Exploring the effect of engineering parameters on the penetration of hydraulic fractures through bedding planes in different propagation regimes

Bedding planes have a significant effect on the behaviour of hydraulic fracture height growth, increasing the complexity of understanding hydraulic fractures. At the same time, hydraulic fracture height growth is of pivotal importance for successful stimulation in shale reservoirs. This paper aims to explore the influence of engineering parameters on the behaviour process of hydraulic fractures penetrating bedding planes. The block discrete element method is used to investigate the penetration ability of hydraulic fractures under different fracturing fluid viscosities and injection rates. The results show that a high viscosity and high injection rate are beneficial for producing hydraulic fractures that penetrate bedding planes. The mechanism of the penetration behaviour of hydraulic fractures is investigated based on the analysis of stress evolution curves. The evaluation standard of penetrating ability is established based on the dimensionless Tau value in the established propagation regimes, which is useful to evaluate the interaction behaviour between hydraulic fractures and bedding planes. A close relationship is demonstrated between the Tau value and the stress curve. This study establishes a concise evaluation criterion for the penetrating behaviour of hydraulic fractures, which has theoretical significance for the study of hydraulic fracturing of shale reservoirs with bedding planes.