Fractured reservoirs are important hydrocarbon resources. However, the production of hydrocarbon makes fractures to be sealed which in turn decreases the production rate. A better understanding of permeability, porosity, and compressibility of fractures would be useful in optimizing the production rate. This research paper explored stress-dependent permeability, porosity, and compressibility of fractured porous media, both experimentally and numerically. The laboratory results are used to calibrate numerical models. With this regard, the roles of fracturing parameters such as orientation, opening, fracture density, persistency, and the intersection of fractures on hydro-mechanical parameters of the fractured sample are analyzed individually. The results indicate that stress sensitivity of permeability and compressibility is more in fractured porous media than in non-fractured ones. The results gained also showed that samples with open fractures and no filling materials, dominant vertical fractures, and high fracture density have the most stress dependency of permeability and compressibility, while in high fracture densities, the fracture and matrix changes are close to each other. The intersection of joints and not persisted fractures act as obstacles. This causes the fluid to be trapped in porous media that affect reservoir recovery and increase financial losses. Finally, an analytical relationship is developed to calculate the matrix compressibility
The umbrella arch method is a pre-reinforcement technique that ensures tunnel stability in poor ground conditions or shallow overburden. Quantitative assessment of this method is still challenging due to its complexity, there is no accurate method to model the behavior of reinforced arch forming with steel pipes and grout. This paper uses finite difference numerical simulation to model and analyze the effectiveness of the umbrella arch method in Qazvin–Rasht railway tunnel as well as in-situ measurement. Umbrella arch has modeled considering pipe, grout and soilcrete as pipe umbrella components; each pipe simulated individually. The structural behaviour of pipes in the excavation sequence is analyzed as well as the importance of geometrical and physical design elements, on tunnel stability using FLAC 3D software. Results indicate that the umbrella arch method has reduced tunnel convergence by 49%. By continuing the excavation step, residual pipe length ahead of the face and tunnel arch, the location of maximum pipe displacement, force, and moment are changed. Furthermore, by considering executive limitation, an increase in pipe angle, diameter and thickness, length and overlapping length, as well as pipes distance decrease, center to center grout penetration radius, and water-cement ratio 0.5 have had a positive effect in providing more strength arch and tunnel stability.