Numerical investigation of natural discontinuities in hydraulic fracturing using discrete fracture network

With the increasing need for energy and the dependence of various industries on fossil fuels, oil and gas experts have been forced to think about increasing production from existing fields. These conditions necessitated the introduction of new methods for this purpose for oil and gas reservoirs, the most important of which was the use of hydraulic fracturing methods. Numerous factors can affect the condition of the fracture and its geometry, which can be noted as the existence of natural fractures as one of the most important factors. The geometric properties of natural fractures can affect how the operation is performed and the type of hydraulic fracture created; Therefore, studying them before performing the operation is inevitable. In this study, natural fractures have been investigated using a discrete fracture network and the hydraulic fracturing process using a numerical method based on discrete element method. In this regard, the geometric properties of fractures such as density, fracture length and orientation and its effect on hydraulic fractures have been studied. The results indicate that the characteristics of the discrete fracture network and the geometry of the fractures can influence the hydraulic fracturing operation and control the results, and in most cases provide promising results in estimating the reservoir response to fluid injection.