Analysis and modeling of the hydro-mechanics of deformable fractures

In the present contribution, we investigate and model the flow of a viscous fluid into a single deformable fracture and the associated elastic deformation of the surrounding porous rock. Due to the coupled nature of the problem, conceptually and technically different strategies can be applied to model and solve the resulting hydro-mechanical system. Therefore, two different modeling approaches are analyzed. On the one hand, we derive the governing equations from the conservation of mass avoiding any of the frequently used approximations or simplifications. On the other hand, we describe the physics based on Biot's quasi-static poroelastic equations. We compare and critically discuss the results obtained with the presented different solution approaches. The results show that both models are able to capture the same physical effects, also those caused by the fracture deformation. (© 2012 Wiley-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)