1. How do we teach Geomechanics?
Manolis Veveakis, Thomas Poulet, Klaus Regenauer-Lieb
School of Petroleum Engineering
Unconventional Geomechanics Group
School of Petroleum Engineering

2. Geomechanics
Geotechnics
Landslides
Rock properties
Tunnel design
Engineering Geology
Seismology
Geophysics
Seismic
Core logging
Soil Mechanics
Rock Mechanics
Fluid Mechanics
Solid Mechanics
What is Geomechanics?
Geomechanics (from the Greek prefix geo- meaning "earth"; and "mechanics") involves the geologic study of the behavior of soil and rock. The two main disciplines of geomechanics are soil mechanics and rock mechanics. The former deals with the behaviour of soil from a small scale to a landslide scale. The latter deals with issues in geosciences related to rock mass characterization and rock mass mechanics, such as applied to petroleum industry or high depths, tunnel design, rock breakage, and rock drilling. Many aspects of geomechanics overlap with parts of geotechnical engineering, engineering geology, and geological engineering. Modern developments relate to seismology, continuum mechanics, discontinuum mechanics, and transport phenomena. In the petroleum engineering Industry, geomechanics is used to predict important parameters, such as in-situ rock stresses, modulus of elasticity, leak-off coefficient and Poisson's ratio. Reservoir parameters that include: formation porosity, permeability and bottom hole pressure can be derived from geomechanical evaluation. The geotechnical engineer or geophysicist relies on various techniques to obtain reliable geomechanical models. These techniques that have evolved over the years, are: coring, log analysis; well testing methods like hydraulic fracturing, and geophysical sonar methods such as acoustic emission.
The problem: Geomechanics seems to be loosely defined!

3. Established in 1985 as a joint industry/UNSW initiative
Image based petrophysical rock properties and EOR (ARC, Industry Consortium) - $500k/year
NMR Laboratory (ARC, consortium) - $1mil in 2012; $200k/year since
CO2 sequestration (CO2CRC) - $200k/year
Unconventionals – CBM, Tight Gas, Shale Gas, Fractured Basement and Geothermal (ARC, DigitalCore, ONGC) - $2.2 mil in $4.1 mil in 2014

4. Teaching: Petroleum Engineering (Honours)

5. Consulting areas Reservoir appraisal Field development geology
Reservoir characterisation
Conventional log analysis
Log analyses for complex reservoir
Formation evaluation
Field development
Reservoir simulation
Reservoir engineering
Well test analysis
Drill string failure analysis
Improved oil recovery
Natural gas engineering
Drilling engineering
Integrated reservoir development studies
Carbon Capture and Storage
Economic assessment and commercial activities
Reserves assessment and certification
Arbitration
Unitisation
Field development planning economics
Economic evaluation
Oil and gas company and property valuation
Oil and gas economic modelling
Engineering and Economics

6. Geo-mechanics vs. Geo-mechanics in Petroleum Engineering!
But, do we need Geo-mechanics?

7. Petroleum Industry is interested in exploiting:
Conventional hydrocarbon reservoirs (Multi-phase flow, EOR, permeability measures, core logging, rock typing, seismic inversion etc)
 (virtually) No mechanics are required at first order
Unconventional reservoirs (shale gas, CSG, CBM etc)
 Strong mechanics and multiphysics are required

8. Conventional reservoir modelling
Unconventional
Conventional reservoir modelling UN
Conventional = Darcy flow in permeable rocks
Unconventional = low permeability stimulation to crack brittle rock
(Unconventional)2 = unconventional in ductile environment
Brittle
Ductile
Applications to geothermal, shale gas, resources…

9. Shell Scenario

10. Unconventional Energy: Shale Gas
US Report in Environmental and Energy Politics nd of April 2015

11. Australia’s future: Deloitte ‘Oil and gas reality check 2013’

13. Geo-mechanics vs. Geo-mechanics in Petroleum Engineering!
We need multi-physical Geo-mechanics!

14. Why multi-physics?

16. What skills we need to develop?
From Mathematics:
Vector-Tensor algebra and analysis
ODE and systems
PDE and systems
Statistical analysis
Bifurcation methods
Eigenvalue problems
Numerical methods in continuum/stochastic framework
Numerical methods in discrete framework …

17. What skills we need to develop?
From Mechanics:
Constitutive modelling
Experimental verification
Solid mechanics: Elasticity and LEFM
Solid Mechancis: Plasticity and limit analysis
Poromechanics: Fluid flow through porous medium
Poromechanics: Poroelastoplasticity
Fluid mechanics: Navier Stokes and Viscoplasticity
Contact Mechanics/ micromechanics …

18. What skills we need to develop?
From Physics:
Reversible/Irreversible Thermodynamics
Statistical Physics
Material Science (spectrometry, thermography etc)
CT scanning
Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (NMR) analysis
Wave analysis (seismic inversion etc)
Geochemistry
Petrology …

19. What skills we need to develop?
From Experimental multi-physics (THMC):
Mechanical deformation (triaxial etc)
Infrared measurements (Temperature)
Flow cells (Hydraulic processes)
Geochemical measurements

20. What skills we need to develop?
For the industry:
Knowledge of the world of industry
HSE regulations
Project Management
Risk Analysis
Risk Assessment
Risk Management
Finance and Economics
Expertise in using dedicated FEM software packages (Eclipse, Ansys, Abaqus etc)
Seismic inversion …

21. The pyramid of knowledge
Create
Evaluate
Academia
Analyze
Apply
Understand - Explain
Industry
Knowledge - Remember
Atherton J S (2013) Learning and Teaching; Bloom's taxonomy

22. Clash of opinions!

23. Conclusions
Highlight state-of-the-art and future research (multiphysics)
Equip students with sound basic knowledge, so that they can walk the path by themselves
Geo-Mechanics is the fundamental basis of Multiphysics

24. Thank you!