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1 Laboratory for Computational Geodynamics, Department of Chemistry, Indiana University, Bloomington, Indiana 47405; present address: USGS Water Resources Division, Peachtree Business Center, 3039 Amwiler Road, Atlanta, Georgia 30360-2824
2 Laboratory for Computational Geodynamics, Department of Chemistry, Indiana University, Bloomington, Indiana 47405
3 Laboratory for Computational Geodynamics, Department of Chemistry, Indiana University, Bloomington, Indiana 47405
4 Indiana Geological Survey, 611 North Walnut Grove, Bloomington, Indiana 47405-2208
5 Laboratory for Computational Geodynamics, Department of Chemistry, Indiana University, Bloomington, Indiana 47405
Dorothy Payne is a hydrologist with the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) Water Resources Division. After receiving an undergraduate degree in geology from Bryn Mawr College, she worked for a few years as a hydrologist with the USGS. She received her M.S. degree and Ph.D. (1998) in geochemistry from Indiana University working under Professor Peter Ortoleva. Her research interests include reaction- and solute-transport modeling of petroleum and hydrologic systems.Kagan Tuncay is a postdoctoral fellow in the Laboratory for Computational Geodynamics at Indiana University. He received his B.S. and M.S. degrees from Middle East Technical University in Ankara, Turkey, and then his Ph.D. from Texas A&M in 1995. His current research interests include rock rheology, multiphase flow, fracture mechanics, and nonlinear processes in geosciences.
Anthony Park is a research associate in the Laboratory for Computational Geodynamics at Indiana University. He completed his M.S. degree and Ph.D. in geochemistry at Indiana University working under Professor Peter Ortoleva. He has done internships and contract work for Amoco and Mobil, and was a postdoctoral fellow at the Institut Français du Petrole in 1995 and 1996. His research interests include dynamic nonlinear systems in geology and basin and reservoir modeling.
John Comer is geochemistry section head at the Indiana Geological Survey. After receiving his Ph.D. from University of Texas at Austin, he worked as a research geochemist for Amoco Production Company. From 1975 to 1988 he was a professor at the Department of Geosciences at the University of Tulsa. His research interests include deposition and diagenesis of organic-rich rocks and the physical chemistry of low-temperature aqueous systems.
Peter Ortoleva is a Distinguished Professor of Chemistry and Geological Sciences at Indiana University (IU). He has a Ph.D. in applied physics from Cornell University, did postdoctoral research at Massachusetts Institute of Technology in physical chemistry, and has received Sloan and Guggenheim awards. Since joining the IU faculty in 1975, his work has focused on reaction transport modeling of geological systems with an emphasis on basin modeling, and he is currently working on applications to fractured and salt-tectonic-related reservoirs.
Predicting reservoir characteristics in tight-gas sandstone reservoirs, such as those of the Upper Cretaceous units of the Piceance basin, is difficult due to the interactions of multiple processes acting on sediments during basin development. To better understand the dynamics of these systems, a forward numerical model, which accounts for compaction, fracturing, hydrocarbon generation, and multiphase flow (BasinRTM) is used in a one-dimensional simulation of the U.S. Department of Energy's Multiwell Experiment (MWX) site in the Piceance basin. Of particular interest is the effect of gas generation on the dynamics of the system.
Comparisons of predicted present-day and observed reservoir characteristics show that the simulation generally captures the observed patterns. Analysis of the simulated history of the MWX site shows that rheologic properties constrain the distribution of fractures, whereas the fracture dynamics are controlled by the dynamics of the stress and fluid pressure histories. Results suggest that gas generation is not necessary to induce fracturing; however, by contributing to overpressure it has two important implications: (1) during maximum burial, gas saturation in one unit affects fracturing in other units, thereby contributing to the creation of flow conduits through which gas may migrate and (2) gas saturation helps sustain overpressure during uplift and erosion, allowing fractures to remain open.
This article has been cited by other articles:
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  K. Tuncay, A. Park, D. Payne, and P. Ortoleva 3D fracture network dynamics in reservoirs, faults and salt tectonic systems Geological Society, London, Special Publications, January 1, 2003; 209(1): 155 - 175. [Abstract] [PDF]
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