The estimation of permeability of a porous medium with a generalized pore structure by geometry identification

Abstract

The paper presents an approach for estimating the permeability of a porous medium that is based on the characteristics of the porous structure. The pressure drop in different fluid flow passages is estimated and these are combined to evaluate the overall reduction. The theory employed is presented and the level of accuracy for different cases is discussed. The successive steps in the solution algorithm are described. The accuracy and computational efficiency of the approach are compared with results obtained from a finite-element-based multiphysics formulation. It is shown that for a comparable accuracy, the computational efficiency of the approach can be two orders of magnitude faster. Finally, the model predictions are examined with conventional relationships that have been reported in the literature and are based on permeability-porosity relationships. It is shown that estimating the permeability of a porous medium using porosity can lead to an order of magnitude error and the expected permeability range in different porosities is presented using 10 000 random structures.