Surface In Porous Medium Research Articles

E. coli interactions, adhesion and transport in alumino-silica clays

Bacterial adhesion and transport in the geological formation are controlled by their mutual complex interactions, which have been quantified by the traditional and extended Derjaguin–Landau–Verwey–Overbeek (DLVO) theory as well as direct atomic force microscopy (AFM) measurements. In this research, the DLVO forces calculated based on the independently determined bacterial and porous media surface thermodynamic properties were compared with those of AFM measurements. Although differences in the order of several magnitudes existed, forces obtained from both ways could explain the observations of E. coli attachment to alumino-silica clays evaluated in laboratory columns under saturated and steady-state flow conditions. E. coli deposition in alumino-silica clays was simulated using a two-site convection-dispersion transport model against E. coli transport breakthrough curves, which was then linked to the interactions forces. By exploring the differences of the two force measurements, it was concluded that the thermodynamic calculations could complement the direct force measurements in describing bacterial interactions with the surrounding environment and the subsequent transport in the porous media.

A fluid-saturated porous medium under the action of a moving concentrated load

The problem of motion of a concentrated load along the surface of a fluid-saturated porous medium is studied for a subsonic range of speeds. An analytical solution is found. It is shown that there exists a critical speed equal to the speed of the Rayleigh-type surface waves in a porous elastic medium. If this critical speed is exceeded, then the behavior of the solution and the free surface shape are changed. The free surface shape is analyzed at different speeds.

3D geomechanical modeling and estimating the compaction and subsidence of Fahlian reservoir formation (X-field in SW of Iran)

A geomechanical model can reveal the mechanical behavior of rocks and be used to manage the reservoir programs in a better mode. Fluid pressure will be reduced during hydrocarbon production from a reservoir. This reduction of pressure will increase the effective stress due to overburden sediments and will cause porous media compaction and surface subsidence. In some oil fields, the compacting reservoir can support oil and gas production. However, the phenomena can also cause the loss of wells and reduced production and also cause irreparable damage to the surface structures and affect the surrounding environment. For a detailed study of the geomechanical behavior of a hydrocarbon field, a 3D numerical model to describe the reservoir geomechanical characteristics is essential. During this study, using available data and information, a coupled fluid flow-geomechanic model of Fahlian reservoir formation in X-field in SW of Iran was constructed to estimate the amount of land subsidence. According to the prepared model, in this field, the maximum amount of the vertical stress is 110 MPa and the maximum amount of the horizontal stress is 94 MPa. At last, this model is used for the prediction of reservoir compaction and subsidence of the surface. The maximum value of estimated ground subsidence in the study equals to 29 mm. It is considered that according to the obtained values of horizontal and vertical movement in the wall of different wells, those movements are not problematic for casing and well production and also the surrounding environment.

The Penetration Processes of Red Mud Filtrate in a Porous Medium by Seepage

This study investigated the effect of flow velocity, the concentration of red mud particles, and the concentration of $$\hbox {OH}^{-}$$ ions on the penetration processes of red mud filtrate with fine particles in a porous medium by seepage. The results show that the peak concentrations of the breakthrough curves (BTCs) of red mud particles with high alkalinity are much higher than that with low alkalinity, indicating that the existence of $$\hbox {OH}^{-}$$ ions enhances the repulsive interaction between red mud particles and between red mud particles and the matrix and promotes the migration of red mud particles. The red mud particles are more easily absorb onto the surface of porous medium or embedded in the matrix due to the greater adsorption between red mud particles and porous dielectric matrix than silicon powders. The penetration velocity of these red mud particles is often slower than water velocity due to the capture effect by straining and the detours path effect, especially in the case of high injection concentration and low alkalinity. Both the recovery rate and modal size of recovered particles increase with the increase in flow velocity, and the recovery rate of particles with high alkalinity is higher than that of particles with low alkalinity, which can be attributed to the stronger repulsive interaction between particles and between particles and the matrix. An analytical solution for the migration of particles in a porous medium in which the contaminant intensity varies with time has been developed from the elementary solution, and the predicted BTCs for a repeated three-pulse injection are in good accordance with the experimental results.

