A patent-pending technology developed at ETH Zurich could make for more efficient fracture networks in deep gas, oil and geothermal wells.
Thermal borehole enlargement through thermal spallation can be used to bore deep wells for gas, oil or geothermal exploitation in hard rock. It could also boost the efficiency of new wells and recovery of abandoned wells.
The shape of the borehole can be optimised in order to enhance the subsequent stimulation process.
The creation of deep reservoirs for gas, oil and geothermal energy extraction is impeded by insufficient stimulation. Direction and extension of the created fractures are complex to control and, therefore, large stimulated and interconnected fracture networks are difficult to create.
In order to reduce the project failure risks and increase the reservoir productivity, we developed a technology to control the creation of engineered reservoirs in hard deep rocks.