Permeability evolution and gas flow in wet coal under non-equilibrium state:Considering both water swelling and process-based gas swelling

Accurate knowledge of gas flow within the reservoir and related controlling factors will be important for enhancing the production of coal bed methane.At present,most studies focused on the permeability evolution of dry coal under gas adsorption equilibrium,gas flow and gas diffusion within wet coal under the generally non-equilibrium state are often ignored in the process of gas recovery.In this study,an improved apparent permeability model is proposed which accommodates the water and gas adsorption,stress dependence,water film thickness and gas flow regimes.In the process of modeling,the water adsorption is only affected by water content while the gas adsorption is time and water content dependent;based on poroelastic mechanics,the effective fracture aperture and effective pore radius are derived;and then the variation in water film thickness for different pore types under the effect of water content,stress and adsorption swelling are modeled;the flow regimes are considered based on Beskok’s model.Further,after validation with experimental data,the proposed model was applied to numerical simulations to investigate the evolution of permeability-related factors under the effect of different water contents.The gas flow in wet coal under the non-equilibrium state is explicitly revealed.

Experimental analysis of the pore structure, relative permeability, and water flooding characteristics of the Yan'an Formation sandstone, southwestern Ordos Basin

The oil and gas potential of the Yan'an Formation in the Ordos Basin has yet to be fully tapped. In this study, the pore structure, mobile fluid saturation, and water flooding micro-mechanism of the Yan'an Formation sandstone are systematically studied through the application of a series of rock physics and fluid experiments. The results show that there is a good positive correlation between porosity and permeability, and the reservoirs are divided into types Ⅰ, Ⅱ, and Ⅲ. Mercury injection tests show that the average pore throat radius of the oil-bearing reservoir ranges from 1 to 7 μm. The displacement pressure of the Yan'an Formation is also relatively low, and it decreases from 0.1 MPa to 0.01 MPa as the rock porosity increases from 11% to 18%. NMR tests show that small (diameter <0.5 μm) and medium pores (diameter ranging from 0.5 to 2.5 μm) are predominant in the reservoir. Different types of reservoirs have different characteristics of relative permeability curve. In addition, when the average oil recovery rate is less than 1 ml/min, the oil displacement efficiency increases faster. However, when the average oil recovery rate is between 1–3.5 ml/min, the oil displacement efficiency is maintained at around 27%–30%. Physical properties of the reservoir, pore-throat structure, experimental pressure difference, and pore volume injected — all have significant effects on oil displacement efficiency. For Type Ⅰ and Type Ⅱ reservoirs, the increase of the pore volume injected has a significant effect on oil displacement efficiency. However, for Type Ⅲ reservoirs, the change of pore volume injected has insignificant effect on oil displacement efficiency. This study provides a reference for the formulation of estimated ultimate recovery (EUR) measures for similar sandstone reservoirs.

Adaptability of Development Methods for Offshore Gas Cap Edge Water Reservoirs under Different Permeability Levels

The BZ 34-1 oilfield is a typical gas cap edge water reservoir in the Bohai oilfield. The main characteristics of the oilfield were multi-phase sand body stacking and the sand body was composed of three parts: gas cap, oil reservoir, and edge water. The actual production site results show that the permeability difference of multi-layer sand bodies has a serious impact on the development effect. This article establishes a typical reservoir model numerical model based on the total recovery degree of the reservoir and the recovery degree of each layer, and analyzes the impact of permeability gradient. As the permeability gradient increases, the total recovery degree of all four well patterns decreases, and the total recovery degree gradually decreases. The recovery degree of low permeability layers gradually decreases, and the recovery degree of high permeability layers gradually increases. As the permeability gradient increases, the degree of recovery gradually decreases under different water contents. As the permeability gradient increases, the reduction rate of remaining oil saturation in low permeability layers is slower, while the reduction rate of remaining oil saturation in high permeability layers was faster. By analyzing the impact of permeability gradient on the development effect of oil fields, we could further deepen our understanding of gas cap edge water reservoirs and guide the development of this type of oil field.

