On the influence of fluid rheology on hydraulic fracture

Abstract: We analyse a problem of a hydraulic fracture driven by a non-Newtonian shear-thinning fluid. Fluid viscosity is described by the four-parameter truncated power-law model. By varying the parameters of the rheological model we investigate spatial and temporal evolution of fluid flow inside the crack and the resulting fracture geometry. A detailed quantitative and qualitative analysis of the underlying physical phenomena is delivered. The results demonstrate that rheological properties of fluids significantly affect the process of hydraulic fracture not only by the values of viscosity, but also by the range of fluid shear rates over which variation of viscosity occurs.