Effect of hydrodynamic forces on the pressure-difference equation

Because of the influence of hydrodynamic forces, the difference in macroscopic pressure which exists, at static equilibrium, between two immiscible phases located in a porous medium may be different from that which pertains during flow. In this paper, the concept of relative pressure difference, together with a new pressure-difference equation, is used to investigate the impact that the hydrodynamic forces have on the difference in macroscopic pressure which pertains when two immiscible fluids flow simultaneously through a homogeneous, water-wet porous medium. This investigation reveals that, in general, the equation defining the difference in pressure between two flowing phases must include a term which takes proper account of the hydrodynamic effects. Moreover, it is pointed out that, while neglect of the hydrodynamic effects introduces only a small amount of error when the two fluids are flowing cocurrently, such neglect is not permissible during steady-state, countercurrent flow. This is because failure to include the impact of the hydrodynamic effects in the latter case makes it impossible to explain the pressure behaviour observed in steady-state, countercurrent flow. Finally, the results of this investigation are used as a basis for arguing that, during steady-state, countercurrent flow, saturation is uniform, as is the case of steady-state, cocurrent flow.Roman Letters a parameter in Equation (18) - k absolute permeability, m² - k _i effective permeability to phasei;i=1, 2, m² - k _ij generalized effective permeability for phasei;i, j=1, 2, m² - p _d p ₂–p ₁=difference in macroscopic pressure between two flowing phases, N/m² - p _i pressure for phasei;i=1, 2, N/m² - p _h hydrodynamic contribution to difference in macroscopic pressure which exists during flow, N/m² - P _c macroscopic static capillary pressure, N/m² - R ₁₂ function defined by Equation (18) - S _i saturation of phasei;i=1, 2 - S _n normalized saturation of phase 1 - t time, s - u _i flux of phasei;i=1, 2m³/m²/s - x distance in direction of flow, m Greek Letters _R relative pressure difference - _i k _i / _i =mobility of phasei;i=1, 2m²/Pa·s - _ij k _ij / _j =generalized mobility of phasei;i, j=1, 2m²/Pa·s - _i viscosity of phasei;i=1, 2, Pa·s - porosity     

Effect of capillary pressure on the approach to residual saturation

The approach to residual oil saturation during the immiscible displacement of oil as predicted by the multiphase Darcy equations is studied. It is well known that when the capillary pressure term is neglected, one arrives at the Buckley-Leverett formulation according to which the inlet face attains residual oil saturation instantaneously. This result may, however, be strongly influenced by the inclusion of the capillary pressure term. In this paper it is shown that when the relative permeability and capillary pressure functions have power law dependencies on the saturation deviation from residual oil condition, the long time solution exhibits a power law decay toward residual saturation. Moreover, the power law decay solution is found to be unique and independent of the initial condition. The relationship of this solution to the classical Buckley-Leverett result is shown. Finally, generalization to the time varying flow rate case is addressed. As a verification of the theoretical conjectures, the power law solution is compared with direct numerical simulation of the two phase flow equations.     

Experimental study of two-phase flow in three sandstones. II. Capillary pressure curve measurement and relative permeability pore space capillary models

By means of the porous plate method and mercury porosimetry intrusion tests, capillary pressure curves of three different sandstones were measured. The testing results have been exploited jointly with three relative permeability models of the pore space capillary type (Burdine’s model type), these models are widely used and in rather distinct fields. To do so, capillary pressure has been correlated to saturation degree using six of the most popular relations encountered in the literature. Model predictions were systematically compared to the experimentally measured relative permeabilities presented in the first part of this work. Comparison indicated that the studied models underestimate the water relative permeability and over-estimate that of the non-wetting phase. Moreover, this modeling proves to be unable to locate the significant points that are the limits of fields of saturation where the variation of the relative permeabilities becomes consequent. We also showed that, if pore structure is modeled as a “bundle of capillary tubes”, model predications are independent of the capillary pressure curve measuring method.     

