Pressure-driven and electroosmotic non-Newtonian flows through microporous media via lattice Boltzmann method

The lattice Boltzmann method is developed to simulate the pressure-driven flow and electroosmotic flow of non-Newtonian fluids in porous media based on the representative elementary volume scale. The flow through porous media was simulated by including the porosity into the equilibrium distribution function and adding a non-Newtonian force term to the evolution equation. The non-Newtonian behavior is considered based on the Herschel–Bulkley model. The velocity results for pressure-driven non-Newtonian flow agree well with the analytical solutions. For the electroosmotic flow, the influences of porosity, solid particle diameter, power law exponent, yield stress and electric parameters are investigated. The results demonstrate that the present lattice Boltzmann model is capable of modeling non-Newtonian flow through porous media.     

The approximate solution of the self-similar problem for radial flow of non-newtonian fluids through porous media

In this paper, we study the approximate solution of the self-simikar problem for radial flow of non-Newtonian fluids through porous media. Assuming that the fluids obey the exponential function law, we obtain an exact solution for the exponent n=0 and compare it with the approximate solution in ref. [1]. For n>1 and n<1, we obtain respectively approximate solutions. Some exampls are presented.     

聚合物流体渗流机理研究

聚合物流体在多孔介质中渗流的研究是近年来有重大进展的领域。本文介绍从力学与物理方法进行渗流机理研究的思路、主要结果和当前活跃的研究课题。流体的非牛顿性对复杂边界条件下均匀流体力学效应的影响已得到了较好的定量处理;揭示了拉伸流粘弹特性对渗流影响的机理,其定量描述则尚有待努力。进而讨论了石油工程中十分重要的非均一流体渗流的新进展,包括大分子效应与粘性指进效应及其分形描述。对于上述物理效应的综合考虑将使聚合物渗流力学研究进入新的阶段。      

A perturbation solution for non-Newtonian fluid two-phase flow through Porous media

In this paper, the mathematical problem of weak non-Newtonian fluid two-phase flow through porous media, including the effect of capillary pressure, is solved by singular perturbation method in combination with regular perturbation method. The asymptotic analytical solutions of the fractional flow function and the wetting phase saturation are obtained. The results are verified by numerical calculations and by classical solutions for corresponding Newtonian case. The influences of the non-Newtonian exponent and capillary pressure are discussed.     

Approximate Analytical Solutions for Flow of a Third-Grade Fluid Through a Parallel-Plate Channel Filled with a Porous Medium

The flow of a non-Newtonian fluid through a porous media in between two parallel plates at different temperatures is considered. The governing momentum equation of third-grade fluid with modified Darcy’s law and energy equation have been derived. Approximate analytical solutions of momentum and energy equations are obtained by using perturbation techniques. Constant viscosity, Reynold’s model viscosity, and Vogel’s model viscosity cases are treated separately. The criteria for validity of approximate solutions are derived. A numerical residual error analysis is performed for the solutions. Within the validity range, analytical and numerical solutions are in good agreement.     

Unsteady flow of a fourth-grade fluid due to an oscillating plate

The governing non-linear high-order, sixth-order in space and third-order in time, differential equation is constructed for the unsteady flow of an incompressible conducting fourth-grade fluid in a semi-infinite domain. The unsteady flow is induced by a periodically oscillating two-dimensional infinite porous plate with suction/blowing, located in a uniform magnetic field. It is shown that by augmenting additional boundary conditions at infinity based on asymptotic structures and transforming the semi-infinite physical space to a bounded computational domain by means of a coordinate transformation, it is possible to obtain numerical solutions of the non-linear magnetohydrodynamic equation. In particular, due to the unsymmetry of the boundary conditions, in numerical simulations non-central difference schemes are constructed and employed to approximate the emerging higher-order spatial derivatives. Effects of material parameters, uniform suction or blowing past the porous plate, exerted magnetic field and oscillation frequency of the plate on the time-dependent flow, especially on the boundary layer structure near the plate, are numerically analysed and discussed. The flow behaviour of the fourth-grade non-Newtonian fluid is also compared with those of the Newtonian fluid.     

Flow of viscoelastic fluids through a porous channel—I

The flow of viscoelastic fluids through a porous channel with one impermeable wall is computed. The flow is characterized by a boundary value problem in which the order of the differential equation exceeds the number of boundary conditions. Three solutions are developed: (i) an exact numerical solution, (ii) a perturbation solution for small R, the cross-flow Reynold's number and (iii) an asymptotic solution for large R. The results from exact numerical integration reveal that the solutions for a non-Newtonian fluid are possible only up to a critical value of the viscoelastic fluid parameter, which decreases with an increase in R. It is further demonstrated that the perturbation solution gives acceptable results only if the viscoelastic fluid parameter is also small. Two more related problems are considered: fluid dynamics of a long porous slider, and injection of fluid through one side of a long vertical porous channel. For both the problems, exact numerical and other solutions are derived and appropriate conclusions drawn.     

