{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,5,4]],"date-time":"2026-05-04T13:41:43Z","timestamp":1777902103186,"version":"3.51.4"},"reference-count":23,"publisher":"SAGE Publications","issue":"1","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2026,1,1]],"date-time":"2026-01-01T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1767225600000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by-nc\/4.0\/"},{"start":{"date-parts":[[2026,1,1]],"date-time":"2026-01-01T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1767225600000},"content-version":"tdm","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/journals.sagepub.com\/page\/policies\/text-and-data-mining-license"}],"funder":[{"name":"postdoctoral research station scientific research project","award":["2024D102-01-17"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["2024D102-01-17"]}]},{"name":"hina Postdoctoral Foundation Funding Program","award":["2025M772951"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["2025M772951"]}]}],"content-domain":{"domain":["journals.sagepub.com"],"crossmark-restriction":true},"short-container-title":["Science Progress"],"published-print":{"date-parts":[[2026,1]]},"abstract":"<jats:p>Wellbore instability in deep hard-brittle shale formations, primarily induced by hydration-driven strength degradation upon interaction with water-based fluids, poses a critical challenge to hydrocarbon extraction. Conventional triaxial testing for assessing shale hydration behavior is often constrained by substantial sample requirements, extended duration, and high operational costs. In response, this study develops an efficient alternative approach centered on the indentation hardness method. While standard indentation tests are typically limited to hardness and plasticity coefficients, this work establishes theoretical models\u2014based on contact mechanics, elasticity theory, and the Mohr\u2013Coulomb criterion\u2014to derive elastic modulus, Poisson's ratio, and uniaxial compressive strength from indentation data. Experimental analysis of homogenized Longmaxi shale revealed a dense, low-porosity microstructure dominated by non-expansive clay minerals and quartz. Freshwater immersion tests displayed a three-stage absorption trend\u2014rapid, slow, and stable\u2014reaching near-saturation after 72 hours. Pronounced mechanical degradation was observed within the initial 300 hours of immersion, characterized by marked reductions in compressive strength, elastic modulus, and indentation hardness, alongside a stepwise increase in Poisson's ratio; this degradation trend decelerated thereafter. Validation experiments confirmed that single-point indentation hardness measurements provide mechanical equivalence to uniaxial compression responses. As a result, indentation testing on shale chips following fluid immersion offers an efficient and reliable means of evaluating time-dependent fluid\u2013rock interactions. The proposed methodology minimizes core material requirements, enhances operational efficiency, and mitigates the influence of heterogeneity, thereby offering considerable practical value for shale hydration assessment and wellbore stability forecasting.<\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.1177\/00368504251410010","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2026,1,9]],"date-time":"2026-01-09T07:04:08Z","timestamp":1767942248000},"update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.1177\/sage-journals-update-policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":0,"title":["Study on evaluation method for hydromechanical properties of hard and brittle shale based on indentation hardness"],"prefix":"10.1177","volume":"109","author":[{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0003-0788-119X","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Shuai","family":"Cui","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"name":"Shale Gas Research Institute, PetroChina Southwest Oil & Gasfield Company"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Wu","family":"Jianfa","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Shale Gas Research Institute, PetroChina Southwest Oil & Gasfield Company"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Bo","family":"Zeng","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Shale Gas Research Institute, PetroChina Southwest Oil & Gasfield Company"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Haoyong","family":"Huang","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Shale Gas Research Institute, PetroChina Southwest Oil & Gasfield Company"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Liqing","family":"Chen","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Shale Gas Research Institute, PetroChina Southwest Oil & Gasfield Company"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0003-4849-9720","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Houbin","family":"Liu","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Southwest Petroleum University"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Zhen","family":"Zhang","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Shale Gas Research Institute, PetroChina Southwest Oil & Gasfield Company"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]}],"member":"179","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2026,1,8]]},"reference":[{"key":"e_1_3_2_2_2","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1177\/00368504211002330"},{"key":"e_1_3_2_3_2","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.3389\/fphy.2021.745075"},{"key":"e_1_3_2_4_2","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1016\/j.petrol.2020.107500"},{"key":"e_1_3_2_5_2","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1155\/2021\/6694689"},{"key":"e_1_3_2_6_2","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1016\/j.petrol.2021.108882"},{"key":"e_1_3_2_7_2","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1007\/s10553-022-01370-y"},{"key":"e_1_3_2_8_2","volume-title":"Study on water-based drilling fluid for Shale gas formation","author":"Dai W","year":"2017","unstructured":"Dai W. 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Nat Gas Ind 2015; 35: 71\u201377.","journal-title":"Nat Gas Ind"},{"key":"e_1_3_2_18_2","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1007\/s42860-022-00188-3"},{"key":"e_1_3_2_19_2","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.3390\/app12031026"},{"key":"e_1_3_2_20_2","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1177\/0036850419888465"},{"key":"e_1_3_2_21_2","first-page":"103","article-title":"Application of digital core technology in elastic modulus calculation for shale","volume":"38","author":"Zhang Y","year":"2017","unstructured":"Zhang Y, Fan C, Xie A, et al. Application of digital core technology in elastic modulus calculation for shale. Xinjiang Petr Geol 2017; 38: 103\u2013106.","journal-title":"Xinjiang Petr Geol"},{"key":"e_1_3_2_22_2","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1016\/0020-7225(65)90019-4"},{"key":"e_1_3_2_23_2","first-page":"43","volume-title":"Principles and applications of contact mechanics and tribology","author":"Valentin LP","year":"2011","unstructured":"Valentin LP. 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