Front Tracking Using a Hybrid Analytical Finite Element Approach for Two-Phase Flow Applied to Supercritical CO<Subscript>2</Subscript> Replacing Brine in a Heterogeneous Reservoir and Caprock

Predicting fluid replacement by two-phase flow in heterogeneous porous media is of importance for issues such as supercritical CO₂ sequestration, the integrity of caprocks and the operation of oil water/brine systems. When considering coupled process modelling, the location of the interface is of importance as most of the significant interaction between processes will be happening there. Modelling two-phase flow using grid based techniques presents a problem as the fluid–fluid interface location is approximated across the scale of the discretisation. Adaptive grid methods allow the discretisation to follow the interface through the model, but are computationally expensive and make coupling to other processes (thermal, mechanical and chemical) complicated due to the constant alteration in grid size and effects thereof. Interface tracking methods have been developed that apply sophisticated reconstruction algorithms based on either the ratio of volumes of a fluid in an element (Volume of Fluid Methods) or the advective velocity of the interface throughout the modelling regime (Level set method). In this article, we present an “Analytical Front Tracking” method where a generic analytical solution for two-phase flow is used to “add information” to a finite element model. The location of the front within individual geometrical elements is predicted using the saturation values in the elements and the velocity field of the element. This removes the necessity for grid adaptation, and reduces the need for assumptions as to the shape of the interface as this is predicted by the analytical solution. The method is verified against a standard benchmark solution and then applied to the case of CO₂ pooling and forcing its way into a heterogeneous caprock, replacing hot brine and eventually breaking through. Finally the method is applied to simulate supercritical CO₂ injected into a brine saturated heterogeneous reservoir rock leading to significant viscous fingering and developement of preferential flow paths. The results are compared with to a finite volume simulation.     

Constitutive Relations for Monatomic Gases¶Based on a¶Generalized Rational Approximation¶to the Sum of the Chapman-Enskog Expansion

. We study the asymptotic behavior as time goes to infinity of solutions to the initial‐boundary‐value problem on the half space for a one‐dimensional model system for the isentropic flow of a compressible viscous gas, the so‐called p‐system with viscosity. As boundary conditions, we prescribe the constant state at infinity and require that the velocity be zero at the boundary . When the velocity at infinity is negative and satisfies a condition on the magnitude, we prove that if the initial data are suitably close to those for the corresponding outgoing viscous shock profile, which is suitably far from the boundary, then a unique solution exists globally in time and tends toward the properly shifted viscous shock profile as the time goes to infinity. The proof is given by an elementary energy method. (Accepted March 2, 1998)     

Analytical solution of the poiseuille flow problem using the ellipsoidal-statistical model of the Boltzmann kinetic equation

An analytical solution (in the form of a Neumann series) of the problem of rarefied gas flow in a plane channel with infinite walls in the presence of a pressure gradient (Poiseuille flow) parallel to them is constructed within the framework of the kinetic approach in an isothermal approximation. The ellipsoidal-statistical model of the Boltzmann kinetic equation and the diffuse reflection model are used as the basic equation and the boundary condition, respectively. Using the resulting distribution function, the mass and heat flux densities in the direction of the pressure gradient per unit channel length in the y′ direction are calculated, and profiles of the gas mass velocity and heat flux in the channel are constructed. The results obtained for the continuum and free-molecular flow models are analyzed and compared with similar results obtained by numerical methods.     

An Apparent Interface Location as a Tool to Solve the Porous Interface Flow Problem

A new approach for solving the laminar flow problem above a porous medium is presented here, using an apparent interface for which both superficial velocity and intrinsic shear stress are continuous. The derivation of this approach is based on a detailed investigation of the Ochoa-Tapia and Whitaker (Int. J. Heat Mass Transfer 38:2635–2646, 1995a) jump condition and its sensitivity to the value of β (the jump condition coefficient) and to an error in the interface location. While the value of the jump condition coefficient is highly sensitive to the interface location, the new apparent interface approach does not require an a priori information about the location of the interface. This approach can be easily used knowing only one measurable parameter—the maximum velocity or the flow rate. Validation of the apparent interface approach against measurements from other works shows that it can be successfully used to predict the velocity profile for different geometrical models.     

