Viscous Fingering in Porous Media

Paper number

IAC-07-A2.2.08

Author

Prof. Nickolay N. Smirnov, Moscow Lomonosov State University, Russia

Coauthor

Dr. Vladislav Dushin, Moscow Lomonosov State University, Russia

Coauthor

Dr. Valeriy Nikitin, Moscow Lomonosov State University, Russia

Coauthor

Dr. Oleg Ivashnyov, Moscow Lomonosov State University, Russia

Coauthor

Mr. Oleg Logvinov, Moscow Lomonosov State University, Russia

Coauthor

Dr. Marc Thiercelin, Russia

Coauthor

Prof. Jean Claude Legros, University of Brussels, Belgium

Year

2007

Abstract

Microgravity investigations serve as a tool, which could help to study flows in porous media being much better understood in microgravity studies eliminating the masking effects of gravity. 
The goal of the present study was to investigate numerically the instability of the displacement of viscous fluid by a less viscous one in a two-dimensional and three-dimensional porous specimens. The effect of the three-dimensional phenomena on development of instability was investigated.
Another goal of the present study was to investigate analytically Saffman-Taylor instability in displacement and flushing of a highly viscous fluid by a less viscous one. The results of previous investigations showed that for immiscible fluids accounting for surface tension allows to determine characteristic length scale of instability (width of viscous fingers). While for miscible fluids linear analysis obtaining analytical dependences of fingers width on values of governing parameters was proved to be impossible. The novelty of results presented in the paper is that taking into account small viscous terms and using Navier-Stokes system of equations instead of Darcy model allowed to obtain analytical solutions determining finger thickness for miscible fluids.
The problem is relevant to a hydrocarbon recovery, which is performed by the flow of gas under a pressure differential displacing the high viscosity fluid. There are inherent instability and scalability problems associated with viscous fingering that play a key role in the procedure. Entrapment of high viscosity fluid by the low viscosity fluid flow lowers down the quality of a hydrocarbon recovery leaving the most of viscous fluid entrapped thus decreasing the production rate. 
The developed models and obtained results are applicable to description of liquid non-aqueous phase contaminants underground migration, their entrapment in the zones of inhomogenity, and forecasting the results of remediatory activities in the vicinities of waste storages and contaminated sites. 
The authors wish to acknowledge the support by Russian Foundation for basic Research (Grant 06-08-00009), Schlumberger and NATO Scientific and Environmental affairs division (Grant ESP.CLG.981711).

Abstract document

IAC-07-A2.2.08.pdf

Manuscript document

IAC-07-A2.2.08.pdf (🔒 authorized access only).

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