Mechanical properties of shale-gas reservoir rocks — Part 1: Static and dynamic elastic properties and anisotropy

ABSTRACT Understanding the controls on the elastic properties of reservoir rocks is crucial for exploration and successful production from hydrocarbon reservoirs. We studied the static and dynamic elastic properties of shale gas reservoir rocks from Barnett, Haynesville, Eagle Ford, and Fort St. John shales through laboratory experiments. The elastic properties of these rocks vary significantly between reservoirs (and within a reservoir) due to the wide variety of material composition and microstructures exhibited by these organic-rich shales. The static (Young’s modulus) and dynamic (P- and S-wave moduli) elastic parameters generally decrease monotonically with the clay plus kerogen content. The variation of…