Dense Suspension Flow in a Penny-Shaped Crack, Part I : Theory

TL;DR

This paper develops a theoretical model for the flow of proppant-laden slurry in penny-shaped fractures, predicting fracture geometry and proppant distribution during injection and closure phases, with applications to fracking and magma intrusion.

Contribution

It introduces a self-similar analytical framework incorporating frictional rheology and effective viscosity for proppant transport in penny-shaped fractures, advancing understanding of fracture evolution.

Findings

Effective viscosity relates slurry flow to Newtonian flow, aiding predictions.

Fracture geometry and tip screen-out are influenced by proppant concentration.

Proppant distribution impacts residual fracture shape and stability.

Abstract

We study the dynamics of proppants carried by fluid driven into an evolving penny-shaped fracture. The behaviour of the slurry flow is investigated in two phases: pressurised injection and elastic closure. During injection the slurry is modelled using a frictional rheology that takes into account the shear-induced migration and jamming of the proppants. Making pragmatic assumptions of negligible toughness and cross-fracture fluid slip, we find self-similar solutions supporting a range of proppant concentration profiles. In particular, we define an effective viscosity, which equates the fracture evolution of a slurry flow with a given proppant volume fraction, to a Newtonian flow with a particular viscosity. Using this framework, we are able to make predictions about the geometry of the growing fracture and the significance of tip screen-out. In the closure phase, proppants are modelled as incompressible and radially immobile within the narrowing fracture. The effects of proppant concentration on the geometry of the residual propped fracture are explored in full. The results have important applications to industrial fracking and geological dike formation by hot, intruding magma.