A Lattice Boltzmann study of non-newtonian flow in digitally reconstructed porous domains

In the present study, the Lattice Boltzmann Method (LBM) is applied to simulate the flow of non-Newtonian shear-thinning fluids in three-dimensional digitally reconstructed porous domains. The non-Newtonian behavior is embedded in the LBM through a dynamical change of the local relaxation time. The relaxation time is related to the local shear rate in such a way that the power law rheology is recovered. The proposed LBM is applied to the study of power-law fluids in ordered sphere packings and stochastically reconstructed porous domains. A linear relation is found between the logarithm of the average velocity and the logarithm of the body force with a curve slope approximately equal to the inverse power-law index. The validity of the LBM for the flow of shear thinning fluids in porous media is also tested by comparing the average velocity with the well known semi-empirical Christopher–Middleman correlation. Good agreement is observed between the numerical results and the Christopher–Middleman correlation, indicating that the LBM combined with digital reconstruction constitutes a powerful tool for the study of non-Newtonian flow in porous media.     

Approximate analytical solutions and approximate value of skin friction coefficient for boundary layer of power law fluids

This paper presents a theoretical analysis for laminar boundary layer flow in a power law non-Newtonian fluids.The Adomian analytical decomposition technique is presented and an approximate analytical solution is obtained.The approximate analytical solution can be expressed in terms of a rapid convergent power series with easily computable terms.Reliability and efficiency of the approximate solution are verified by comparing with numerical solutions in the literature.Moreover,the approximate solution can be successfully applied to provide values for the skin friction coefficient of the laminar boundary layer flow in power law non-Newtonian fluids.     

Two-phase displacement of non-newtonian fluid

This paper considers the problem of non-Newtonian oil displa-cement by water in porous media.adopting the linear permea-tion law with initial pressure gradient.For one-dimensionalflow,the basic equation of non-Newtonian oil displacement bywater in sandstone reservoirs and fractured reservoirs is de-rived and numerical solutions are obtained.The results arecompared with the corresponding ones for Newtonian oil dis-placement to show the essential characteristics of non-Newto-nian oil displacement by water.     

Displacement of a Newtonian fluid by a non-Newtonian fluid in a porous medium

This paper presents an analytical Buckley-Leverett-type solution for one-dimensibnal immiscible displacement of a Newtonian fluid by a non-Newtonian fluid in porous media. The non-Newtonian fluid viscosity is assumed to be a function of the flow potential gradient and the non-Newtonian phase saturation. To apply this method to field problems a practical procedure has been developed which is based on the analytical solution and is similar to the graphic technique of Welge. Our solution can be regarded as an extension of the Buckley-Leverett method to Non-Newtonian fluids. The analytical result reveals how the saturation profile and the displacement efficiency are controlled not only by the relative permeabilities, as in the Buckley-Leverett solution, but also by the inherent complexities of the non-Newtonian fluid. Two examples of the application of the solution are given. One application is the verification of a numerical model, which has been developed for simulation of flow of immiscible non-Newtonian and Newtonian fluids in porous media. Excellent agreement between the numerical and analytical results has been obtained using a power-law non-Newtonian fluid. Another application is to examine the effects of non-Newtonian behavior on immiscible displacement of a Newtonian fluid by a power-law non-Newtonian fluid.     

Extension of the Darcy�CForchheimer Law for Shear-Thinning Fluids and Validation via Pore-Scale Flow Simulations

Flow of non-Newtonian fluids through porous media at high Reynolds numbers is often encountered in chemical, pharmaceutical and food, as well as petroleum and groundwater engineering, and in many other industrial applications. Under the majority of operating conditions typically explored, the dependence of pressure drops on flow rate is non-linear and the development of models capable of describing accurately this dependence, in conjunction with non-trivial rheological behaviors, is of paramount importance. In this work, pore-scale single-phase flow simulations conducted on synthetic two-dimensional porous media are performed via computational fluid dynamics for both Newtonian and non-Newtonian fluids and the results are used for the extension and validation of the Darcy?CForchheimer law, herein proposed for shear-thinning fluid models of Cross, Ellis and Carreau. The inertial parameter ?? is demonstrated to be independent of the viscous properties of the fluids. The results of flow simulations show the superposition of two contributions to pressure drops: one, strictly related to the non-Newtonian properties of the fluid, dominates at low Reynolds numbers, while a quadratic one, arising at higher Reynolds numbers, is dependent on the porous medium properties. The use of pore-scale flow simulations on limited portions of the porous medium is here proposed for the determination of the macroscale-averaged parameters (permeability K, inertial coefficient ?? and shift factor ??), which are required for the estimation of pressure drops via the extended Darcy?CForchheimer law. The method can be applied for those fluids which would lead to critical conditions (high pressures for low permeability media and/or high flow rates) in laboratory tests.     

