Experimental Study on Pulsed Plasma Stimulation and Matching with Simulation Work

Plasma stimulation is a form of waterless fracturing as it requires that only the wellbore be filled with an aqueous fluid. The technique creates multiple fractures propagating in different directions around the wellbore. The intent of this paper is to present an experimental and numerical investigation of the degree of competitiveness of plasma stimulation with hydraulic fracturing, especially in the case of stimulating tight formation. Several cases were run experimentally. The samples included limestone and sandstone to investigate plasma fracturing in different rock types. In addition, the main goal of the experiments was to study the creation of fracture(s) under confining stresses, the type of rock, the amount of electrical energy used in the experiment, and the length of the wire to generate the plasma reaction. A laboratory plasma equipment was designed and used to accomplish the experimental work. The experiments were then numerically matched using a finite element numerical simulator, HOSS developed by LANL (Los Alamos National Lab). HOSS was developed to simulate high-strain-rate fractures such as those created by plasma stimulation. It accounts for mixed-mode fracture mechanics which are tensile and shear fractures. The simulator governing equations obey the conservation of mass and momentum in a solid-mechanics sense and account for the nonlinear deformation of rock material. The matching of the experiment allowed us to validate the HOSS simulation of the process and showed that the numerical results are in good agreement with the experimental work. Using the HOSS simulator, we also investigated the effect of higher energy levels and/or short release time on a cement rock model. The pressure profile that is developed due to the energy release can vary in the peak pressure and the release time. The results showed that the plasma fracturing technique is an effective stimulation method in sandstone and limestone. Plasma fractures were developed in the rock samples and extended from the sample wellbore to the outer boundaries. The shape of the pressure pulse has an impact on the developed fractures. Moreover, the effect of plasma stimulation on natural fractures was studied numerically. It was found that natural fractures can arrest the plasma-generated fractures that propagate from the wellbore to the outer boundaries. However, new fractures may develop in the rock starting from the natural fracture tips.