Effect of high-multiple water injection on rock pore structure and oil displacement efficiency

Experimental methods,including mercury pressure,nuclear magnetic resonance(NMR)and core(wateroil)displacement,are used to examine the effects of high-multiple water injection(i.e.water injection with high injected pore volume)on rock properties,pore structure and oil displacement efficiency of an oilfield in the western South China Sea.The results show an increase in the permeability of rocks along with particle migration,an increase in the pore volume and the average pore throat radius,and enhanced heterogeneity after high-multiple water injection.Compared with normal water injection methods,a high-multiple water injection is more effective in improving the oil displacement efficiency.The degree of recovery increases faster in the early stage due to the expansion of the swept area,and the transition from oil-wet to water-wet.The degree of recovery increases less in the late stage due to various factors,including the enhancement of heterogeneity in the rocks.Considering both the economic aspect and the production limit of water flooding,it is recommended to adopt other technologies to further enhance oil recovery after 300 PV water injection.

Pore network modeling of water block in low permeability reservoirs

A pore network model was used in this paper to investigate the factors, in particular, throat radius, wettability and initial water saturation, causing water block in low permeability reservoirs. A new term - ＇relative permeability number＇ （RPN） was firstly defined, and then used to describe the degree of water block. Imbibition process simulations show that the RPN drops in accordance with the extension of the averaged pore throat radius from 0.05 to 1.5 μm, and yet once beyond that point of 1.5 μm, the RPN reaches a higher value, indicating the existence of a critical pore throat radius where water block is the maximum. When the wettability of the samples changes from water-wet to weakly water-wet, weakly gas-wet, or gas（oil）-wet, the gas RPN increases consistently, but this consistency is disturbed by the RPN dropping for weakly water-wet samples for water saturations less than 0.4, which means weakly waterwet media are more easily water blocked than water-wet systems. In the situation where the initial water saturation exceeds 0.05, water block escalates along with an increase in initial water saturation.

Apparent permeability variation of underground water aquifer induced by an earthquake:A case of the Zhouzhi well and the 2008 Wenchuan earthquake

t Taking the M2 wave as calibration signals, we extract the phase shifts of the water level relative to the Earth tide in the Zhouzhi well by utilizing the cross-correlation function. And we further obtain the apparent permeability variation in the aquifer of the Zhouzhi well in 2008. Comparison with the commonly used tidal analysis software Baytap-G shows that phase shifts obtained by cross-correlation function are more stable. The resulting apparent permeability of the Zhouzhi well aquifer fluctuates with time, indicating it is a dynamically controlled parameter. The 2008 Wenchuan earthquake caused the apparent permeability increasing drastically, which is interpreted as the combination effects of effective stress changes and the barriers removing in the flow channel due to seismic wave pressure pulse. After the Wenchuan earthquake, the effective stress began to recover and the impurities deposited gradually, causing the apparent permeability to decrease a month later and almost recover to the pre-earthquake level in six months.

Temperature Dependency of Water Vapor Permeability of Shape Memory Polyurethane

Solution-cast films of shape memory polyurethane have been investigated.Differential scanning calorimetry, DMA, tensile test, water vapor permeability and the shape memory effect were carried out to characterize these polyurethane membranes. Samples cast at higher temperatures contained more hard segment in the crystalline state than a sample cast at lower temperature. The change in the water vapor permeability (WVP) of SMPU films with respect to the temperature follows an S-shaped curve, and increases abruptly at T m of the soft segment for the fractional free volume (FFV, the ratio of free volume and specific volume in polymers) increased linearly with temperature. The water vapor permeability dependency of the temperature and humidity contribute to the result of the change of diffusion and solubility with the surrounding air condition. The diffusion coefficient (D) are the function of temperature and show good fit the Arrhenius form but show different parameter values when above and below T g. The crystalline state hard-segment is necessary for the good shape memory

The numerical study of wave-induced pore water pressure response in highly permeable seabed

The coupling numerical model of wave interaction with porous medium is used to study wave- induced pore water pressure in high permeability seabed. In the model, the wave field solver is based on the two dimensional Reynolds-averaged Navier-Stokes （RANS） equations with a k-s closure, and Forchheimer equations are adopted for flow within the porous media. By introducing a Velocity-Pressure Correction equation for the wave flow and porous flow, a highly efficient coupling between the two flows is implemented. The numerical tests are conducted to study the effects of seabed thickness, porosity, particle size and intrinsic permeability coefficient on regular wave and solitary wave-induced pore water pressure response. The results indicate that, as compared with regular wave-induced, solitary wave-induced pore water pressure has larger values and stronger action on seabed with different parameters. The results also clearly show the flow characteristics of pore water flow within seabed and water wave flow on seabed. The maximum pore water flow velocities within seabed under solitary wave action are higher than those under regular wave action.

