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U.S. Department of Energy
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Mechanism of oil bank formation, coalescence in porous media and emulsion and foam stability. Quarterly research progress report, July 1, 1984-September 30, 1984

Technical Report ·
OSTI ID:6073982

The relative permeability model for two phase flow in porous media (Wasan 1983; Ramakrishnan and Wasan 1984) provides the necessary fractional flow curves at a given capillary number. These curves can be utilized in modeling both enhanced secondary and tertiary recovery processes. Important parameters in the fractional flow curves of our relative permeability model are the residual wetting and nonwetting phase saturations in a low capillary number flooding process. To understand, what constitutes the residual saturations, this quarter we have studied the displacement of one incompressible fluid by another in a porous medium using the network representation. The Bernoulli percolation model for an infinite lattice graph is utilized in the interpretation of the capillary behavior of the medium, which ultimately determines residual saturations. The calculated capillary pressure-saturation relationship using Bethe lattice results agrees qualitatively with experimental data. 4 references, 2 figures.

Research Organization:
Illinois Inst. of Tech., Chicago (USA). Dept. of Chemical Engineering
DOE Contract Number:
AC19-79BC10069
OSTI ID:
6073982
Report Number(s):
DOE/BC/10069-27; ON: DE85004001
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English