Immiscible Newtonian displacement by a viscoplastic material in a capillary plane channel

The immiscible displacement in a capillary plane channel of a Newtonian liquid by a viscoplastic one that obeys a Papanastasiou’s constitutive equation is numerically analyzed. An elliptic mesh generation technique, coupled with the Galerkin finite element method is used to determine the velocity field and the configuration of the interface between the two materials. We investigate the displacement efficiency and the flow patterns of the problem as functions of the dimensionless parameters that govern the problem: the capillary number (Ca), the viscosity ratio of the two fluids (N _η ) and the yield number, (τ′₀). The numerical results showed that for a fixed viscosity ratio, the fraction of mass attached to the wall is a decreasing function of τ′₀. We constructed maps of streamlines in the Cartesian space defined by τ′₀ and Ca for fixed viscosity ratios in order to capture the rough location of bypass and recirculating flow regimes. Higher yield number values induce bypass flow regimes, especially for high Ca. The dimensionless forms of the momentum conservation equation and the force balance at the interface were essential for the understanding of the role played by the dimensionless numbers that govern the problem.     

Example of an exact solution of the stationary problem of two-layer flows with evaporation at the interface

Stationary two-layer liquid and gas flows with fluid evaporation at the interface are studied. On the solid impermeable boundaries of the channel, no-slip conditions are satisfied and a linear temperature distribution along the longitudinal coordinate and a condition for the vapor concentration at the upper boundary are specified. On the thermocapillary interface, remaining undeformed, the following conditions are specified: kinematic and dynamic conditions, a condition for thermal flows with mass transfer, continuity conditions for the velocity, temperature, and mass balance, and a relation for the saturated vapor concentration. An exact solution of the stationary problem for a given gas flow rate is obtained. Examples of velocity profiles are given for stationary flows of the ethanol-nitrogen system under normal and reduced gravity are given. The effect of longitudinal temperature gradients specified at the boundaries of the channel on the flow pattern is investigated.     

A computerized technique for measuringin-situ concentrations during miscible displacements in porous media

A technique for measurement of thein-situ concentration in an unconsolidated porous medium has been developed. The method involves measurement of electrical conductivityin-situ, under dynamic conditions, for flow involving brine of differing concentrations, at selected locations along the porous medium and relating it to the brine strength. Data acquisition and analysis is carried out using a Hewlett — Packard micro-computer and its interface. A user-friendly software was designed and developed for the system. The measurement technique was evaluated by studying the effect of brine concentration, brine flow rate, and by conducting miscible displacements experiment. The experimentally measured dispersion coefficients for the porous medium agreed closely with the value predicted by the correlation available in the literature.     

Large-eddy Simulation of Film Cooling Flows with Variable Density Jets

The present paper investigates the impact of the velocity and density ratio on the turbulent mixing process in gas turbine blade film cooling. A cooling fluid is injected from an inclined pipe at α=30° into a turbulent boundary layer profile at a freestream Reynolds number of Re_∞ = 400,000. This jet-in-a-crossflow (JICF) problem is investigated using large-eddy simulations (LES). The governing equations comprise the Navier–Stokes equations plus additional transport equations for several species to simulate a non-reacting gas mixture. A variation of the density ratio is simulated by the heat-mass transfer analogy, i.e., gases of different density are effused into an air crossflow at a constant temperature. An efficient large-eddy simulation method for low subsonic flows based on an implicit dual time-stepping scheme combined with low Mach number preconditioning is applied. The numerical results and experimental velocity data measured using two-component particle-image velocimetry (PIV) are in excellent agreement. The results show the dynamics of the flow field in the vicinity of the jet hole, i.e., the recirculation region and the inclination of the shear layers, to be mainly determined by the velocity ratio. However, evaluating the cooling efficiency downstream of the jet hole the mass flux ratio proves to be the dominant similarity parameter, i.e., the density ratio between the fluids and the velocity ratio have to be considered.     

Measurements of local velocities inside thin liquid films in horizontal two-phase flow

A new experimental facility based on Laser Doppler anemometry permits accurate local measurements in a horizontal pipe. Measurements of the axial velocity component in the liquid layer of the atomization/stratified flow regime are reported. The new information includes time-averaged local velocities, RMS values, probability density distributions, and power spectra. Elimination of velocity bias and calculation of velocity spectra is accomplished by a recently developed “signal reconstruction” algorithm. The data suggest that only in the vicinity of the solid surface (sublayer) does the liquid motion resemble the well-known behavior of single phase flow. Beyond that, the flow field is strongly influenced by the wavy gas/liquid interface and by the apparently intensive energy transfer from the very fast moving gas to the liquid layer.     

