Modeling flow regimes in porous media: correcting permeability models by combining numerical simulation and experimentation
Loading...
Date
2016-03, 2017-04
Authors
Arabjamaloei, Rasoul
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
Elsevier
Abstract
In this research, single phase flow regimes in porous media were studied both numerically and experimentally to determine methods to predict the effects of rarefied gas flow and inertial flow. The results of this research were initially compared with the convention methods of treating rarefied gas flow, the Klinkenberg equation and inertial flow, the Forchheimer equation. In the first section of the research, the slip condition for rarefied gas flow in low permeability, two-dimensional simple porous media was studied by the Lattice Boltzmann method (LBM) and new corrections to the Klinkenberg model and higher order slip models were investigated. To apply LBM, new corrections were introduced to the solid-fluid boundary condition and a new relationship was proposed to relate LBM viscosity and Knudsen number. To validate the LBM model, the slip flow simulation results were compared to analytical methods and experimentation. It was shown that the modified LBM simulator was capable of predicting the experimentally observed Knudsen minimum. By comparing the numerical simulation results with analytical models extracted from the up-to-date literature, the analytical model that most closely matched numerical model results was identified.
In the second section of this research, the apparent permeability reduction due to inertial effects in simple and complex porous structures was studied. LBM based simulator was developed to model single-phase three-dimensional fluid flow in porous media. The simulator was verified by experimental and analytical solution tests and then was implemented to study high Reynolds number flow processes in irregular shaped porous structures. The effects of inertial on the onset and extent of non-Darcy flow in different geometries was studied. It was shown that the Forchheimer equation does not accurately fit the high Reynolds number flow. A new empirical correlation was proposed that correlates the scaled permeability and mass flow rate relationship very well and is more accurate than the Forchheimer equation. To validate the LBM, a modified experimental technique was designed and utilized to analyze permeability and mass flow rate relationships in high Reynolds number flows. The experimental results showed that the correlation in the present research is far more accurate than the Forchheimer equation.
Description
Keywords
Fluid dynamics, Porous Media, Lattice boltzmann method, Slip flow, Inertial flow
Citation
Harvard reference format 1