Advances in Multiphysics Phase-Field Modeling of Fracture in Porous Rocks
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The development of subsurface energy systems, including enhanced geothermal systems (EGS), carbon storage, and critical mineral recovery, depends on predicting and managing fracturing processes that emerge from the coupling of fluid flow, geomechanics, and even geochemistry in porous rocks. These interactions may span multiple spatial and temporal scales and introduce significant uncertainty in reservoir behavior. Physics-based numerical models that can robustly capture multiphysics fracture processes are therefore essential for both scientific insight and engineering applications. In recent years, the phase-field method has received popularity for modeling fracturing growth. Its wide applications can be largely attributed to the diffuse representation of fracture interfaces, allowing it to handle fracture nucleation and propagation without explicitly tracking of fracture trajectory. Meanwhile, the phase-field formulation has been extended to incorporate additional physics for modeling fracturing in various geologic systems. Notable examples include hydraulic fracturing in unconventional reservoirs, geologic fault rupture and growth, and reaction-driven cracking associated with processes such as serpentinization. In this work, we present recent advances in multiphysics phase-field formulations for modeling complex fracturing processes in porous rocks. Specifically, we discuss (i) a phase-field model for hydraulic fracture nucleation and propagation in porous media, and (ii) poromechanical phase-field formulations for fractures driven by chemo-mechanical processes associated with mineral reactions. These formulations are implemented in GEOS, an open-source computational framework designed for large-scale multiphysics simulations on high performance computing platforms. The capabilities of these models are demonstrated through representative 2D and 3D numerical simulations. Future efforts will extend and refine the proposed formulations and apply them to realistic field-scale problems relevant to corresponding subsurface energy systems.
