Overview of Oil-water Two-phase Flow Pressure Drop Theory

Abstract

This is a review of the existing pressure drop theories for dispersed and annular flow in oil and water phases in straight wells is presented. The flow classification criteria, pressure drop calculation methods are outlined. For the dispersed flow, the homogeneous flow model and the two-fluid model are introduced. The key to the pressure drop of the homogeneous flow is the calculation of the frictional resistance, and the two-fluid model focuses on the drag force between the two phases. And for the core-annular flow, the two-fluid model is used to focus on the interference between the two-phase interface.