Evaluation of shear slip stress transfer mechanism for induced microseismicity at In Salah CO2 storage site
File(s)
Accepted version
Author(s)
Cao, Wenzhuo
Shi, Ji-Quan
Durucan, Sevket
Korre, Anna
Type
Journal Article
Abstract
Stress transfer caused by injection-induced fault reactivation plays a significant role in triggering induced seismicity. This work aims to investigate to which extent the shear slip stress transfer mechanism might have contributed to a 4-month period of heightened microseismicity around one of the horizontal injection wells (KB-502) at the In Salah CO2 storage site. Building upon previous reservoir modelling and history matching work by the authors, coupled geomechanical and reservoir modelling of CO2 injection at KB-502 was carried out, featuring the explicit simulation of injection-induced fault reactivation and stress transfer, and the implementation of a strain-dependent permeability model to represent the fault hydrological behaviour. This approach allows a much-improved overall match to the field bottomhole pressures at KB-502 over the previous results, where fault zone reactivation and associated dynamic permeability behaviour were not considered, especially over the 4-month period of interest. Based upon the coupled modelling results, Coulomb stress changes were used to evaluate the potential for enhanced microseismicity related to CO2 injection-induced fault reactivation at KB-502. Analyses on the potential for microseismicity have shown that seismic events are likely to take place in both hydraulically connected regions and stress transfer influenced regions. The variation of computed Coulomb stress changes in near-fault areas compares favourably with the heightened field recorded seismicity during the period modelled. The integrated interpretation of microseismic monitoring and coupled geomechanics and reservoir modelling have suggested that the shear slip stress transfer mechanism was active and contributed to the occurrence of induced seismicity at In Salah.
Date Issued
2021-05-01
Date Acceptance
2021-03-06
Citation
International Journal of Greenhouse Gas Control, 2021, 107 (1), pp.1-20
ISSN
1750-5836
Publisher
Elsevier
Start Page
1
End Page
20
Journal / Book Title
International Journal of Greenhouse Gas Control
Volume
107
Issue
1
Copyright Statement
© 2021 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved. This manuscript is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International Licence http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/
Sponsor
Commission of the European Communities
Natural Environment Research Council (NERC)
Identifier
https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1750583621000542
Grant Number
518350
NE/H01392X/1
Subjects
Science & Technology
Technology
Green & Sustainable Science & Technology
Energy & Fuels
Engineering, Environmental
Engineering, Chemical
Science & Technology - Other Topics
Engineering
Coupled geomechanics and reservoir modelling
Fault reactivation
Strain-dependent permeability
Induced seismicity
Coulomb stress changes
Energy
04 Earth Sciences
05 Environmental Sciences
09 Engineering
Publication Status
Published
Article Number
103302
Date Publish Online
2021-03-16