After calibration with logging data, the modeling result can reasonably interpret the rock property evolution within the smectite-to-illite transition zone. I extend the model strategy to the case of overpressure caused by kerogen maturation in organic shale, which can benefit drilling safety and unconventional reservoir characterization.
dc.description.departmentEarth and Atmospheric Sciences, Department of
dc.format.digitalOriginborn digital
dc.format.mimetypeapplication/pdf
dc.identifier.urihttp://hdl.handle.net/10657/2890
dc.language.isoeng
dc.rightsThe author of this work is the copyright owner. UH Libraries and the Texas Digital Library have their permission to store and provide access to this work. Further transmission, reproduction, or presentation of this work is prohibited except with permission of the author(s).
dc.subjectShales
dc.subjectOverpressure
dc.subjectSmectite-to-illite
dc.subjectMicro-mechanism
dc.subjectRock physics
dc.titleElastic Characteristics of Overpressure in Shale Based on Micro-Mechanism Analysis
dc.type.dcmiText
dc.type.genreThesis
local.embargo.lift2019-12-01
local.embargo.terms2019-12-01
thesis.degree.collegeCollege of Natural Sciences and Mathematics
thesis.degree.departmentEarth and Atmospheric Sciences, Department of
thesis.degree.disciplineGeophysics
thesis.degree.grantorUniversity of Houston
thesis.degree.levelDoctoral
thesis.degree.nameDoctor of Philosophy

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