Discussion on Reservoir Characteristics and Hydraulic Fracturing Transformation Mechanism of Tectonic Coal

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Authors: Wenping Jiang, Siqing Sun
Cited by: 2
References: 20

Abstract

To investigate the mechanisms of coal seam reservoir modification and the efficient development of surface coalbed methane (CBM), the coal with different structural formations in the 13-1 coal seam of Huainan Mining Area was selected as the research object. Fracturing numerical simulation technology was employed to analyze the effect of hydraulic fracturing on tectonic coal reservoirs and explore the mechanism of fracturing-induced gas production. The results show that fragmented coal contains well-developed face and butt cleats, and distinct fracture models were constructed for the three tectonic coal types. Granulated and mylonitic structural coals exhibit larger total pore volumes and higher proportions of pores larger than 10 nm than fragmented coal. Both tectonic coal types exhibit a high proportion of methane flow space, with rapid methane desorption and diffusion under high pressure and stable behavior under low pressure. Pore volume compressibility calculations indicate that tectonic coal exhibits poor compressibility. Numerical simulations indicate that direct horizontal well fracturing produces short, wide fractures, whereas roof-strata horizontal well fracturing generates longer, more effective fractures, primarily due to large-scale depressurization and induced fracturing associated with horizontal well drilling and staged fracturing.

Fields of Study & Subjects

Coal Properties and Utilization Geomechanics and Mining Engineering Hydraulic Fracturing and Reservoir Analysis

Publication details

Journal / source
Energies
Publisher
MDPI AG
Volume
19
Issue
7
Pages
1631–1631
Publication date
26 March 2026
Language
EN