Flow of low pressure gas through dual-porosity media

Abstract

Using the theory of homogenization we derive macroscopic models for describing flow of gas at low pressure in dual-porosity media. The case of a fractured porous medium is under consideration for the study, and the existence of a representative elementary volume that consists of open connected fractures surrounded by porous matrix blocks is assumed. The local flow is governed by either Klinkenberg's law or Knudsen's diffusion law in the matrix while either a non-slip flow or a slip flow occurs in the fractures. Six new models are derived by homogenization, which are compared to the three models which were obtained for Darcy's regime in an earlier work. Each of these nine models is characterized by its macroscopic flow regime and by the type of macroscopic behavior it describes. Besides Darcy's and Klinkenberg's macroscopic flow regimes, a transition regime between Klinkenberg's and Knudsen's regimes is identified. The types of macroscopic behaviors include a dual and a single porosity description and an intermediate behavior that describes a single-porosity behavior, but in which the porosity of the entire fractured porous medium is accounted for.