Transport of Silica Colloid through Saturated Porous Media under Different Hydrogeochemical and Hydrodynamic Conditions Considering Managed Aquifer Recharge

Colloids may have an important role in regulating the structure and function of groundwater ecosystems, and may influence the migration of low solubility contaminants in groundwater. There is, however, a degree of uncertainty about how colloids behave under the variable hydrogeochemical and hydrodynamic conditions that occur during managed aquifer recharge. We used an online monitoring system to monitor the transport of silica colloid in saturated porous media under different hydrogeochemical conditions, including a range of pH values (5, 7, and 9), ionic strengths (<0.0005, 0.02, and 0.05 M), cation valences (Na+, Ca2+), flow rates (0.1, 0.2, and 0.4 mL/min). The results showed that silica colloid was more likely to deposit on the surface of porous media in acidic conditions (pH = 5) than in alkaline conditions (pH = 9), indicating that the risks of pollution from colloidal interactions would be higher when the pH of the recharge water was higher. Colloid deposition occurred when the ionic strength of the colloidal suspension increased, and bivalent cations had a greater effect than monovalent cations. This suggests that bivalent cation-rich recharge water might affect the porosity of the porous medium because of colloid deposition during the managed aquifer recharge process. As the flow rate increased, the migration ability of silica colloid increased. We simulated the migration of silica colloid in porous media with the COMSOL Multiphysics model.

Evaporation Limited Radial Capillary Penetration in Porous Media.

The capillary penetration of fluids in thin porous layers is of fundamental interest in nature and various industrial applications. When capillary flows occur in porous media, the extent of penetration is known to increase with the square root of time following the Lucas-Washburn law. In practice, volatile liquid evaporates at the surface of porous media, which restricts penetration to a limited region. In this work, on the basis of Darcy's law and mass conservation, a general theoretical model is developed for the evaporation-limited radial capillary penetration in porous media. The presented model predicts that evaporation decreases the rate of fluid penetration and limits it to a critical radius. Furthermore, we construct a unified phase diagram that describes the limited penetration in an annular porous medium, in which the boundaries of outward and inward liquid are predicted quantitatively. It is expected that the proposed theoretical model will advance the understanding of penetration dynamics in porous media and facilitate the design of engineered porous architectures.

Pore‐scale contact angle measurements of CO 2 –brine–glass beads system using micro‐focused X‐ray computed tomography

Conventional methods for measuring contact angle are usually applied on smooth surfaces. Methods concerning contact angle determinations performed directly on pore surfaces of porous media have rarely been reported. This work approaches the pore-scale measurement of local contact angle in a CO2–brine–glass beads system, using micro-focused X-ray computed tomography (micro-CT). Both drainage and imbibition experiments with 0.1 ml/min injection rate were conducted at 40°C and 8 MPa. The effectiveness of this pore-scale approach is confirmed by comparing the results with the results gathered from traditional sessile drop methodology. Observations indicate that the contact angle hysteresis phenomenon was not so obvious for intermediate-wet glass beads in the employed experimental setting. In real reservoir circumstances, the roughness and capillary variation caused significant deviations in contact angle distribution for both drainage and imbibition, even in rock cores consisting of a single-phase material.

Slow migration of detached fine particles over rock surface in porous media

Fines migration involving particle detachment in natural reservoirs usually exhibits significant permeability damage. This occurs due to mobilization and migration of detached colloidal or suspended fines that were strained in thin pore throats. Numerous laboratory coreflood tests show that the time for permeability stabilization accounts for hundreds of injected pore volumes. However, classical filtration theory assumes that the released fines are transported by the bulk of the carrier fluid, thus stabilizing the permeability after the injection of one pore volume. The current paper attributes the stabilization delay to the slow drift of the mobilized fines near the pore walls. We propose basic flow equations for single-phase particle transport in porous media with velocity lower than the carrier fluid velocity. We derive an analytical model for one dimensional flow with particle release and straining under piecewise-constant increasing velocity. The laboratory data are in high agreement with the results of mathematical modelling. The effective particle speed is 500–1000 times lower than the water velocity.

An innovative solar energy-powered floating media bed reactor for nutrient removal (II): material characterization

