Visualization and simulation of bubble growth in pore networks

Li, Xuehai; Yortsos, Y.C.

doi:10.1002/aic.690410203

Cited by 91 publications

(49 citation statements)

References 28 publications

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“…For example, slug (marcobubbles) flow was found in 2-D etched glass Hele-Shaw cells, where gas bubbles present irregular and ramified shapes [Li and Yortsos, 1995]. In the slug flow, bubbles coalesce easily and get trapped in porous media [Nelson et al, 2009].…”

Section: Air Spargingmentioning

confidence: 99%

Microbubble transport in water‐saturated porous media

Kong

Scheuermann

et al. 2015

Water Resources Research

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Laboratory experiments were conducted to investigate flow of discrete microbubbles through a water-saturated porous medium. During the experiments, bubbles, released from a diffuser, moved upward through a quasi-2-D flume filled with transparent water-based gelbeads and formed a distinct plume that could be well registered by a calibrated camera. Outflowing bubbles were collected on the top of the flume using volumetric burettes for flux measurements. We quantified the scaling behaviors between the gas (bubble) release rates and various characteristic parameters of the bubble plume, including plume tip velocity, plume width, and breakthrough time of the plume front. The experiments also revealed circulations of ambient pore water induced by the bubble flow. Based on a simple momentum exchange model, we showed that the relationship between the mean pore water velocity and gas release rate is consistent with the scaling solution for the bubble plume. These findings have important implications for studies of natural gas emission and air sparging, as well as fundamental research on bubble transport in porous media.

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Section: Air Spargingmentioning

confidence: 99%

Microbubble transport in water‐saturated porous media

Kong

Scheuermann

et al. 2015

Water Resources Research

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“…Supersaturation can occur if there is a decrease in pressure or an increase in temperature. Experiments of Li and Yortsos [1995a], where water supersaturated with carbon dioxide was introduced into a glass micromodel, found that up to 20% of the pore space was filled with a gas phase before bulk gas started flowing out of the outlet. Gas can also be generated in situ by the decomposition of organics by microbes in the soil or by an inorganic reaction creating a gaseous byproduct.…”

Section: Volume Of Trapped Gasmentioning

confidence: 99%

Experimental investigations for trapping oxygen gas in saturated porous media for in situ bioremediation

Fry¹,

Selker²,

Gorelick³

1997

Water Resources Research

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Abstract. Oxygen is often the rate-limiting factor in aerobic in situ bioremediation. This paper investigates the degree to which air or oxygen gas can be emplaced into the pore space of saturated porous media and provide a significant mass of oxygen. Column experiments were performed to test three emplacement methods: direct gas injection, injection of water supersaturated with gas, and injection of a hydrogen peroxide solution. The direct gas injection method fills 14-17% of the pore space with trapped gas. Water supersaturated with gas fills 18-27% of the pore space with a trapped gas phase, and hydrogen peroxide solution injections emplaces trapped gas in 17-55% of the pore space. In addition to supplying oxygen, gas entrapment causes a decrease in hydraulic conductivity which could be an advantage by decreasing the flow of contaminants offsite. The relative hydraulic conductivity of porous media with a trapped gas volume of 14-55% was 0.62-0.05. IntroductionAlternative methods are needed for introducing oxygen into groundwater for aerobic in situ bioremediation of contaminants. In situ bioremediation is often limited by the amount of oxygen available to the microorganisms in the subsurface. To degrade a simple hydrocarbon (e.g., benzene), approximately 3.1 times more oxygen than contaminant in mass/volume is necessary to meet the stoichiometric requirements. Since the solubility of oxygen in water is low, it is difficult to significantly increase the oxygen mass in a contaminated aquifer by dissolving the oxygen in water first before transferring it to the aquifer. Twenty-eight times more oxygen per volume can be stored in the gas phase than can be dissolved in water, assuming equilibrium based on Henry's law at 15øC.We are investigating whether a wall or zone of trapped gas bubbles can be emplaced into an otherwise-saturated porous medium and provide a substantial source of oxygen for bioremediation of contaminated groundwater (Figure 1). If 15% of the pore space can be filled with oxygen gas, 20 times more oxygen will be emplaced compared to the case in which oxygen is dissolved in the pore water in equilibrium with air. Once a wall or zone of oxygen bubbles is emplaced into an aquifer, the oxygen will be dissolved by the water and be potentially available for use by microorganisms in biodegradation. When the oxygen is used up, it can be emplaced again. This cycle may be repeated until the contaminant is degraded to levels that meet the regulatory requirement. Because trapped gas emplacement does not require continuous injection, a bubble wall or zone may be constructed using modified sampling equipment (e.g., a Hydropunch TM or GeoprobeTM), which will allow for much closer spacing of injection points than injection through a well casing. Here we refer to oxygen because it is the gas that is most widely needed for bioremediation of contaminated groundwater, but other gases, such as hydrogen and methane, which have been shown to be effective in remediation of contaminated groundwater, could also be introdu...

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“…Pore-network approaches are used extensively in recent years to model various processes in porous materials such as drying, immiscible two-and three-phase flow, solution gas-drive and many other (Li and Yortsos, 1995a;Valavanides and Payatakes, 2001; van Dijke et al, 2001). Pore network models describe processes at the pore-and pore-network scale and they offer better understanding of the physics involved in these processes than macroscopic continuum models that were used in the past.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Pore-Network Modeling of Isothermal Drying in Porous Media

et al. 2005

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Abstract. In this paper we present numerical results obtained with a pore-network model for the drying of porous media that accounts for various processes at the pore scale. These include mass transfer by advection and diffusion in the gas phase, viscous flow in the liquid and gas phases and capillary effects at the liquid-gas interface. We extend our work by studying the effect of capillarity-induced flow in macroscopic liquid films that form at the pore walls as the liquid-gas interface recedes. A mathematical model that accounts for the effect of films on the drying rates and phase distribution patterns is presented. It is shown that film flow is a major transport mechanism in the drying of porous materials, its effect being dominant when capillarity controls the process, which is the case in typical applications.

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Visualization and simulation of bubble growth in pore networks

Cited by 91 publications

References 28 publications

Microbubble transport in water‐saturated porous media

Microbubble transport in water‐saturated porous media

Experimental investigations for trapping oxygen gas in saturated porous media for in situ bioremediation

Pore-Network Modeling of Isothermal Drying in Porous Media

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