Study on the Damage and Failure Process of Prefabricated Hole-Fracture Combination Defects in Shale

The rock formations in oil and gas reservoirs are predominantly composed of laminated shale, which contains various defects such as pores and fractures. These defects have a significant impact on the stability of wellbore walls. As a result, this study utilized rock samples from a specific oil and gas reservoir and introduced pre-existing pore and fracture defects within them. Uniaxial compression tests were conducted on rock specimens with varying angles between the fractures and the bedding planes. The study involved measuring and analyzing the impact of pre-existing defect morphology on shale’s mechanical properties. Additionally, through the use of digital image correlation (DIC) technology, a comprehensive strain field map was obtained, depicting the initiation, propagation, and ultimate failure of surface cracks in shale under loading conditions. This allowed for both qualitative and quantitative analysis of the connection between shale’s damage and failure processes and the evolution of strain fields. Ultimately, this research provides a theoretical basis for wellbore stability and the development of shale oil and gas fields. Conclusions drawn from the study are as follows. With an increase in fracture angle, the rock’s elastic modulus gradually increases, and both compressive strength and strain exhibit a pattern of higher values on both ends and lower values in the middle. When the fracture angle is less than 30°, significant stress concentration occurs at the tip of the fracture. When the angle exceeds 60°, stress concentration around pores dominates. In the range of 30° to 60°, there is a combined stress concentration around both pores and fractures, significantly reducing rock stability. Crack propagation is influenced by bedding planes and exhibits varying degrees of ductility, ultimately resulting in a tension-shear mixed failure. When fractures are parallel to bedding planes (angle = 0°), defects are symmetrically distributed, and stress concentration at the fracture tip dominates, leading to crack initiation from the fracture tip and eventually forming an “H”-shaped tensile failure. When fractures are perpendicular to bedding planes (angle = 90°), stress concentration around pores is greater than at the fracture tip, causing cracks to initiate around pores and eventually collapsing on one side of the fracture.