The development of multi-scale computational tools to model multiple hydraulic fractures propagating in complex media.

过去十年，全球能源格局发生了重大变化，这在很大程度上要归功于一种通常被称为“水力压裂”的工艺，这种工艺使从页岩气藏中提取碳氢化合物在经济上是可行的。这一过程是由一项新技术实现的，该技术使水平井产生多条水力裂缝(HFs)成为可能。虽然水力压裂技术一直备受争议，但由于碳氢化合物泄漏到地下水的风险，这项新技术也可以通过在地热储层中创建裂缝网络来产生更清洁的能源。由于地壳顶部10公里处蕴藏的能源是所有石油和天然气储量的5万倍，这项创新技术在生产清洁能源方面也具有巨大的潜力。为了将水力压裂的环境风险降到最低，并优化HF的放置，有必要拥有能够模拟这些新的演化HF构型的设计工具。然而，高频技术的这些重要发展使现场实践超出了目前的计算机模拟工具的范围。现有的工具主要集中在模拟单个高频在分段均匀弹性介质中的传播过程。现在需要的是模拟多个高频同时在复杂的固体介质中传播并与预先存在的节理和断层相互作用的能力。

The past decade has seen a significant change in the global energy landscape, largely due to a process commonly known as “fracking” that has made the extraction of hydrocarbons from shale gas reservoirs economically viable. This process has been enabled by a new technology that makes possible the generation of multiple hydraulic fractures (HFs) from horizontal wells. While fracking has been controversial, due to the risk of hydrocarbons leaking into groundwater, this novel technology can also be used to generate cleaner energy by creating fracture networks in geothermal reservoirs. Since the top 10 km of the earth’s crust holds 50,000 times as much energy as all oil and gas reserves, this innovative technology also has huge potential for generating clean energy. To minimize the environmental risk of fracking and to optimize the placement of HF, it is necessary to have design tools that can simulate these new configurations of evolving HF. However, these important developments in HF technology have put field practice beyond current computer simulation tools. Existing tools are primarily focused on simulating the evolution of a single HF propagating in a piece-wise homogeneous elastic medium. What is now required is the capacity to simulate multiple HF that simultaneously propagate in complex solid media and interact with pre-existing joints and faults.