Mechanical Sealing Method for Laboratory-Scale Hydraulic Fracturing Tests of Granite Rocks Under High-Temperature and High-Pressure Conditions
Source abstract
Abstract
Deep hot dry rock (HDR) geothermal energy is a widespread and sustainable renewable energy that could be extracted for the decarbonisation of electricity generation. Measurements are essential for hydraulic fracturing in HDR monitoring, which can be used for assessing the current state and predicting the future performance of geothermal systems. However, a major challenge is that it is difficult to implement hydraulic fracturing for HDR under high-temperature and high-pressure (HTHP) conditions. Similarly, it is hard to conduct laboratory-scale hydraulic fracturing experiments under HTHP due to the sealing failure of injection pipes in boreholes. Therefore, in this paper, we proposed a novel sealing technique by using a wedge-shaped structure for sealing injection pipes under HTHP environments. By conducting numerical simulations and experimental verifications, we discovered that (1) compression stress should be applied on the seal to achieve pre-sealing. Specifically, a compression displacement of between 2 mm and 6 mm is suggested. (2) Copper material with good ductility, high-temperature bearing performance, and excellent thermal expansion is preferred for manufacturing the seal components. (3) Heating-induced thermal expansion of sealing is conducive to re-sealing rocks.
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Research context
OpenAlex topics: Hydraulic Fracturing and Reservoir Analysis · Drilling and Well Engineering · Geotechnical and Geomechanical Engineering
SciVX discovery tags are terminology-based. OpenAlex topics are source-provided classifications.
Affiliations
State Key Laboratory of Coal and CBM Co-Mining, Jincheng 048000, China
School of Energy and Mining Engineering, China University of Mining and Technology (Beijing), Beijing 100083, China
Engineering Research Center of Green and Intelligent Mining for Thick Coal Seam, Ministry of Education, Beijing 100083, China
Engineering Research Center of Geothermal Resources Development Technology and Equipment, Ministry of Education, Jilin University, Changchun 130026, China
Funding
Beijing Natural Science Foundation · National Natural Science Foundation of China · Open Research Fund Program of State Key Laboratory of Coal and CBM Co-Mining · Engineering Research Center of Geothermal Resources Development Technology and Equipment, Ministry of Education, Jilin University · Fundamental Research Funds for the Central Universities
References (21)
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