Macroscopic capillary pressure

The macroscopic pressure difference between two immiscible, incompressible fluid phases flowing through homogeneous porous media is considered. Starting with the quasi-static motions of two compressible fluids, with zero surface tension, it is possible to construct a complete system of equations in which all parameters are clearly defined by physical experiments. The effect of surface tension is then formally included in the definition of the specific process under consideration. Incorporating these effects into the pressure equations and taking the limit as compressibilities go to zero, the independent pressure equations are shown to yield indeterminate forms. However, the difference of the two pressure equations is found to yield a new process-dependent dynamical equation.List of Symbols J LeverettJ function - K _i bulk modulus of fluidi (i=1, 2) - K _s bulk modulus of solid - K permeability - P fractional porosity of the wetting phase (in LeverettJ function) - p _i macroscopic pressure of fluidi (i=1, 2) - Q _ij Mobilities (i, j=1, 2) (cf. de la Cruz and Spanos, 1983) - V _i macroscopic velocity vector of fluidi (i=1, 2) Greek Letters surface tension - _i compliance factor for fluidi (i=1, 2) for incompressible flow defined in equations (29) and (30) (process-dependent) - compliance factor for the flow of two incompressible fluid (cf. eqns. (32) and (33) for relation to _i) - _i compliance factor for a compressible fluid (i=1, 2) (process-dependent) (cf. de la Cruzet al., 1989, 1993) - _i modification to static compliance factor for fluidi (i=1, 2) as a result of quasi-static flow - _i fraction of space occupied by fluidi (i=1, 2) measured dynamically - _i ^o fraction of space occupied by fluidi (i=1, 2) measured statically - _i shear viscosity of fluidi (i=1, 2) - _i bulk viscosity of fluidi (i=1, 2) - _i density of fluidi (i=1, 2)     

The effect of capillary forces on immiscible two-phase flow in heterogeneous porous media

We consider the one-dimensional two-phase flow including capillary effects through a heterogeneous porous medium. The heterogeneity is due to the spatial variation of the absolute permeability and the porosity. Both these quantities are assumed to be piecewise constant. At interfaces where the rock properties are discontinuous, we derive, by a regularisation technique, conditions to match the values of the saturation on both sides. There are two conditions: a flux condition and an extended pressure condition. Applying these conditions we show that trapping of the wetting phase may occur near heterogeneities. To illustrate the behaviour of the saturation we consider a time-dependent diffusion problem without convection, a stationary convection-diffusion problem, and the full time-dependent convection-diffusion problem (numerically). In particular the last two problems explicitly show the trapping behaviour.     

The effect of pore-structure on hysteresis in relative permeability and capillary pressure: Pore-level modeling

The effect of pore-structure upon two-phase relative permeability and capillary pressure of strongly-wetting systems at low capillary number is simulated. A pore-level model consisting of a network of pore-bodies interconnected by pore-throats is used to calculate scanning loops of hysteresis between primary drainage, imbibition and secondary drainage. The pore-body to pore-throat aspect ratio strongly influences the pattern of hysteresis. Changes in the patterns of hysteresis often attributed to consolidation can be understood in terms of changes in aspect ratio. Correlation between the sizes of neighboring pore-throats affects the shape of the relative permeability curves, while the width and shape of the pore-size distribution have only a minor influence.     

Effect of flows between formations and capillary forces on the process of oil displacement in a stratified inhomogeneous bed

The results of a numerical investigation of the process of oil displacement in a stratified inhomogeneous formation on the basis of the two-phase flow model with account for capillary forces are presented. It is shown that in many cases the vertical inhomogeneity of oil reservoirs may not be a cause of nonuniform displacement and the non-recovery of large oil reserves by the time of water breakthrough to the extraction surface. The action of the capillary forces is an additional factor leading to equalization of the water propagation front in the inhomogeneous formation, water breakthrough delay, and intensification of the mass transfer between the layers with different permeabilities. Analysis of the contribution of the interlayer flows to the water flooding of low-permeability formation intervals calls into question the practicability of blocking high-permeability inclusions in the neighborhood of pumping wells.     

Steady-state two-phase flow through planar and nonplanar model porous media

Transport in Porous Media - A comparative experimental study of ‘steady-state’ two-phase flow in two types of model porous media is made to determine the effects of nonplanarity on the...     

Effect of Network Topology on Relative Permeability

We consider the role of topology on drainage relative permeabilities derived from network models. We describe the topological properties of rock networks derived from a suite of tomographic images of Fontainbleau sandstone (Lindquist et al., 2000, J. Geophys. Res. 105B, 21508). All rock networks display a broad distribution of coordination number and the presence of long-range topological bonds. We show the importance of accurately reproducing sample topology when deriving relative permeability curves from the model networks. Comparisons between the relative permeability curves for the rock networks and those computed on a regular cubic lattice with identical geometric characteristics (pore and throat size distributions) show poor agreement. Relative permeabilities computed on regular lattices and on diluted lattices with a similar average coordination number to the rock networks also display poor agreement. We find that relative permeability curves computed on stochastic networks which honour the full coordination number distribution of the rock networks produce reasonable agreement with the rock networks. We show that random and regular lattices with the same coordination number distribution produce similar relative permeabilities and that the introduction of longer-range topological bonds has only a small effect. We show that relative permeabilities for networks exhibiting pore–throat size correlations and sizes up to the core-scale still exhibit a significant dependence on network topology. The results show the importance of incorporating realistic 3D topologies in network models for predicting multiphase flow properties.     

