John L. Brumley

Oriented Perforations - A Rock Mechanics View

Hydraulic fracture initiation dictates the communication path between the wellbore and fracture plane. Nonplanar fracture geometries such as multiple, T-Shaped, and reoriented fractures are not advantageous and they adversely affect the potential to achieve a desired stimulation treatment. Oriented perforation can be the solution to initiate a single wide fracture in vertical and deviated wells. Also oriented perforations may be used to create stable tunnels in poorly consolidated formations thus avoiding sand failure and consequently preventing sand production. This paper presents laboratory experimental results related to oriented perforations for hydraulic fracturing. It also discusses the use of oriented perforation for sand control. Experiments were designed to investigate the effect of perforation orientation in vertical and horizontal wells on hydraulic fracturing treatment.