Large-scale physical simulation of injection and production of hot dry rock in Gonghe Basin, Qinghai Province, China

Abstract

Based on the independently developed true triaxial multi-physical field large-scale physical simulation system of in-situ injection and production, we conducted physical simulation of long-term multi-well injection and production in the hot dry rocks of the Gonghe Basin, Qinghai Province, NW China. Through multi-well connectivity experiments, the spatial distribution characteristics of the natural fracture system in the rock samples and the connectivity between fracture and wellbore were clarified. The injection and production wells were selected to conduct the experiments, namely one injection well and two production wells, one injection well and one production well. The variation of several physical parameters in the production well was analyzed, such as flow rate, temperature, heat recovery rate and fluid recovery. The results show that under the combination of thermal shock and injection pressure, the fracture conductivity was enhanced, and the production temperature showed a downward trend. The larger the flow rate, the faster the decrease. When the local closed area of the fracture was gradually activated, new heat transfer areas were generated, resulting in a lower rate of increase or decrease in the mining temperature. The heat recovery rate was mainly controlled by the extraction flow rate and the temperature difference between injection and production fluid. As the conductivity of the leak-off channel increased, the fluid recovery of the production well rapidly decreased. The influence mechanisms of dominant channels and fluid leak-off on thermal recovery performance are different. The former limits the heat exchange area, while the latter affects the flow rate of the produced fluid. Both of them are important factors affecting the long-term and efficient development of hot dry rock.