Water inflow forecasting for tunnel considering nonlinear variation of permeability coefficient

To assess the water inflow which is more suitable to the actual conditions of tunnel,an empirical correlation about the permeability coefficient changing with depth is introduced.Supposing that the surrounding rock is heterogeneous isotropy,the formula for calculating water inflow of tunnel with the nonlinear variation of permeability coefficient is deduced.By the contrast analysis with the existing formulas,the presented method has the similar value to them;moreover,the presented method has more simple form and easy to use.Due to parameter analysis,the water inflow decreases after considering the nonlinear variation of permeability coefficient.When the attenuation coefficient a>0,the water inflow increases first till reaches the maximum at a certain depth,then decreases and is close to 0 finally if deep enough.Thus,it is better to keep away from the certain depth where it is with the maximum water inflow for safe operation and economical construction,and reduce the water damage.Based on the analysis,the radius of tunnel has less impact on the amount of water inflow,and the water inflow just increases by 6.7% when the radius of tunnel increases by 1 m.

Fully Coupled Simulation of Interactions Among Waves, Permeable Breakwaters and Seabeds Based on N−S Equations

Interstitial flows in breakwater cores and seabeds are a key consideration in coastal and marine engineering designs and have a direct impact on their structural safety.In this paper,a unified fully coupled model for wave−permeable breakwater−porous seabed interactions is built based on an improved N−S equation.A numerical wave flume is constructed,and numerical studies are carried out by applying the finite difference method.In combination with a physical model test,the accuracy of the numerical simulation results is verified by comparing the calculated and measured values of wave height at measurement points and the seepage pressure within the breakwater and seabed.On this basis,the characteristics of the surrounding wave field and the internal flow field of the pore structure,as well as the evolution process of the fluctuating pore water pressure inside the breakwater and seabed,are further analyzed.The spatial distribution of the maximum fluctuating pore water pressure in the breakwater is compared between two cases by considering whether the seabed is permeable,and then the effect of seabed permeability on the dynamic pore water pressure in the breakwater is clarified.This study attempts to provide a reference for breakwater design and the protection of nearby seabeds.

The Influence Law of Oil Relative Permeability on Water Cut

Water cut is a key evaluation parameter for reservoir development evaluation. Relative permeability curve reflects reservoir characteristics and fluid characteristics. It is important to figure out the influence law of oil relative permeability on water cut. Based on the 269 relative permeability curves of Bohai oilfields, the distribution of oil index of Bohai oilfields were studied. On the basis, combined with Corey expression of relative permeability and fractional flow equation, the theoretical relationship between oil index and water cut increasing rate was established. Three end points of water cut increasing rate curve were proposed and the influence law between three end points and oil index was studied. The results show that the oil index has a linear relationship with three end points. When the value of water oil mobile ratio is large than 1, with the increase of oil index, maximum value of water cut increasing rate gradually increase. When the value of water oil mobile ratio is less than 10, oil index has great effect on recovery percent when water cut increasing rate reaches to the maximum value as well as water cut when water cut increasing rate reaches to the maximum value. The application of SS field shows that the theoretical value is consistent with the field data.

