A two-phase thermal model for subsurface transport on massively parallel computers
Many research activities in subsurface transport require the numerical simulation of multiphase flow in porous media. This capability is critical to research in environmental remediation (e.g. contaminations with dense, non-aqueous-phase liquids), nuclear waste management, reservoir engineering, and to the assessment of the future availability of groundwater in many parts of the world. This paper presents an unstructured grid numerical algorithm for subsurface transport in heterogeneous porous media implemented for use on massively parallel (MP) computers. The mathematical model considers nonisothermal two-phase (liquid/gas) flow, including capillary pressure effects, binary diffusion in the gas phase, conductive, latent, and sensible heat transport. The Galerkin finite element method is used for spatial discretization, and temporal integration is accomplished via a predictor/corrector scheme. Message-passing and domain decomposition techniques are used for implementing a scalable algorithm for distributed memory parallel computers. Illustrative applications are shown to demonstrate capabilities and performance, one of which is modeling hydrothermal transport at the Yucca Mountain site for a radioactive waste facility.
- Research Organization:
- Sandia National Lab. (SNL-NM), Albuquerque, NM (United States)
- Sponsoring Organization:
- USDOE, Washington, DC (United States)
- DOE Contract Number:
- AC04-94AL85000
- OSTI ID:
- 563167
- Report Number(s):
- SAND-97-2542C; CONF-980125-; ON: DE98000555; BR: DP0101031; TRN: 98:002595
- Resource Relation:
- Conference: 10. international conference on finite elements in fluids, Tucson, AZ (United States), 5-8 Jan 1998; Other Information: PBD: [1997]
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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