Existence and Stability of Multidimensional Transonic Flows through an Infinite Nozzle of Arbitrary Cross-Sections

We establish the existence and stability of multidimensional steady transonic flows with transonic shocks through an infinite nozzle of arbitrary cross-sections, including a slowly varying de Laval nozzle. The transonic flow is governed by the inviscid potential flow equation with supersonic upstream flow at the entrance, uniform subsonic downstream flow at the exit at infinity, and the slip boundary condition on the nozzle boundary. Our results indicate that, if the supersonic upstream flow at the entrance is sufficiently close to a uniform flow, there exists a solution that consists of a C ^1,α subsonic flow in the unbounded downstream region, converging to a uniform velocity state at infinity, and a C ^1,α multidimensional transonic shock separating the subsonic flow from the supersonic upstream flow; the uniform velocity state at the exit at infinity in the downstream direction is uniquely determined by the supersonic upstream flow; and the shock is orthogonal to the nozzle boundary at every point of their intersection. In order to construct such a transonic flow, we reformulate the multidimensional transonic nozzle problem into a free boundary problem for the subsonic phase, in which the equation is elliptic and the free boundary is a transonic shock. The free boundary conditions are determined by the Rankine–Hugoniot conditions along the shock. We further develop a nonlinear iteration approach and employ its advantages to deal with such a free boundary problem in the unbounded domain. We also prove that the transonic flow with a transonic shock is unique and stable with respect to the nozzle boundary and the smooth supersonic upstream flow at the entrance.     

Scalar mixing in the field of a gaseous laminar line vortex

An experimental study of scalar mixing in a laminar vortex is presented for vortices generated between two gas streams flowing parallel to each other in a rectangular flow channel. An isolated line vortex is initiated on demand by momentarily increasing one stream velocity in relation to the other using an electromagnetically actuated piston. The temporal piston motion profile is tailored to generate vortices of different strengths corresponding to vortex Reynolds numbers, Re≡Γ/2πν=130–210. Evolution of mixing is monitored by laser-induced fluorescence of acetone vapor premixed into one of the gas streams as the vortex structure evolves with increasing downstream distance from its point of origin. Vortex is generated by pulsing either of the gas streams (seeded or unseeded stream). Vortex initiation process affects the abundance of the gas in the vortex core from the pulsed stream. Spatial mixing statistics are obtained by determining scalar concentration probability density functions (pdf) and the mean mixed fluid concentrations obtained from these pdfs. It is found that the interfacial area generation as a result of vortex kinematics and molecular diffusion along this interface are principally responsible for mixing. The mean mixed fluid concentration in the vortex interaction region scales with the product of vortex circulation and the elapsed time of interaction. These results are similar to those found in liquid mixing experiments, but the rate of mixing is significantly higher due to higher diffusivity of gases.     

Inviscid gas flows in nozzles with a steeply converging contour

Inviscid gas flows in nozzles with a uniform exit flow and contours profiled starting from the lower point of a steeply converging region with an angle θ = −90° are analyzed. It is shown that there exists a class of convergent-divergent contours, within which the flow is characterized by the fact that the line θ = 0 of zero angle of the velocity vector inclination to the x axis consists of two oppositely-directed regions located partially or even completely ahead of the minimum section, while near the minimum sections their regions convex inward the gas stream are in decelerated flow. The minimum sections of the nozzles with M _e → 1 approach the center of the nozzle from the right.     

Fundamentals of rotating detonations

A rotating detonation propagating at nearly Chapman–Jouguet velocity is numerically stabilized on a two-dimensional simple chemistry flow model. Under purely axial injection of a combustible mixture from the head end of a toroidal section of coaxial cylinders, the rotating detonation is proven to give no average angular momentum at any cross section, giving an axial flow. The detonation wavelet connected with an oblique shock wave ensuing to the downstream has a feature of unconfined detonation, causing a deficit in its propagation velocity. Due to Kelvin–Helmholtz instability existing on the interface of an injected combustible, unburnt gas pockets are formed to enter the junction between the detonation and oblique shock waves, generating strong explosions propagating to both directions. Calculated specific impulse is as high as 4,700 s.      