Influence of soil density on gas permeability and water retention in soils amended with in-house produced biochar

Biochar has been used as an environment-friendly enhancer to improve the hydraulic properties(e.g.suction and water retention)of soil.However,variations in densities alter the properties of the soil ebiochar mix.Such density variations are observed in agriculture(loosely compacted)and engineering(densely compacted)applications.The influence of biochar amendment on gas permeability of soil has been barely investigated,especially for soil with different densities.The major objective of this study is to investigate the water retention capacity,and gas permeability of biochar-amended soil(BAS)with different biochar contents under varying degree of compaction(DOC)conditions.In-house produced novel biochar was mixed with the soil at different amendment rates(i.e.biochar contents of 0%,5%and 10%).All BAS samples were compacted at three DOCs(65%,80%and 95%)in polyvinyl chloride(PVC)tubes.Each soil column was subjected to dryingewetting cycles,during which soil suction,water content,and gas permeability were measured.A simplified theoretical framework for estimating the void ratio of BAS was proposed.The experimental results reveal that the addition of biochar significantly decreased gas permeability kg as compared with that of bare soil(BS).However,the addition of 5%biochar is found to be optimum in decreasing kg with an increase of DOC(i.e.k_(g,65%)>k_(g,80%)>k_(g,95%))at a relatively low suction range(<200 kPa)because both biochar and compaction treatment reduce the connected pores.

Effect of Soil Drought Stress on Leaf Water Status, Membrane Permeability and Enzymatic Antioxidant System of Maize

A simulation experiment on the responses of maize (Zea mays L.) from the third leaf stage to maturity for different soil water levels (well-watered, moderately stressed, and severely stressed) was conducted by controlling irrigation and using a mobile rain shelter in a neutral loam, meadow soil to determine the effects on leaf water status, membrane permeability and enzymatic antioxidant system for different growth stages. The results indicated that drought stress relied on drought intensity and duration, with more severe drought stress creating more serious effects on maize. Compared with well-watered conditions, during the silking and blister stages moderate stress did not significantly change the relative water content (RWC) and did change significantly the relative conductivity (RC) (P < 0.05) of the leaves; however, severe stress did significantly decrease (P < 0.01) the leaf RWC and increase (P < 0.01) membrane permeability (leaf relative conductivity). Furthermore, under severe drought stress antioxidant enzyme activities declined significantly (P < 0.01) in later stages, namely for superoxide dismutase (SOD) the tasseling and blister stages, for peroxidase (POD) the milk stage, and for catalase (CAT) during the tasseling, blister, and milk stages. Meanwhile, membrane lipid peroxidation (measured as malondialdehyde content) significantly increased (P < 0.01) in all stages.

Critical parameters of horizontal well influenced by semi-permeable barrier in bottom water reservoir

It is well-known that barriers have a significant impact on the production performance of horizontal wells developed in a bottom water drive reservoir. In most cases, reservoir barriers are semi-permeable. Based on previous research on impermeable reservoir barrier, a mathematical flow model was derived for a horizontal well of a bottom water drive reservoir with a semi-permeable barrier. Besides, analytical equations were also presented to calculate critical parameters, such as production rate,pressure and potential difference. The effects of barrier, well and reservoir parameters on our model results were further investigated.The results show that the larger the barrier size is or the higher the barrier location is, the higher the critical production rate and potential difference of a horizontal well are. When the barrier permeability equals the formation permeability or the barrier width equals zero, the critical production rates converge to the values same to that of the case with no barrier. When the barrier permeability equals zero, the problem is regarded as a case of impermeable barrier. This model can be applied to predicting horizontal wells' critical production parameters in reservoirs with semi-permeable barriers.

Synthesis of Hyperbranched Polymers and Its Effect on Water Vapor Permeability of Microfiber Synthetic Leather

A series of hyperbranched poly(amine-ester)polyols were synthesized by the polycondensation of N,N-diethylol-3-amine-methylpropionate(prepared by Michael addition reaction of methyl acrylate with diethanolamine)as an AB2-type monomer with trimethylol propane as the core moiety,proceeding in one-step procedure in the melt with p-toluenesulfonic acid as catalyst.The obtained monomer and polymers were characterized by FTIR and 1H-NMR spectroscopy.The solubility and surface activity in aqueous solution of the polymers were also examined.The gas permeability,water vapor permeability,and moisture absorption of microfiber synthetic leather treated by hyperbranched polymer were studied.The optimum conditions were that the dosage of dye and hyperbranched polymer was 5% and 10%,respectively.The water vapor permeability and moisture absorption of microfiber synthetic leather reached to 0.525 4 mg/(10 cm2·24 h)and 0.046 7 mg/(10 cm2·24 h).Compared with blank samples,they increased by 15% and 35%,respectively.However,the dosage of hyperbranched polymer has little influence on gas permeability of microfiber synthetic leather.SEM results show that the fiber of microfiber synthetic leather treated by hyperbranched polymer is incompact.