To enhance the removal efficiencies of total phosphorus (TP) and total nitrogen (TN), a Floating Media Bed Reactor (FMBR) was developed as a supplementary treatment unit for stormwater wet detention ponds. The FMBR was filled with an engineered mixture of media for the removal of target nutrient species. These materials aid in the physiochemical sorption and precipitation of orthophosphates as well as in the biological transformation of ammonia, nitrates and nitrites. The microstructure and morphology of the green media has not been well studied in recent years, however, because this is a new topic of interest. Therefore, the main objective of this study was to characterize the fine structures and morphology of the green media utilized in the FMBR. Experimentally, field-emission scanning electron microscopy (FE-SEM) micrographs reveal biofilms on the surface of porous media that likely enhanced the removal efficiency of TN and TP during field operation. From the X-ray powder diffraction (XRD) patterns, hexagonal-typed SiO2 and monoclinic-typed Al2O3 are characteristics of average crystallite sizes of 200–250 nm for fresh and used media samples. The media possess numerous pores or cavities where nutrients can easily be adsorbed. Moreover, the Brunauer–Emmett–Teller (BET) specific surface area (pore volume) decreased from 33 to 25 m2 g−1 (0.16–0.10 cm3 g−1) after field testing the FMBR. These results suggest that voids in post-treatment media samples were filled or occupied with nutrients and particulates adsorbed onto the media surface or biofilms, thus leading to the reduction of BET specific surface area and pore volume. The post-treatment adsorbent media had a slightly stronger stretching vibration of POC and POP species around 600 and 800 cm−1 respectively, found in the Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectra, which may be explained by more nutrients having been adsorbed on the surface or biofilms of the porous structures.

Numerical Approach to Estimate the Effective Yield Surface of Random Porous Media for Spherical Voids

In this paper, we describe a computational homogenization methodology to study of three- dimensional cubic cells in order to estimate the effective yield surface of random porous media containing spheroidal voids. The representativity of the overall yield surface estimates is examined using cubic cells containing randomly distributed. Spherical voids are considered in the computations. The computational results are compared with some existing Gurson-type yield criteria.

Effects of thermophoresis and variable properties on mixed convection along a vertical wavy surface in a fluid saturated porous medium

This paper investigates the influence of thermophoresis on mixed convection heat and mass transfer flow over a vertical wavy surface in a porous medium with variable properties, namely variable viscosity and variable thermal conductivity. The effect of wavy surface is incorporated into non-dimensional equations by using suitable transformations and then transformed into non-linear ordinary differential equations by employing the similarity transformations and then solved numerically. The transport process of flow, heat and mass transfer in the boundary layer for aiding and opposing flow cases is discussed. The structure of flow, temperature and concentration fields in the Darcy porous media are more pronounced by complex interactions among variable viscosity, variable thermal conductivity, mixed convective parameter, thermophoresis and amplitude of the wavy surface. Increasing thermophoresis parameter enhances velocity profile, concentration distribution and Sherwood number while reduces Nusselt number. As increase in variable viscosity, temperature and concentration distributions are enhanced while velocity profile, Nusselt number and Sherwood numbers are reduced. This study finds applications in aerosol Technology, space technology and processes involving high temperatures.

MHD free convection flow of Eyring–Powell fluid from vertical surface in porous media with Hall/ionslip currents and ohmic dissipation

A mathematical study is presented to analyze the nonlinear, non-isothermal, magnetohydrodynamic (MHD) free convection boundary layer flow, heat and mass transfer of non-Newtonian Eyring–Powell fluid from a vertical surface in a non-Darcy, isotropic, homogenous porous medium, in the presence of Hall currents and ionslip currents. The governing nonlinear coupled partial differential equations for momentum conservation in the x, and z directions, heat and mass conservation, in the flow regime are transformed from an (x,y,z) coordinate system to a (ξ,η) coordinate system in terms of dimensionless x-direction velocity (f′) and z-direction velocity (G), dimensionless temperature and concentration functions (θ and ϕ) under appropriate boundary conditions. Both Darcian and Forchheimer porous impedances are incorporated in both momentum equations. Computations are also provided for the variation of the x and z direction shear stress components and also heat and mass transfer rates. It is observed that with increasing ɛ, primary velocity, secondary velocity, heat and mass transfer rates are decreased whereas, the temperature, concentration and skin friction are increased. An increasing δ is found to increase primary and secondary velocities, skin friction, heat and mass transfer rates. But the temperature and concentration decrease. Increasing βe and βi are seen to increase primary velocity, skin friction, heat and mass transfer rates whereas secondary velocity, temperature and concentration are decreased. Excellent correlation is achieved with a Nakamura tridiagonal finite difference scheme (NTM). The model finds applications in magnetic materials processing, MHD power generators and purification of crude oils.