Gas-kinetic numerical method for solving mesoscopic velocity distribution function equation

A gas-kinetic numerical method for directly solving the mesoscopic velocity distribution function equation is presented and applied to the study of three-dimensional complex flows and micro-channel flows covering various flow regimes. The unified velocity distribution function equation describing gas transport phenomena from rarefied transition to continuum flow regimes can be presented on the basis of the kinetic Boltzmann–Shakhov model equation. The gas-kinetic finite-difference schemes for the velocity distribution function are constructed by developing a discrete velocity ordinate method of gas kinetic theory and an unsteady time-splitting technique from computational fluid dynamics. Gas-kinetic boundary conditions and numerical modeling can be established by directly manipulating on the mesoscopic velocity distribution function. A new Gauss-type discrete velocity numerical integration method can be developed and adopted to attack complex flows with different Mach numbers. HPF parallel strategy suitable for the gas-kinetic numerical method is investigated and adopted to solve three-dimensional complex problems. High Mach number flows around three-dimensional bodies are computed preliminarily with massive scale parallel. It is noteworthy and of practical importance that the HPF parallel algorithm for solving three-dimensional complex problems can be effectively developed to cover various flow regimes. On the other hand, the gas-kinetic numerical method is extended and used to study micro-channel gas flows including the classical Couette flow, the Poiseuille- channel flow and pressure-driven gas flows in two-dimensional short micro-channels. The numerical experience shows that the gas-kinetic algorithm may be a powerful tool in the numerical simulation of micro-scale gas flows occuring in the Micro-Electro-Mechanical System (MEMS). The project supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (90205009 and 10321002), and the National Parallel Computing Center in Beijing. The English text was polished by Yunming Chen.     

Lattice Gas Analysis of Liquid Front in Non-Crimp Fabrics

The liquid flow front during impregnation of non-crimp fabrics is considered. Irregularities in fibre bundle architecture lead to generation of bubbles at this front. The velocity of this interface is highly influenced by capillary forces mainly caused by the small fibres inside the bundles. In order to better understand which shapes the liquid front takes up at different conditions, a lattice gas model has been applied. First, the macroscopic properties of the solved gas in the liquid are discussed. Next, bubble inclusions are analyzed as to liquid–gas interface position and concentrations of minor component in each phase. The capillary effects at the fluid front are studied for systems both with and without gaps between the bundles. The flow in the interior of the fibre bundles is scrutinized, as well, by also considering the viscous stresses. The flow through unidirectional fabrics is considered by a one-dimensional model, which suggests that the liquid front inside bundles and gaps moves with the same speed when the liquid front inside the bundle has to catch up with the liquid front in the gap.     

Non-isobaric Marangoni boundary layer flow for Cu,Al<Subscript>2</Subscript>O<Subscript>3</Subscript> and TiO<Subscript>2</Subscript> nanoparticles in a water based fluid

In this paper, a non-isobaric Marangoni boundary layer flow that can be formed along the interface of immiscible nanofluids in surface driven flows due to an imposed temperature gradient, is considered. The solution is determined using a similarity solution for both the momentum and energy equations and assuming developing boundary layer flow along the interface of the immiscible nanofluids. The resulting system of nonlinear ordinary differential equations is solved numerically using the shooting method along with the Runge-Kutta-Fehlberg method. Numerical results are obtained for the interface velocity, the surface temperature gradient as well as the velocity and temperature profiles for some values of the governing parameters, namely the nanoparticle volume fraction φ (0≤φ≤0.2) and the constant exponent β. Three different types of nanoparticles, namely Cu, Al₂O₃ and TiO₂ are considered by using water-based fluid with Prandtl number Pr =6.2. It was found that nanoparticles with low thermal conductivity, TiO₂, have better enhancement on heat transfer compared to Al₂O₃ and Cu. The results also indicate that dual solutions exist when β<0.5. The paper complements also the work by Golia and Viviani (Meccanica 21:200–204, 1986) concerning the dual solutions in the case of adverse pressure gradient.     