Comparison of the three-phase oil relative permeability models

A comparative study of seven different methods for predicting three-phase oil relative permeabilities in the presence of gas and water phases is presented. Predicted oil relative permeabilities from these correlations have been compared with published three-phase experimental data obtained in Berea sandstone core samples. Some of the correlations under study have been recently developed and have never been tested against the laboratory data.The comparison shows that the commonly used models such as Stones' often do not give accurate predictions of the experimental data. It is concluded that the recently developed models fit the experimental data as well as or better than the previously developed and widely used three-phase oil relative permeability models.     

Saturated steam relative permeabilities of unconsolidated porous media

This paper presents a method and describes an experimental device for determining the steam-water relative permeabilites of unconsolidated porous media. The experimental conditions are as close as possible to those of geothermal reservoirs. The relative permeabilities have been obtained at 180 and 150?C. Their variations versus liquid saturation are quite classical. The air-water relative permeabilities have been measured also at room temperature. The values obtained under these three conditions are almost identical. However, the air-water relative permeability differs slightly from that of steam at 180 and 150?C. We think this discrepancy is acceptable in practice, as it is easier to determine the relative permeabilities for an air-water flow at room temperature than for a steam-water flow at high temperature and pressure.     

Effect of network topology on two-phase imbibition relative permeability

In a previous study Arns et al. (2004, Transport Porous Media 55, 21–46) we considered the role of topology on drainage relative permeability curves computed using network models derived from a suite of tomographic images of Fontainebleau sandstone. The present study extends the analysis to more complex imbibition displacements where the non-wetting fluid can be disconnected by snap-off as a result of swelling of wetting films in the corners of pores and throats. In contrast to the findings for drainage displacements which showed that relative permeabilities are significantly affected by network topology, the present study shows that the effect of topology on imbibition relative permeabilities depends on the level of snap-off. For strongly wetting conditions where snap-off dominates the displacement the effect of network topology is significantly smaller than for weakly wet conditions where snap-off is suppressed. For contact angles sufficiently large to completely suppress snap-off, the effect of topology on imbibition relative permeabilities is similar to that for drainage displacements. The findings are valid for random networks and for networks displaying short-range pore–throat and longer range spatial correlations.     

Pore-throat size correlation from capillary pressure curves

Void spaces in porous media can be considered as three-dimensional networks consisting of bulges (pores) connected by constrictions (throats). Computer simulations of drainage-imbibition processes show that the critical end points of wetting-phase and nonwetting-phase saturation, in drainage and imbibition respectively, and the form of simulated relative permeability curves all were significantly different for uncorrelated and correlated pore-throat models. Since these models were identical except for the arrangement of throats in relation to pores, the degree of pore-throat size correlation appears to be an important property influencing flow and fluid displacement. Examples of uncorrelated and correlated pore-throat structures in rocks are presented and it is shown that this property, although difficult to quantify by direct observation, can be evaluated from capillary pressure curves.     

Generalized relative permeability coefficients during steady-state two-phase flow in porous media,and correlation with the flow mechanisms

A parametric experimental investigation of the coupling effects during steady-state two-phase flow in porous media was carried out using a large model pore network of the chamber-and-throat type, etched in glass. The wetting phase saturation,S ₁, the capillary number,Ca, and the viscosity ratio,k, were changed systematically, whereas the wettability (contact angleθ _e ), the coalescence factorCo, and the geometrical and topological parameters were kept constant. The fluid flow rate and the pressure drop were measured independently for each fluid. During each experiment, the pore-scale flow mechanisms were observed and videorecorded, and the mean water saturation was determined with image analysis. Conventional relative permeability, as well as generalized relative permeability coefficients (with the viscous coupling terms taken explicitly into account) were determined with a new method that is based on a B-spline functional representation combined with standard constrained optimization techniques. A simple relationship between the conventional relative permeabilities and the generalized relative permeability coefficients is established based on several experimental sets. The viscous coupling (off-diagonal) coefficients are found to be comparable in magnitude to the direct (diagonal) coefficients over board ranges of the flow parameter values. The off-diagonal coefficients (k _rij /Μ _j ) are found to be unequal, and this is explained by the fact that, in the class of flows under consideration, microscopic reversibility does not hold and thus the Onsager-Casimir reciprocal relation does not apply. Thecoupling indices are introduced here; they are defined so that the magnitude of each coupling index is the measure of the contribution of the coupling effects to the flow rate of the corresponding fluid. A correlation of the coupling indices with the underlying flow mechanisms and the pertinent flow parameters is established.     

