Development and Testing of a Mathematical Model for Dynamic Network Simulation of the Oil Displacement Process

Abstract

Multiphase flows in porous media are widespread in nature and various technologies. One of the most common examples of this kind of task is the task of recovering oil from the rock. This article describes a mathematical model of the flow of a two-phase (immiscible) liquid based on a new approach of network hydrodynamics for a highly branched microchannel medium (simulating a porous space in the rock). The coupling of the flow and pressure fields in the network is performed using a well-proven SIMPLE algorithm in CFD problems; this approach allows us to use effective approaches to modeling 3D tasks. Phase transfer over the network is carried out by an explicit method with an adaptive time step. The article presents the results of verification of the model, with analytical calculations and in comparison with the results of experimental studies. As an experiment, the displacement of oil from a microchip (Dolomite: 3200284) simulating a porous medium was simulated. The good qualitative and quantitative compliance with the results calculated and the results of the experiment show the correct functioning of the model.

Network simulation of two-phase flows in a microfluidic chip

“…The mathematical model is described in detail in our work [8]. Here we only describe the main points of the algorithm for network simulation of two-phase flows of immiscible fluids in porous media.…”

“…The developed software product was previously successfully used to simulate single-phase flows in microchannels, including taking into account heat transfer [6]. At present, an original algorithm for modeling two-phase immiscible flows in porous media is being developed on the basis of the sNet universal network code [7,8]. The development of an algorithm for calculating two-phase flows based on a network approach is a very attractive task in terms of a significant reduction in computational time compared to standard CFD methods.…”