What is it about?
Shales are a complex aggregate of stiff materials like clay minerals and silt particles, plus much softer materials, including water. Formulating a consistent and accurate description of the elastic properties of shales is difficult, due to their complex composition. A simple model of shales is presented, consisting of a soft fluid-saturated clay matrix containing much stiffer clay mineral platelets. This model accounts for the observed behaviour and properties of shales.
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Why is it important?
A precise mathematical model of the elastic behaviour of shales is needed in many diverse geoscientific applications, in order to accurately model the response of these rocks.
Perspectives
Many conventional models of shales require and assume that clay platelets are interconnected. However, scanning electron microscopy (SEM) studies clearly show this is not the case. This model, which implicitly assumes clay platelets are disconnected, is able to correctly account for the observed properties and behaviour of shales.
Lennert D den Boer
Schlumberger Ltd
Read the Original
This page is a summary of: The Elastic Properties of Clay in Shales, Journal of Geophysical Research Solid Earth, July 2018, American Geophysical Union (AGU),
DOI: 10.1029/2018jb015600.
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