Two-phase flow in porous media: Crossover from capillary fingering to compact invasion
Motivated by a wide ranage of applications, from enhanced oil recovery to carbon cioxide sequestions, we have developed a pore-level model of immiscible drainage, incorporating viscous, capillary, and gravitational effects. We have validated this model quantitatively, in the very different limits of zero viscosity ratio and zero capillary number. For a range of stable viscosity ratios (u injected/ u displaced >=1), we have increased the capillary number, Nc, and studied the way in which the flows deviate from capillary fingering (the fractal flow of invasion percolation) and become compact for realistic capillary numbers. Results exhibiting this crossover from capillary fingering to compact invasion are presented for the saturation profile and the average position of the injected fluid. The modeling reuslts agree with earlier predictions.
- Research Organization:
- National Energy Technology Laboratory (NETL), Pittsburgh, PA, Morgantown, WV, and Albany, OR (United States)
- Sponsoring Organization:
- USDOE - Office of Fossil Energy (FE)
- OSTI ID:
- 924716
- Report Number(s):
- DOE/NETL-IR-2004-145; NETL-TPR-2087
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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