Non-Darcy interfacial dynamics of air-water two-phase flow in rough fractures under drainage conditions

Chang, Chun; Ju, Yang; Xie, Heping; Zhou, Quanlin; Gao, Feng

doi:10.1038/s41598-017-04819-x

Non-Darcy interfacial dynamics of air-water two-phase flow in rough fractures under drainage conditions

Journal Article · Tue Jul 04 00:00:00 EDT 2017 · Scientific Reports

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-017-04819-x· OSTI ID:1567088

Chang, Chun ^[1]; ^[1]; Xie, Heping ^[2]; Zhou, Quanlin ^[3]; Gao, Feng ^[1]

China Univ. of Mining & Technology at Beijing (China)
Sichuan Univ., Chengdu (China)
Lawrence Berkeley National Lab. (LBNL), Berkeley, CA (United States). Energy Geosciences Division

Two-phase flow interfacial dynamics in rough fractures is fundamental to understanding fluid transport in fractured media. The Haines jump of non-Darcy flow in porous media has been investigated at pore scales, but its fundamental processes in rough fractures remain unclear. In this study, the micron-scale Haines jump of the air-water interface in rough fractures was investigated under drainage conditions, with the air-water interface tracked using dyed water and an imaging system. The results indicate that the interfacial velocities represent significant Haines jumps when the meniscus passes from a narrow "throat" to a wide "body", with jump velocities as high as five times the bulk drainage velocity. Locally, each velocity jump corresponds to a fracture aperture variation; statistically, the velocity variations follow an exponential function of the aperture variations at a length scale of ~100 µm to ~100 mm. This spatial-scale-invariant correlation may indicate that the high-speed local velocities during the Haines jump would not average out spatially for a bulk system. The results may help in understanding the origin of interface instabilities and the resulting non-uniform phase distribution, as well as the micron-scale essence of the spatial and temporal instability of two-phase flow in fractured media at the macroscopic scale.

View Accepted Manuscript (DOE)

Research Organization:: Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (LBNL), Berkeley, CA (United States)

Sponsoring Organization:: USDOE Office of Fossil Energy (FE)

Grant/Contract Number:: AC02-05CH11231

OSTI ID:: 1567088

Journal Information:: Scientific Reports, Journal Name: Scientific Reports Journal Issue: 1 Vol. 7; ISSN 2045-2322

Publisher:: Nature Publishing GroupCopyright Statement

Country of Publication:: United States

Language:: English

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