We present a three-dimensional modeling study of gas flow in the unsaturated fractured rock of Yucca Mountain. Our objective was to estimate large-scale fracture permeability, using the changes in subsurface pneumatic pressure in response to barometric pressure changes at the land surface. We incorporate the field-measured pneumatic data into a multiphase flow model for describing the coupled p...

The analysis of mechanical response and deformation-cracking behavior contributes to the high-efficiency extraction geo-energy long-term safety underground engineering structures. Compared natural cores, properties 3D-printed samples made from quartz sand as raw material are relatively homogeneous, can be used for quantitative studies on influence defects rocks. In this work, with single fractu...

a typical iranian carbonate matrix block surrounded by an open fracture was modeled in order to understand the fracture-matrix interaction and realize how to model the interaction best. the modeling was carried out by using a fine-scaled eclipse model in the single porosity mode (the fractures were explicitly modeled). the model was extended to a stack of 6 matrix blocks to understand block-to-...

This article is focused on the numerical analysis of the hard rock (ore) disintegration process (continuation of the firstly article published in this Journal, see [3]). The bit moves and sinks into the hard rock (mechanical contact with friction between the ore and the cutting bit) and subsequently disintegrates it. The disintegration (i.e. stress-strain relationship, contact forces, reaction ...

In this study, a novel numerical method is proposed for determination of mode-I interlaminar fracture toughness, GIc, in multi-directional (MD) double cantilever beam (DCB) specimens using fracture properties of unidirectional DCB specimens. Two factors, β and Dc are defined to minimize the undesirable effects on strain energy release rate. β describes the difference between maximum and average...

The success of shale gas in North America has attracted increased interest in “unconventional” reservoirs. Two critical factors for shale-gas reservoirs are units amenable to hydrologic fracture stimulation and sufficient natural gas content. The effectiveness of hydrologic fracture stimulation is influenced by rock geomechanical properties, which are related to rock mineralogy. The natural gas...

Thermal conductive heating (TCH) is an innovative remediation technology developed for aggressive in-situ non-aqueous phase liquid (NAPL) source zone treatment. Electrical heater wells are used to conductively transfer heat into the subsurface, thereby elevating temperatures and boiling both ground water and NAPLs. The design of a TCH remediation system needs to consider the cooling effect of i...

Since rock fracture is a key property for different rock engineering applications, rock fracture measurement is often carried out in classifying the rock mass. Most geo-mechanics models (e.g. finite element) are of the equivalent continuum type in which fractures are represented not individually, but by their influence on a large element of the rock mass. Elastic modulus, for example, is obtain...

the main purpose of this investigation is to study the effect of near miscible co2 injection in different porous mediums on both lab and field scales. this effect can be traced by the change of two-phase gas-oil relative permeability curves. in this work, the experiments have been performed on three rock types (i.e. sandstone, dolomite, and artificial fractured sandstone) based on an incrementa...

Assessment of the correlation between rock brittleness and rock fracture toughness has been the subject of extensive research works in the recent years. Unfortunately, the brittleness measurement methods have not yet been standardized, and rock fracture toughness cannot be estimated satisfactorily by the proposed indices. In the present study, statistical analyses are performed on some data col...