Matrix acidizing in carbonate rocks and the impact on geomechanical properties: A review

Acid treatment is a widely used stimulation technique in the petroleum industry. Matrix acidizing is regarded as an effective and efficient acidizing technique for carbonate formations that leads to increase the fracture propagation, repair formation damage, and increase the permeability of carbonate rocks. Generally, the injected acid dissolves into the rock minerals and generates wormholes that modify the rock structure and enhance hydrocarbon production. However, one of the key issues is the associated degradation in the mechanical properties of carbonate rocks caused by the generated wormholes, which may significantly reduce the elastic properties and hardness of rocks. There have been several experimental and simulation studies regarding the impact of acid wormholes on rock weakening in various carbonate rocks (chalk, limestone, and dolomite). However, considering the number of effective parameters which are associated with matrix acidizing, it is crucial to carefully monitor the acidizing procedure as well as perform a post-treatment evaluation of the targeted rocks. This work aims to review the fundamentals of matrix acidizing as a viable stimulation technique for carbonate rocks and provide deeper insight into the potential alterations in geo-mechanical properties. This review also evaluates a group of key parameters including acid type, injection rate, wellbore geometry, and rock type, and highlights the various analytical techniques used for acid stimulation evaluation in carbonate rocks.