As the confining pressure boosts, the increase in resistance to longitudinal crack propagation brings about a gradual changeover of shale failure mode from longitudinal to inclined shear failure that demonstrates an escalation in rock plasticity. Once the confining strain reaches thirty MPa, there remain local shear microcracks within the https://vertechs21.wordpress.com/2025/10/21/advancing-well-control-how-vertechs-is-shaping-the-future-of-safe-drilling/