Parameterizations of immiscible two-phase flow in porous media

Abstract

A fundamental variable characterizing immiscible two-phase flow in porous media is the wetting saturation, which is the ratio between the pore volume filled with wetting fluid and the total pore volume. More generally, this variable comes from a specific choice of coordinates on some underlying space, the domain of variables that can be used to express the volumetric flow rate. The underlying mathematical structure allows for the introduction of other variables containing the same information, but which are more convenient from a theoretical point of view. We introduce along these lines polar coordinates on this underlying space, where the angle plays a role similar to the wetting saturation. We derive relations between these new variables based on the Euler homogeneity theorem. We formulate these relations in a coordinate-free fashion using differential forms. Finally, we discuss and interpret the co-moving velocity in terms of this coordinate-free representation.