3.5.

1 Mechanical Properties
The mechanical properties we used in our geomechanical modeling are listed in
Table 3.1 We estimated these mechanical properties using the well logs from the study
area, lab analyses from other Barnett samples, and reasonable estimates from the gas
shale and rock mechanics literature.
Table 3.1: Mechanical properties used in geomechanical modeling.

Poisson's
Ratio
0.23

Young's
Modulus
(GPa)
40

Coefficient of
Thermal Expansion
Biot
(1/degC)
Coefficient
0.0000072
1

Sliding
Friction
0.75

Internal
Friction
1

3.5.2 Pore Pressure

The in situ pore pressure ( PP ) within a gas shale like the Barnett is very difficult
to measure accurately due to its very low intrinsic permeability. The PP is often assumed
to be roughly equal to the mudweight when there is neither gas intrusion nor loss of
circulation at that weight. In the Well C vertical pilot, the static mudweight used while
drilling through the Barnett shale ranged from 9.25 ppg (0.482 psi/ft) to 9.30 ppg (0.484
psi/ft), with no lost circulation or gas intrusion reported at these values. In the Well C
horizontal sections, the static mudweight ranged from 9.4 ppg (0.489 psi/ft) to 9.75 ppg
(0.507 psi/ft), again with no lost circulation or gas intrusion reported. Montgomery et al.
(2005) reported overpressure up to 0.52 psi/ft based on one of the few attempts to directly
measure the pore pressure in the Barnett shale. While there is uncertainty in the pore
pressure in our field area, we used a lower bound for PP of 0.48 psi/ft based on the
mudweight constraints.
3.5.3 Vertical Stress Magnitude
Due to the free surface of the earth, one of the principal stresses is usually
oriented vertically. The magnitude of this principal stress can be calculated from the
weight of the overburden:

(3.1)

where SV is the vertical stress magnitude,

z is the density at depth z and g is

gravity (Zoback et al., 2003). The density log from the Well C vertical pilot is shown in
Figure 3.6a and the corresponding SV plot is shown in 3.6b. (Since the density log began
at 100 ft MD, a density of 1.9 g/cc was assumed for the first 100 ft.) Within the reservoir
interval of 5620 to 5940 ft, SV is nearly constant at 1.1 psi/ft.
..
Figure 3.6: (a) Density log from the Well C vertical pilot. (b) Calculated vertical stress magnitude.

3.5.4 Image Logs and Horizontal Stress Orientation

An FMI log was taken in the Well C vertical pilot section and the Well C
horizontal section. For stress modeling, the primary observables in an image log are
wellbore failures caused by concentrations of compressive or tensile stresses at the walls

of the open borehole. Borehole breakouts are compressive failures on the walls of the
borehole that occur when the maximum resolved compression exceeds the rock failure
strength. Drilling induced tensile fractures are tensile failures on the wellbore wall that
occur when the minimum resolved effective stress becomes negative and the wall fails in
tension. The effective stresses at the well face of a vertical wellbore in a linear isotropic
elastic medium are described by the Kirsch equations:

---------------------------------where

P is the difference between the pore pressure and the mudweight,

is the

thermal stress from the temperature contrast between the reservoir and the drilling fluids,
and

0 is the direction of S Hmax (Zoback et al., 2003).

For a vertical well in an area where SV is a principle stress, the maximum

compression on the wellbore wall occurs in the direction of Shmin and the maximum
tension occurs in the direction of SHmax . When the principal effective stresses at the
wellbore wall exceed the compressive strength of the rock, borehole breakouts will form
in the direction of Shmin . When the principal effective stresses at the wellbore wall are
lower than the tensile strength of the rock, tensile fractures will form in the direction of
SHmax . Using the Kirsch equations and the occurrence (or lack of occurrence) of
compressive and tensile wellbore failures, it is possible to determine the orientations of
the principal stresses and to constrain their magnitudes.
We analyzed the FMI image logs for both the vertical and horizontal sections of
Well C, mapping natural fractures and recording any wellbore failures. Both the vertical
and horizontal sections were free of borehole breakouts, indicating that compressive
stresses on the wellbore wall never reached the failure strength of the rock. The Well C
vertical pilot section was generally free of tensile failures, except for a few regions within
the Barnett, as seen in Figure 3.7. Occurring on opposite sides of the well, these failures

indicate that the azimuth of horizontal stress is approximately 45. This direction
is consistent with the general trends of microseismicity mapped in the 51
hydraulic fracture stages (Figure 4.5). The limited occurrence of drilling induced
tensile fractures indicates that tensile failure is close to occurring in this section
but that the stresses are not such that tensile failure is widespread or extensive.