Effects of Relative Permeability History Dependence on Two-Phase Flow in Porous Media

Hysteresis phenomena in multi-phase flow in porous media has been recognized by many researchers and widely believed to have significant effects on the flow. In an attempt to account for these effects, a theoretical model for history-dependent relative permeabilities is considered. This model is incorporated into 1-D two-phase nondiffusive flow system and the corresponding flow is predicted. Flow history is observed to have a notable impact on the saturation profile and fluids breakthrough.     

Effective and relative permeabilities of anisotropie porous media

A model composed of a three-dimensional orthogonal network of capillary tubes was used to simulate the flow behavior in an unsaturated anisotropic soil. The anisotropy in the network's permeability was introduced by randomly selecting the radii in the three mutually orthogonal directions of the network tubes from three different lognormal probability distributions, one for each direction. These three directions were assumed to be the principal directions of anisotropy. The sample was gradually drained, with only tubes smaller than a certain diameter remaining full at each degree of saturation. Computer experiments were conducted to determine the network's effective permeability as a function of saturation. The main conclusion was that the relationship between saturation and effective permeability depends on direction. Consequently the concept of relative permeability used in unsaturated flow should be limited to isotropic media and not extended to anisotropic ones.     

Two-phase pressure drop in multiple thick- and thin-orifice plates

Two-phase flow pressure changes through singularities such as sudden expansion and sudden contraction of thick- and thin-orifice plates were modeled. The modeling was based on the reversible and irreversible losses through contractions and expansions. The volume-averaged momentum equation and the reversible mechanical energy equation were used to evaluate the irreversibilities. Local slip ratios, which were necessary for the prediction of pressure drop through these singularities, were correlated from a large number of experimental data. To check the validity of the analytical predictions, an experimental test section was designed, and experiments were performed to produce benchmark pressure-drop data for thin- and thick-plate orifices. The working fluid used for these experiments was R-113. The predictive methods developed agree well with the experiments by the authors and with a wide range of two-phase flow test results obtained by others for steam-water systems. A parametric study shows the relative importance of geometry and of the flow variables such as quality, liquid-to-vapor density, and viscosity ratios on the pressure drop multipliers conventionally used in two-phase flows.     

Viscous coupling in two-phase flow in porous media and its effect on relative permeabilities

An idealized model of a porous rock consisting of a bundle of capillary tubes whose cross-sections are regular polygons is used to assess the importance of viscous coupling or lubrication during simultaneous oil-water flow. Fluids are nonuniformly distributed over tubes of different characteristic dimension because of the requirements of capillary equilibrium and the effect of interfacial viscosity at oil-water interfaces is considered. With these assumptions, we find that the importance of viscous coupling depends on the rheology of the oil-water interface. Where the interfacial shear viscosity is zero, viscous coupling leading to a dependence of oil relative permeability on oil-water viscosity ratio for viscosity ratios greater than one is important for a range of pore cross-section shapes and pore size distributions. For nonzero interfacial shear viscosity, viscous coupling is reduced. Using values reported in the literature for crude oil-brine systems, we find no viscous coupling.     

考虑动水压力和流固耦合的库水-坝体-地基系统建模与动力分析

结合动水压力模型和罚函数耦合算法,考虑地基和坝体结构的接触以及边界效应,构建动水压力和流固耦合作用下的库水-坝体-地基地震响应分析模型和方法。通过与试验结果及解析解和实测数据对比,验证了本文模型和方法能准确反映系统地震荷载和分析整体耦合系统的动力响应,引入罚函数处理流固耦合界面能提高计算收敛速度。进一步以某重力坝工程实际为背景,验证本文构建的模型和方法适用于库水-坝体-地基耦合系统动力分析的可行性,并分析了地震作用下地基变形对系统动力响应的影响。     

压力相关的壁面滑移在滑动间隙流体动压力产生中的作用

近年来,壁面滑移在纳米流变学、微流体力学、薄模润滑和微机电系统(MEMS)等领域越来越引起关注。以前大部分研究集中于表面初始极限剪应力对薄模润滑的壁面滑移和流体动力学的影响。本文通过一个极限剪切应力比例系数主要研究了与压力相关的壁面滑移滑动间隙流体动压力产生中的作用,发现极限剪切应力比例系数以相反的两种方式影响着流体膜的流体动力学:在高初始剪应力区使流体动力增加,但在低初始剪应力区使流体动力减小,这意味着就极限剪切应力比例系数影响流体动压力而言,存在一个初始极限剪切应力的转换点。但是在界面滑移存在时,较小的极限剪切应力比例系数总是产生较小的摩擦阻力。