A new approach to DEM simulation of sand production

The creation of a borehole in a solid block resulted in the development of uniform or V-shape breakouts around the borehole. The failure zone around the borehole expanded after the application of fluid flow and sand grain detachments. Fluid flow was observed to influence the size and mode of failure in the breakout zone and sand production. Boundary stress dominated the sanding response at higher boundary stress conditions. However, much lower sanding occurred under higher boundary stresses but low boundary fluid pressures. High tangential stresses around the borehole caused by high confining stress resulted in strong frictional interlocking that alleviated sand production. Massive sanding was observed at lower far-field stress but higher boundary pore pressure.