Declining Frac Effectiveness - Evidence that Propped Fractures Lose Conductivity, Surface Area, and Hydraulic Continuity

Abstract

URTeC 1579008 Hydraulic fractures are often believed to provide durable, highly conductive channels that remain effective during decades of production. Traditional well test analyses often yield non-unique solutions, with poor ability to distinguish whether steep decline curves should be attributed to insufficient reservoir quality or declining fracture effectiveness. However, there is a growing body of evidence demonstrating that fractures lose effectiveness over time, apparently due to a number of mechanisms.