Pore-scale simulation of flow in porous rocks for wall shear stress analysis

• Published in: Modeling earth systems and environment 2024-08, Vol.10 (4), p.4877-4897
• Main Authors: Feriadi, Yusron, Arbie, Muhammad Rizqie, Fauzi, Umar, Fariduzzaman
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Carbon dioxide; Carbonates; Chemistry and Earth Sciences; Computed tomography; Computer Science; Deformation; Earth and Environmental Science; Earth Sciences; Earth System Sciences; Ecosystems; Environment; Flow simulation; Flow velocity; Fluid dynamics; Fluid flow; Fluids; Math. Appl. in Environmental Science; Mathematical Applications in the Physical Sciences; Mechanical properties; Numerical models; Original Article; Physics; Porosity; Porous media; Porous media flow; Reynolds number; Rocks; Sandstone; Sediment samples; Sedimentary rocks; Shear flow; Shear stress; Simulation; Statistics for Engineering; Stress analysis; Three dimensional flow; Transport properties; Wall shear stresses
• ISSN: 2363-6203; 2363-6211
• DOI: 10.1007/s40808-024-02036-w

Injecting CO 2 into geological reservoirs presents a promising strategy to reduce CO 2 in the atmosphere. Recently, several studies have accommodated an understanding of fluid flow mechanisms in porous media to study how CO 2 interacts with rocks and other fluids so that the potential for leaks can be anticipated, mainly as erosion and geochemical reactions generally occur, which alter the pore structure. Changes in pore structure can cause changes in fluid transport properties and rock mechanical properties. Increased fluid flow also increases wall shear stress, which has the potential for deformation or erosion. In this study, we evaluated the distribution of wall shear stress induced by fluid flow in several rock samples with heterogeneous pore structures. Finite volume-based numerical modeling is used by flowing fluid over 3D images of rock samples generated using a micro-CT scanner. Three types of samples were used, including Berea sandstone, Bentheimer sandstone, and Estaillades carbonate. Subsamples with similar porosity are taken from each 3D image. Differences in pore structure are identified based on the pore distribution. Fluid flow simulation is performed for each image covering both Darcy and Forchheimer flow by applying a pressure difference between the inlet and the outlet boundaries of the pore structures. Simulation results show that a local shift of the maximum wall shear stress is observed at Berea and Bentheimer when the flow velocity is entirely in the Forchheimer regime. However, shifts in this quantity are not observed at Estaillades. At the same Reynolds number, the maximum wall shear stress for Estaillades is twice as high as for Berea while Bentheimer has the lowest value of maximum wall shear stress among the three samples.