Drag reduction of a nonnewtonian fluid by fluid injection on a moving wall

Summary A boundary layer problem of a nonnewtonian fluid flow with fluid injection on a semi-infinite flat plate whose surface moves with a constant velocity in the opposite direction to that of the uniform mainstream is analyzed. Concluding similarity equations are solved numerically to show the dependence of the problem to the velocity ratio λ of the plate to uniform flow and to the injection velocity parameter C. The critical values of λ and C for each nonnewtonian power-law index n are obtained, and their significance in drag reduction is discussed. Received 26 August 1997; accepted for publication 21 October 1998     

Flow near the permeable boundary of a porous medium: An experimental investigation using LDA

 Fluid flow at the interface of a porous medium and an open channel is the governing phenomenon in a number of processes of industrial importance. Traditionally, this has been modeled by applying the Brinkman’s modification of Darcy’s law to obtain the velocity profile in terms of an additional parameter known as the “apparent viscosity” or the “slip coefficient”. To test this ad hoc approach, a detailed experimental investigation of the flow was conducted using Laser Doppler Anemometry (LDA) in the close vicinity of the permeable boundary of a porous medium. The porous medium used in the experiments consisted of a network of continuous glass strands woven together in a random fashion. A Hele–Shaw cell was partially filled with a fibrous preform such that an open channel flow is coupled with the Darcy flow inside the preform through the permeable interface of the preform. The open channel portion of the Hele–Shaw cell also acts as an ideal porous medium of known in-plane permeability which is much higher than the permeability of the fibrous porous medium. A viscous fluid is injected at a constant flow rate through the above arrangement and a saturated and steady flow is established through the cell. Using LDA, steady state velocity profiles are accurately measured by traversing across the cell in the direction perpendicular to the flow. A series of experiments were conducted in which fluid viscosity, flow rate, solid volume fraction of the porous medium and depth of the Hele–Shaw cell were varied. For each and every case in which the conditions for Hele–Shaw approximation were valid, the depth of the boundary layer zone or the screening length inside the fibrous preform was found to be of the order of the channel depth. This is much larger as compared to the Brinkman’s prediction of the screening length which is of the order of √K, where K is the permeability of the fibrous porous medium. Based on this finding, we modified the boundary condition in the Brinkman’s solution and found that the velocity profile results compared well with the experimental data for the planar geometry and the fibrous preforms for volume fractions of 7%, 14% and 21% for Hele–Shaw cell depths of 1.6 and 3.175 mm. For a cell depth of 4.8 cm, in which the Hele–Shaw approximation was not valid, the boundary layer thickness or the screening length was found to be less than the mold or channel depth but was still much larger than the Brinkman’s prediction. Received: 10 May 1996 / Accepted: 26 August 1996     

Magnetohydrodynamic Rotating Flow of a Generalized Burgers’ Fluid in a Porous Medium with Hall Current

This study concentrates on the unsteady magnetohydrodynamics (MHD) rotating flow of an incompressible generalized Burgers’s fluid past a suddenly moved plate through a porous medium. Modified Darcy’s law for generalized Burgers’s fluid in a rotating frame has been used to model the governing flow problem. The closed form solution of the governing flow problem has been obtained by employing Laplace transform technique. The integral appearing in the inverse Laplace transform has been evaluated numerically. The influence of various parameters on the velocity profile has been delineated through several graphs and discussed in detail. It was found that the fluid is decelerated with increasing Hartmann number M and porosity parameter K. However, for large Hall parameter m, the real part of velocity decreases and the imaginary part of velocity increases.     

Asymptotic Solutions of Problems of One-Dimensional Time-Dependent Combustible Gas Flows in the Presence of Thermal Action

In a development of studies [1, 2], asymptotic solutions of the Navier-Stokes equations are found for one-dimensional combustible gas flows in the presence of various forms of thermal action on a moving surface (x=x _w(t)). In the problems considered, the temperature or the heat flux q _w(t) is specified on the surface or the surface is the interface between a combustible gas and a moving heated piston or another gas (for example, in a shock tube). Use is made of the fact that, as t , in many cases the values of v _w=(dx/dt)_w and q _w are bounded. This leads to a steady-state flow in the flame zone in the coordinate system moving with its front and homogeneous uniform flow ahead of and behind it. Solutions of all these problems are given for the burnt-gas boundary layer region adjacent to the surface. The numerical calculations performed confirm the results obtained. A velocity law leading to time invariability of the flow pattern obtained with allowance for the interaction between the boundary layer and the burnt-gas homogeneous flow is found, including in the problem of the breakdown of an arbitrary discontinuity. The results are generalized to include the case of motion at an angle of incidence with an additional velocity component aligned with the surface.