Influence of rock heterogeneity on hydraulic fracturing: A parametric study using the combined finite-discrete element method

Hydraulic fracturing has proven to be an efficient technique to enhance production in unconventional reservoirs. Since heterogeneity is commonplace in reservoir rocks, it is vital to investigate the influence of rock heterogeneity on hydraulic fracture propagation. Here, based on the combined finite-discrete element method (FDEM) and cohesive zone model, two series of numerical models with uniformly distributed and Weibull-distributed elastic...