Biography:
Zahra is working on her PhD in Geophysics/Seismology with Prof. David Eaton at the University of Calgary. She received an MSc in Reservoir Engineering in Iran. Before returning to academia, Zahra worked several years for the National Iranian Oil Company, studying large oil and gas reservoirs. Her research interests include geomechanical modeling, injection-induced seismicity, microseismic interpretation, and geothermal studies. She is also the 2020 Alberta Graduate Excellence Scholarship recipient, and the Winston Karel CWLS best abstract award winner.
Project: Integrated Reservoir Study Applied to Fault Stability Analysis – Case Study of the Septimus Field
Previous studies show that faults might act, at least locally, as a stress barrier in the Kiskatinaw Seismic Monitoring and Mitigation Area (KSMMA) in British Columbia. Also lateral and vertical variations in pore pressure gradient in the KSMMA area strongly correlate with the significant faults and outline a series of pressure compartments. The overall objective of this PhD research is to investigate the effects of pressure partitioning and stress barrier on induced seismicity, fracture propagation and production. Integrated reservoir modeling, geomechanical modeling, and fault-slip-potential (FSP) analysis will be applied to quantify the effects of pressure barriers, a topic that has received relatively little attention in the literature. The study area encompasses the Septimus field, and covers a large part of the KSMMA area to ensure that the effects of far-field stress and regional tectonic setting are considered.