Asymptotic analysis of a semi-linear elliptic system in perforated domains: Well-posedness and correctors for the homogenization limit

In this study, we prove results on the weak solvability and homogenization of a microscopic semi-linear elliptic system posed in perforated media. The model presented here explores the interplay between stationary diffusion and both surface and volume chemical reactions in porous media. Our interest lies in deriving homogenization limits (upscaling) for alike systems and particularly in justifying rigorously the obtained averaged descriptions. Essentially, we prove the well-posedness of the microscopic problem ensuring also the positivity and boundedness of the involved concentrations and then use the structure of the two scale expansions to derive corrector estimates delimitating this way the convergence rate of the asymptotic approximates to the macroscopic limit concentrations. Our techniques include Moser-like iteration techniques, a variational formulation, two-scale asymptotic expansions as well as energy-like estimates.

Salinity dependence of the complex surface conductivity of the Portland sandstone

Induced polarization can be used to estimate surface conductivity by assuming a universal linear relationship between the surface and quadrature conductivities of porous media. However, this assumption has not yet been justified for conditions covering a broad range of fluid conductivities. We have performed complex conductivity measurements on Portland sandstone, an illite- and kaolinite-rich sandstone, at 13 different water salinities (NaCl) over the frequency range of 0.1 Hz to 45 kHz. The conductivity of the pore water [Formula: see text] affected the complex surface conductivity mainly by changing the tortuosity of the conduction paths in the pore network from high to low salinities. As the fluid conductivity decreases, the magnitude of the surface conductivity and quadrature conductivity was observed to decrease. At relatively high salinities ([Formula: see text]), the ratio between the surface conductivity and quadrature conductivity was roughly constant. At low salinities ([Formula: see text]), the ratio decreased slightly with the decrease of the salinity. A Stern layer polarization model was combined with the differential effective medium (DEM) theory to describe this behavior. The tortuosity entering the complex surface conductivity was salinity dependent following the prediction of the DEM theory. At high salinity, it reached the value of the bulk tortuosity of the pore space given by the product of the intrinsic formation factor and the connected porosity. The relaxation time distributions were also obtained at different salinities by inverting the measured spectra using a Warburg decomposition. The mode of the relaxation time probability distribution found a small but clear dependence on the salinity. This salinity dependence can be explained by considering the ions exchange between Stern and diffuse layers during polarization of the former. The pore-size distribution obtained from the distribution of the relaxation time agreed with the pore-size distribution from nuclear magnetic resonance measurements.

Computational Study of MHD Free Convection Flow of Non-Newtonian Tangent Hyperbolic Fluid from a Vertical Surface in Porous Media with Hall/Ionslip Currents and Ohmic Dissipation

A numerical study is presented to analyze the nonlinear, non-isothermal, magnetohydrodynamic (MHD) free convection boundary layer flows of non-Newtonian tangent hyperbolic fluid past a vertical surface in a non-Darcy, isotropic, homogenous porous medium in the presence of Hall currents and Ionslip currents. The governing nonlinear coupled partial differential equations for momentum conservation in x and z directions, heat and mass conservation in the flow regime are transformed from an (x, y, z) coordinate system to (\(\upxi ,\upeta \)) coordinate system in terms of dimensionless x-direction velocity (\(f^{\prime }\)) and z-direction velocity (G), dimensionless temperature and concentration functions (\(\uptheta \) and \(\upphi \)) under appropriate boundary conditions. Both Darcian and Forchheimer porous impedances are incorporated in both momentum equations. Computations are also provided for the variation of the x and z direction shear stress components and also heat and mass transfer rates. Increasing Weissenberg number (We) is observed to decrease primary and secondary velocity and concentration but increase temperature. It is found that the primary and secondary velocity is increased with increasing power law index (n) whereas the temperature and concentration are decreased. Increasing hall and Ionslip current (\(\beta _{e}\) and \(\beta _{i}\)) is observed to increase primary velocity but decreases secondary velocity, temperature and concentration. Increasing magnetic parameter (\(N_{m}\)) is seen to decrease primary velocity but decreases secondary velocity, temperature and concentration. Increasing Darcy number (Da) is found to increase primary and secondary velocity whereas decreases temperature and concentration. Increasing Forchheimer parameter (Fs) is seen to decrease primary and secondary velocity but increases temperature and concentration. The model finds applications in magnetic materials processing, MHD power generators and purification of crude oils.

