Version 1
: Received: 4 August 2024 / Approved: 5 August 2024 / Online: 5 August 2024 (12:49:06 CEST)
How to cite:
Cheng, S.; Wu, Z.; Qiu, X.; Xu, H.; Ding, G.; Liu, B. Influence of Fault Dip Angle and Strength on Fault Slip Characteristics of Gas Storage. Preprints2024, 2024080328. https://doi.org/10.20944/preprints202408.0328.v1
Cheng, S.; Wu, Z.; Qiu, X.; Xu, H.; Ding, G.; Liu, B. Influence of Fault Dip Angle and Strength on Fault Slip Characteristics of Gas Storage. Preprints 2024, 2024080328. https://doi.org/10.20944/preprints202408.0328.v1
Cheng, S.; Wu, Z.; Qiu, X.; Xu, H.; Ding, G.; Liu, B. Influence of Fault Dip Angle and Strength on Fault Slip Characteristics of Gas Storage. Preprints2024, 2024080328. https://doi.org/10.20944/preprints202408.0328.v1
APA Style
Cheng, S., Wu, Z., Qiu, X., Xu, H., Ding, G., & Liu, B. (2024). Influence of Fault Dip Angle and Strength on Fault Slip Characteristics of Gas Storage. Preprints. https://doi.org/10.20944/preprints202408.0328.v1
Chicago/Turabian Style
Cheng, S., Guosheng Ding and Bingbing Liu. 2024 "Influence of Fault Dip Angle and Strength on Fault Slip Characteristics of Gas Storage" Preprints. https://doi.org/10.20944/preprints202408.0328.v1
Abstract
The alternating stress caused by periodic high-pressure injection and extraction in gas storage can potentially induce fault slippage, compromising the sealing integrity of faults within these facil-ities. Understanding the mechanical behavior of faults under alternating stress is crucial for en-suring the long-term stability and safety of gas storage operations. To explore the impact of fault dip angle and fault gouge strength on fault slip characteristics, fault samples were prepared with uniaxial compressive strengths of 20.1, 30.2, 42.4, and 51.4 MPa at two distinct dip angles. Triaxial compression experiments were conducted under alternating stress conditions corresponding to operational pressures at a specific gas storage in China. Results indicate that faults with dip angles of 30° and 45° tend to fail at their weakest points. Increasing strength of fault gouge shifts failure mechanisms from interfacial failure between gouge and surrounding rock towards internal gouge failure, often accompanied by shear failure across sections, resulting in characteristic "X"-shaped conjugate shear failures. The decrease in the ratio of bedrock strength to fault gouge strength elucidates the observed phenomena of initial reduction followed by increased fault deformation. Transition points for faults with 30° and 45° dips occur around the strength ratios of 1.7/1 and 1.2/1, respectively. Fault damage exhibits a negative correlation with fault gouge strength and a positive correlation with fault dip angle. Samples with higher strength fault gouge at a 30° dip angle generally incur less damage compared to those with lower strength fault gouge at a 45° dip angle. Moreover, higher maximum static friction coefficients denote greater fault resistance to slipping, with 30° faults consistently demonstrating superior resistance compared to 45° faults. Additionally, higher strength fault gouge consistently enhances slip resistance under identical dip angles.
Copyright:
This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.