On viscoelastic effects in non-Newtonian steady flows through porous media

This paper presents a mathematical model for describing approximately the viscoelastic effects in non-Newtonian steady flows through a porous medium. The rheological behaviour of power law fluids is considered in the Maxwell model of elastic behaviour of the fluids. The equations governing the steady flow through porous media are derived and an analytical solution of these equations in the case of a simple flow system is obtained. The conditions for which the viscoelastic effects may become observable from the pressure distribution measurements are shown and expressed in terms of some dimensionless groups. These have been found to be relevant in the evaluation of viscoelastic effects in the steady flow through porous media.     

Steady flows of non-Newtonian fluids past a porous plate with suction or injection

The problem of the steady flow of three classes of non-linear fluids of the differential type past a porous plate with uniform suction or injection is studied. The flow which is studied is the counterpart of the classical ‘asymptotic suction’ problem, within the context of the non-Newtonian fluid models. The non-linear differential equations resulting from the balance of momentum and mass, coupled with suitable boundary conditions, are solved numerically either by a finite difference method or by a collocation method with a B-spline function basis. The manner in which the various material parameters affect the structure of the boundary layer is delineated. The issue of paucity of boundary conditions for general non-linear fluids of the differential type, and a method for augmenting the boundary conditions for a certain class of flow problems, is illustrated. A comparison is made of the numerical solutions with the solutions from a regular perturbation approach, as well as a singular perturbation.     

Modelling of Power-law Fluid Flow Through Porous Media Using Smoothed Particle Hydrodynamics

The flow of non-Newtonian fluids through two-dimensional porous media is analyzed at the pore scale using the smoothed particle hydrodynamics (SPH) method. A fully explicit projection method is used to simulate incompressible flow. This study focuses on a shear-thinning power-law model (n < 1), though the method is sufficiently general to include other stress-shear rate relationships. The capabilities of the proposed method are demonstrated by analyzing a Poiseuille problem at low Reynolds numbers. Two test cases are also solved to evaluate validity of Darcy’s law for power-law fluids and to investigate the effect of anisotropy at the pore scale. Results show that the proposed algorithm can accurately simulate non-Newtonian fluid flows in porous media.     

Creeping flow through a model fibrous porous medium

Pressure losses and velocity distributions were measured for creeping flow through three model fibrous porous media. The three models consisted of square arrays of circular rods with solid volume fractions of 2.5, 5 and 10%. Measurements of flow resistances are in good agreement with theoretical predictions after wall effects are accounted for using Brinkman’s equation. Two-dimensional velocity vector maps were obtained in each array using particle image velocimetry. The velocity distributions are necessary for identifying non-Newtonian effects in flows with viscoelastic fluids.     

Transient non-Newtonian flow of a suspension with a compressible particle phase

Equations governing transient two-phase fluid-particle laminar flow over an infinite porous flat plate are developed. Both phases are assumed to behave as non-Newtonian power-law fluids. The mathematical model accounts for particle-phase viscous and diffusive effects. The particles are assumed spherical in shape and having a non-uniform density distribution. The resulting governing equations are nondimensionalized and solved numerically subject to appropriate initial and boundary conditions using an iterative, implicit, tri-diagonal finite-difference method. Graphical results for the displacement thicknesses and the skin-friction coefficients for both the fluid and particle phases are presented and discussed to illustrate special trends of the solutions.     

Modelling the Flow of Yield-Stress Fluids in Porous Media

Yield-stress is a problematic and controversial non-Newtonian flow phenomenon. In this article, we investigate the flow of yield-stress substances through porous media within the framework of pore-scale network modelling. We also investigate the validity of the Minimum Threshold Path (MTP) algorithms to predict the pressure yield point of a network depicting random or regular porous media. Percolation theory as a basis for predicting the yield point of a network is briefly presented and assessed. In the course of this study, a yield-stress flow simulation model alongside several numerical algorithms related to yield-stress in porous media were developed, implemented and assessed. The general conclusion is that modelling the flow of yield-stress fluids in porous media is too difficult and problematic. More fundamental modelling strategies are required to tackle this problem in the future.     

Mixed convection of non-newtonian fluids from a vertical plate embedded in a porous medium

This paper investigates mixed free and forced convection of non-Newtonian fluids from a vertical isothermal plate embedded in a homogenous porous medium. A mathematical model is developed based on the modified Darcy's law and boundary-layer approximations, and the exact similarity solution is obtained as well as an integral solution. These two solutions agree within 3% for aiding flows and 10% for opposing flows. It is found that, non-Newtonian characteristics of fluids have appreciable influences on velocity profiles, temperature distributions and flow regimes.