NUMERICAL SOLUTION FOR MAGNETOHYDRODYNAMIC STAGNATION POINT FLOW TOWARDS A STRETCHING OR SHRINKING SURFACE IN A SATURATED POROUS MEDIUM

Mathematical analysis is carried out to investigate two-dimensional flow of a viscous incompressible electrically conducting fluid near a stagnation point of a stretching or shrinking surface in a saturated porous medium. Defining equations are formulated to determine the scope of considered variables and governing partial differential equations are reduced to ordinary differential equations by using suitable similarity transformation. Nu- merical computation of the problem was performed by shooting iteration technique together with Runge-Kutta fourth order integration scheme. Effects of Prandtl number, permeability parameter, magnetic parameter and stretching or shrinking parameter on velocity and tem- perature profiles are computed and illustrated graphically, whereas numerical values of local skin-friction coefficient and local Nusselt number are presented in tabular form.

Measurement of hydraulic properties of bentonite cake formation deposited on base soil medium

Bentonite cake and filter cake on the surface of porous media result from the filtration of stabilizing slurry into the adjacent porous formation. This paper provides measurements of hydraulic conductivities of bentonite cake formed on Korean standard sand under various pressure levels. Two types of bentonite (Tixoton and Bentonil GTC4) were used to create the slurries with three different concentrations (4, 6, and 8% by weight). An estimation of the hydraulic conductivity of the bentonite cake based on the filtration theory was carried out. The range of hydraulic conductivities of the bentonite cake was from 2.1×10−11m/s to 5.7×10−10m/s. The hydraulic conductivity of the bentonite cake deposited on Korean standard sand were compared with that of the bentonite cake deposited on filter paper to show the effect of the filter medium. The slurry concentration of 6% seems to be a value that most stimulates the effect of the filter medium on the permeability of the Bentonil GTC4 bentonite cake. In addition, a simple approach was developed to characterize the hydraulic properties of the filter cake, which has usually been confused with the bentonite cake in recently published literature.

Convection Heat Transfer on a Vertical Surface in Porous Media

Free convection on a vertical surface with Newtonian heating of the form proposed by Merkin (1994) in the fluid-filled porous medium is considered on the basis of the full equations of a viscous liquid. Using dimensional analysis a set of criteria that define the characteristics of flow and heat transfer was derived. Asymptotic analysis of the full equations allowed us to determine the region of applicability of the boundary layer approximation, which was used in the previous studies of this problem. Darcy parameter influence was studied; the composite numerical and analytical solution for stream function and temperature was derived.

Microscale Infrared Observation of Liquid-Vapor Phase Change Process on the Surface of Porous Media for Loop Heat Pipe

Loop Heat Pipe (LHP) performance strongly depends on the performance of a wick that is porous media inserted in an evaporator. In this paper, the visualization results of thermo-fluid behavior on the surface of the wick with microscopic infrared thermography were reported. In this study, 2 different samples that simulated a part of wick in the evaporator were used. The wicks were made by different two materials: polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) and stainless steel (SUS). The pore radii of PTFE wick and SUS wick are 1.2 μm and 22.5 μm. The difference of thermo-fluid behavior that was caused by the difference of material was investigated. These two materials include 4 different properties: pore radius, thermal conductivity, permeability and porosity. In order to investigate the effect of the thermal conductivity on wick’s operating mode, the phase diagram on the q-keff plane was made. Based on the temperature line profiles, two operating modes: mode of heat conduction and mode of convection were observed. The effective thermal conductivity of the porous media has strong effect on the operating modes. In addition, the difference of heat leak through the wick that was caused by the difference of the material was discussed.

Effects of Calcium Source on Biochemical Properties of Microbial CaCO3 Precipitation.

The biochemical properties of CaCO3 precipitation induced by Sporosarcina pasteurii, an ureolytic type microorganism, were investigated. Effects of calcium source on the precipitation process were examined, since calcium source plays a key role in microbiologically induced mineralization. Regardless of the calcium source type, three distinct stages in the precipitation process were identified by Ca2+, NH4+, pH and cell density monitoring. Compared with stage 1 and 3, stage 2 was considered as the most critical part since biotic CaCO3 precipitation occurs during this stage. Kinetics studies showed that the microbial CaCO3 precipitation rate for calcium lactate was over twice of that for calcium nitrate, indicating that calcium lactate is more beneficial for the cell activity, which in turn determines urease production and CaCO3 precipitation. X-ray diffraction analysis confirmed the CaCO3 crystal as calcite, although scanning electron microscopy revealed a difference in crystal size and morphology if calcium source was different. The findings of this paper further suggest a promising application of microbiologically induced CaCO3 precipitation in remediation of surface and cracks of porous media, e.g., cement-based composites, particularly by using organic source of calcium lactate.