Discussion of pore-scale heterogeneity from mercury porosimetry data

Journal Article · Sat Jun 01 04:00:00 EDT 1991 · SPE Formation Evaluation (Society of Petroleum Engineers); (United States)

OSTI ID:5679962

Mason, G ^[1]

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1. Loughborough Univ. of Technology (United Kingdom)

In the preceding paper, Yuan calculates the compartment volumes associated with pressure fluctuations in the pressure/volume (p/V) intrusion record of rate-controlled porosimetry. The method Yuan uses to calculate the compartment volumes computes the actual volume of mercury injected into the porosimeter but, because of curvature and surface-area variations of the mercury surface in the pores, this volume is not the same as the volume of the pore space invaded during the fluctuation in pressure. This paper reports on the precision mercury porosimeter which injects mercury into the porosimeter at a very slow and constant flow rate and logs the pressure of the mercury. Periodically, the pressure drops suddenly (rheons) as mercury passes through a restricting throat and then invades a mass of new pores, before stopping at other restricting throats. No mercury is injected during this rheonic movement, so the mercury that invades new pores must come from a change in the curvature (and hence volume) of all existing interfaces. The volume of new pores invaded is thus proportional to the pressure drop of the rheon, {Delta}p, and the local rate constant, dV/dp, of the system. The rate constant depends on the total area of free mercury surface and its curvature and cannot be measured at this stage. As the slow injection of mercury continues, the pressure rises.

• OSTI ID: 5679962
• Journal Information: SPE Formation Evaluation (Society of Petroleum Engineers); (United States), Journal Name: SPE Formation Evaluation (Society of Petroleum Engineers); (United States) Vol. 6:2; ISSN 0885-923X; ISSN SFEVE
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

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