Conductivity prediction of proppant-packs based on particle size distribution under variable stress conditions

Abstract

The conductivity of the proppant-packs is critical in the productivity of hydraulically fractured wells. Proppants are also the best medium for studying particle packing. Sand and ceramic media are two most common proppants used for hydraulic fracturing. This study focuses on investigate the relation between conductivity and properties of proppant-packs, the particle-size distribution, porosity and mean particle diameter have been measured. The porosity of the proppant pack under zero pressure is determined from bulk density and apparent density. To accurately measure the porosity under variable closed stress conditions, the compressed width was taken into consideration. The particle size distribution was measured from sieve analysis. The paper presents results obtained by conducting routine conductivity test on a variety of proppants. The conductivity-porosity relationships are nonlinear. The conductivity is most sensitive to mean grain size, followed by closed stress, and then sorting. Larger median diameter always correlates to higher conductivity at low stress. Loss of conductivity with stress is more severe for large particles sands than small particles. The binomial method can be used to calculate the conductivity of different types and mesh proppants, which is shown to fit conductivity-mean diameter data successfully. The research is of guiding significance to choose the proper size distribution proppants in hydraulic fracturing. Meanwhile, the binomial method is a better predictor of proppant-packs conductivity based on particle size distribution.