| abstract |
The present Invention relates to method to stimulate the production of hydrocarbons from a subterranean formation. In particular, the present Invention discloses and claims methods to enhance the removal of fracturing fluid from a fracture deliberately created in the formation, thereby increasing effective fracture length, and thereby increasing hydrocarbon production. The methods of the present Invention involve breaker schedules opposite conventional teaching-i.e., according to the Invention, the breakers are staged such that the fluid near the fracture tip breaks first creating a viscosity gradient which causes the fluid resident in the tip to move towards the wellbore where it is more easily removed. Preferred embodiments of the Invention involve the use of gas to foam the fluid in the early pumping stages to induce a density gradient, as well as the use of fibrous material in the latter pumping stages to stabilize the proppant pack as the energized fluid in the near-tip squeezes through the near wellbore region. |