Comparing simulated and experimented hysteretic two-phase transient fluid flow phenomena
- Pacific Northwest Lab., Richland, WA (United States)
- Virginia Polytechnic Inst. and State Univ., Blacksburg (United States)
- Swiss Federal Inst. of Tech., Zurich (Switzerland)
A hysteretic model for two-phase permeability (k)-saturation (S)-pressure (P) relations is outlined that accounts for effects of nonwetting fluid entrapment. The model can be employed in unsaturated fluid flow computer codes to predict temporal and spatial fluid distributions. Consideration is given to hysteresis in S-P relations caused by contact angle, irregular pore geometry, and nonwetting fluid entrapment effects and to hysteresis in k-S relations caused by nonwetting fluid entrapment effects. An air-water flow experiment is conducted with a 72-cm vertical soil column where the water table is fluctuated to generate scanning S-P paths. Water contents a re measured via a gamma radiation system, and water pressures are measured via pressure transducers connected to ceramic tensiometers inserted in the soil column. Computer simulations of the experiment employing the hysteretic k-S-P model and nonhysteretic k-S-P are compared with measured water contents and pressures. Close agreement is found between experimental water contents and those predicted by a numerical code employing the hysteretic k-S-P relations. When nonhysteretic k-S-P constitutive relations are utilized, there is poor agreement between measured and predicted water saturations of the scanning paths. Only one more parameter is needed to model two-phase hysteretic fluid behavior than to model nonhysteretic behavior. Results of this study suggest that consideration should be given to effects of hysteresis in k-S-P relations to accurately predict fluid distributions.
- DOE Contract Number:
- AC06-76RL01830
- OSTI ID:
- 5968696
- Journal Information:
- Water Resources Research; (United States), Journal Name: Water Resources Research; (United States) Vol. 27:8; ISSN 0043-1397; ISSN WRERA
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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Related Subjects
540210* -- Environment
Terrestrial-- Basic Studies-- (1990-)
COMPUTER CODES
COMPUTERIZED SIMULATION
CRYSTAL STRUCTURE
FLOW MODELS
FLUID FLOW
GROUND WATER
HYDROGEN COMPOUNDS
MATHEMATICAL MODELS
MICROSTRUCTURE
OXYGEN COMPOUNDS
PERMEABILITY
POROSITY
SIMULATION
SOILS
TWO-PHASE FLOW
WATER