--> ABSTRACT: Mechanical Properties of the Niobrara Formation, Rocky Mountain Region, U.S.A, by Maldonado, Alejandra; Batzle, Michael L.; Sonnenberg, Steve; #90135 (2011)

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Mechanical Properties of the Niobrara Formation, Rocky Mountain Region, U.S.A

Maldonado, Alejandra 1; Batzle, Michael L.1; Sonnenberg, Steve 1
(1)Colorado School of Mines, Golden, CO.

The Niobrara is a major resource play in the Rocky Mountain Region, USA. The Niobrara is a self-sourced, internally trapped petroleum system. The formation is a technology-reservoir that requires horizontal drilling and multi-stage fracture stimulation.

Laboratory measurements of the mechanical and lithological properties of the Niobrara Formation will be presented. This information is essential for designing hydraulics fractures in this tight formation. Samples were obtained from the CEMEX’s Lyons Cement plant in Boulder County, Colorado, from where three lithofacies were sampled: the Fort Hays Member, the D chalk and the Lower Marl. For each of these facies, tensional and unconfined compressive strength were acquired in order to obtain a general failure criteria. Triaxial tests, using varying axial, confining and pore pressures, were conducted to obtain Young’s modulus and Poisson’s ratio values under different conditions, as well as changes in porosity and permeability. Also, ultrasonic velocity measurements will be done for establishing a correlation between static and dynamic properties, which can be used to extract mechanical properties from well logs.

These strength properties will be related to clay content, carbonate content, porosity and permeability, to determine which parameters have major or no influence in the mechanical properties and to find numerical relationships that can be applied to other facies of the Niobrara Formation.

 

AAPG Search and Discovery Article #90135©2011 AAPG International Conference and Exhibition, Milan, Italy, 23-26 October 2011.