Model Study of Permeable Caisson Breakwater with Slanting Slabs

This paper describes the design of a permeable caisson breakwater with slanting slabs (Types I and II) and presents some preliminary experimental results, together with relevant figures and tables. Analysis is made of the reflection coefficient, transmission coefficient, acting wave pressures, water jetting at the crest of the breakwater, and wave overtopping. Experiments show conclusively that this type of breakwater has the advantages of light dead weight, good wave-absorbing performance, low coefficients of reflection and transmission, and small wave overtopping.

AN EXTENSION OF THE METHOD FOR PREDICTING PERMEABILITY THROUGH POLYMER MEMBRANES FROM SIMPLE GASES TO WATER VAPOR

It is found that there is a linear relationship between log P-w, and the parameter term V-f/0.5 E(coh) [1+(delta(w) - delta(p))(2)/delta(p)(2), from the water permeability (P-w) data of 21 polymers covering 4 orders of magnitude. This correlation may be useful in choosing membrane materials for dehumidification of gases.

Pore-Throat Combination Types and Gas-Water Relative Permeability Responses of Tight Gas Sandstone Reservoirs in the Zizhou Area of East Ordos Basin, China

With the aim of better understanding the tight gas reservoirs in the Zizhou area of east Ordos Basin,a total of 222 samples were collected from 50 wells for a series of experiments.In this study,three pore-throat combination types in sandstones were revealed and confirmed to play a controlling role in the distribution of throat size and the characteristics of gas-water relative permeability.The type-I sandstones are dominated by intercrystalline micropores connected by cluster throats,of which the distribution curves of throat size are narrow and have a strong single peak(peak ratio>30%).The pores in the type-II sandstones dominantly consist of secondary dissolution pores and intercrystalline micropores,and throats mainly occur as slice-shaped throats along cleavages between rigid grain margins and cluster throats in clay cement.The distribution curves of throat size for the type-II sandstones show a bimodal distribution with a substantial low-value region between the peaks(peak ratio<15%).Primary intergranular pores and secondary intergranular pores are mainly found in type-III samples,which are connected by various throats.The throat size distribution curves of type-III sandstones show a nearly normal distribution with low kurtosis(peak ratio<10%),and the micro-scale throat radii(>0.5μm)constitute a large proportion.From type-I to type-III sandstones,the irreducible water saturation(Swo)decreased;furthermore,the slope of the curves of Krw/Krg in two-phase saturation zone decreased and the two-phase saturation zone increased,indicating that the gas relative flow ability increased.Variations of the permeability exist in sandstones with different porethroat combination types,which indicate the type-III sandstones are better reservoirs,followed by type-II sandstones and type-I sandstones.As an important factor affecting the reservoir quality,the pore-throat combination type in sandstones is the cumulative expression of lithology and diagenetic modifications with strong heterogeneity.

Optimized water vapor permeability of sodium alginate films using response surface methodology

The water vapor permeability(WVP)of films is important when developing pharmaceutical applications.Films are frequently used as coatings,and as such directly influence the quality of the medicine.The optimization of processing conditions for sodium alginate films was investigated using response surface methodology.Single-factor tests and Box-Behnken experimental design were employed.WVP was selected as the response variable,and the operating parameters for the single-factor tests were sodium alginate concentration,carboxymethyl cellulose(CMC)concentration and CaCl2solution immersion time.The coefficient of determination(R2)was 0.97,indicating statistical significance.A minimal WVP of0.389 8 g·mm/(m2·h·kPa)was achieved under the optimum conditions.These were found to be a sodium alginate concentration,CMC concentration and CaCl2solution immersion time at 8.04%,0.13%,and12 min,respectively.This provides a reference for potential applications in manufacturing film-coated hard capsule shells.