Jamin Effect Research Articles

An experimental study of the washburn equation for liquid flow in very fine capillaries

The Washburn equation describes the flow of a liquid under its own capillary force in a horizontal tube. The equation has been tested and shown to be adequate in the range of capillary radii from 3 to 400 μm, but tests for smaller capillaries have indicated anomalously high flow rates. This communication reports tests of the Washburn equation for capillary radii down to about 0.1 μm for the flow of water in glass capillaries and 0.20 μm for cyclohexane in glass capillaries. No evidence was found for systematic deviations from the Washburn equation by cyclohexane, or for water flowing in capillaries with radii above 0.3 μm. For water flowing in narrower capillaries there is an abrupt decrease in flow rates and bubbles are observed in the flowing liquid. The presence of the bubbles accounts for the decreased flow rates because of the Jamin effect (caused by the difference between advancing and receding contact angles).

The flow of liquids through fine capillaries and narrow channels: the meniscus resistance (Jamin effect).

The paper describes experimental techniques found useful in measuring the meniscal resistance of liquids flowing in fine capillaries and narrow channels, dyn cm−1 , the Jamin effect. The resistance has a marginal effect on the accuracy of viscosity m

The rate of spread of liquid pools over horizontal solid surfaces and between approaching parallel flat plates

Some measurements have been made of the rate of radial spread of liquid pools on horizontal surfaces and between approaching parallel flat plates. Graphs giving the dimensions of the pools after different intervals of time and with different surface finishes have been prepared for several liquids on different kinds of surfaces; also derived graphs relating the rate of radial flow with film thickness, etc., have been included. Movement is complex and specific to the surface and chemical character of the liquid but it is possible to follow the effect of adsorbed surface films and to correlate movement with the periphery resistance (Jamin effect). With the use of binary mixtures of liquids, correlations have been found for rate of radial spread with several properties, such as the coefficient of friction, adhesion, contact angles, and swelling. Any increase in surface activity consequent upon molecular disaggregation is accompanied by a higher rate of movement, increased adhesion, etc. Some liquids are more sensitive to the roughening of surfaces than others. The effect of viscosity usually appears to be masked by surface effects, etc., but with liquids of low Jamin resistance, apart from the initial and later stages of spreading, an approximate relation between time and the radius of the pool can be obtained both for a liquid spreading on a horizontal surface and between approaching parallel plates.

Jamin Effect in Oil Production: DISCUSSION

Jamin Effect in Oil Production: DISCUSSION

Jamin Effect in Oil Production: REPLY

Jamin Effect in Oil Production: REPLY

Jamin Effect in Oil Production

The Jamin effect is defined as that resistance to liquid flow through capillaries which is due to the presence of bubbles. The actuality of this effect in the case of water is shown. It is concluded that the Jamin effect probably does not arise in the case of petroleum moving toward a producing well. That this effect retards underground water movement to any great extent appears doubtful. One asphalt-base and one paraffine-base oil each exhibited greater adhesion for sand grains than did water under the laboratory conditions used. Hydraulic pressure produced more oil than did air pressure from similar artificial formations.

Can Absence of Edge-Water Encroachment in Certain Oil Fields Be Ascribed to Capillarity?

In several oil fields the amount of edge water invading the wells after the field is almost exhausted is very small. This may be due to different causes, some of which are briefly mentioned in this paper. The writer's object is to show that capillarity can not hold the oil outside the depleted area around the well and can not prevent the edge water from moving toward the well. In the depletion zone two conditions are possible when the formation is an unconsolidated sand, (1) the funicular and (2) the pendular. In the former, oil and generally gas flow freely. In the latter, gas flows freely and may be followed by oil. If the oil-bearing formation is consolidated and the interstices are pores with narrowings, Jamin effect would not stop the flow altogether because the gas would diffuse through the films of oil which shut off the pores in the narrowings. Light oils would evaporate from one film and condense on the next nearer to the well and thus move toward the well. It can be proved, however, that if a certain number of gas bubbles could stop the flow of oil, the number of bubbles necessary to fulfill this condition would not be formed, so that oil would move toward the well, ultimately followed by edge water, unless it is held back by other causes.

Relative Propulsive Efficiencies of Air and Natural Gas in Pressure Drive Operations

The relative merits of air and natural gas as propulsive agents in pressuredrive operations have been discussed for a number of years. When air or gas isintroduced into the sand, various factors lead the operator to the selection ofwhat he believes to be the proper propelling medium; but when the question of relative drive effect israised, several physical and chemical premises must be taken into considerationin arriving at a conclusion as to the superiority of one medium over the other.Dow and Calkins and Beecher and Parkhurst have contributed fundamentalexperimental work on the effect of dissolved gas in lowering the viscosity andsurface tension of crude oil. Herold and Tickell have indicated that whatevertype of reservoir control obtains, gas plays other important parts in the movement of oil towards the well, namely:The propulsive and expansive force of the gas.The "Jamin effect," or resistance to the movement of oil in a porousmedia due to the formation of gas bubbles. When quantitative studies are made, parallel conditions must be selectedwhereby we may say definitely whether air is superior to gas as a drivingmedium, or vice versa. Examples of similar conditions are not easy to find inthe field. However, in the laboratory we can make determinations which may leadto general conclusions when applied to the field. The experimental and researchwork described here was started at the laboratories of the University ofCalifornia in January, 1927, and completed in private laboratories at Tulsa, Okla., in February, 1928. The apparatus used was designed especially for thework.