Three-Dimensional Separation and Characterization of Fractures in X-Ray Computed Tomographic Images of Rocks

Open fractures can affect petrophysical properties of their host rock masses, as well as fluid transport and storage, so characterization of them is important to both industrial and research scientists. X-ray Computed Tomography (CT), a non-destructive technique for 3D imaging of various materials, shows such fractures well in rock samples. However, separation and characterization of fractures in CT data is complicated when a scanned sample contains narrow and intersecting fractures, because narrow fractures become blurred when thinner than the scanner resolution and their value approximates the one of the matrix, and because intersecting features are difficult to individually characterize.…