BRIEF RESEARCH REPORT article
Front. Earth Sci.
Sec. Solid Earth Geophysics
This article is part of the Research TopicAdvanced Materials and Technologies for Sustainable Development of Underground Resources - Volume IIView all 8 articles
Impact of Fluids on the Mechanical Properties and Fracturing Behavior of Deep Reservoir Rocks
Provisionally accepted
Penglin Zheng1Ke Xu1Hui Zhang1
Zhizhen Zhang2*Jianli Qiang1Yu Zhang1Qiuyu Chen1Yixiong Hu1Shujun Lai1- 1Petrochina Tarim Oilfield Company, Korla, China
- 2China University of Mining and Technology, Xuzhou, China
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The mechanical properties and fracturing behavior of deep reservoir rocks are significantly influenced by the presence of fluids, which is crucial for geomechanical evaluation and resource development efficiency. Based on a discrete element method (DEM) coupled with fluid-solid interaction modeling, this study systematically investigates the effects of different fluid types (water, oil, gas) and pore pressures on the mechanical characteristics and fracture evolution of rocks under deep reservoir conditions. The results indicate that fluid properties markedly alter the mechanical response of rocks. Water saturation induces the most significant deterioration in peak strength, with a degradation of 79.41% observed at a pore pressure of 120 MPa. In contrast, gas saturation leads to the greatest reduction in stiffness (Young's modulus), with a maximum degradation of 46.47% under the high pore pressure of 120 MPa. Increasing pore pressure considerably reduces rock strength, and its weakening effect surpasses that caused by varying fluid types. However, the influence of fluid type on stiffness is more pronounced than that of pore pressure. At the microscopic scale, water weakens intergranular cementation through physical wedging and hydration reactions, promoting the development of shear fractures. Oil, due to its higher viscous resistance, causes localized stress concentrations and accelerates failure. The high compressibility of gas primarily affects the deformation capacity. This study reveals the differential degradation mechanisms of rock strength and deformation parameters under multiphase fluid conditions, providing a theoretical basis for the safe development of deep oil and gas resources.
Keywords: Rock Mechanics1, Fluid properties2, Pore pressure3, mechanical properties4, Fracture5
Received: 08 Oct 2025; Accepted: 17 Nov 2025.
Copyright: © 2025 Zheng, Xu, Zhang, Zhang, Qiang, Zhang, Chen, Hu and Lai. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.
* Correspondence: Zhizhen Zhang, zzzhang@cumt.edu.cn
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