An analytical model for water-oil two-phase flow in inorganic nanopores in shale oil reservoirs

The existence of water phase occupies oil flow area and impacts the confined oil flow behavior at the solid substrate in inorganic nanopores of shale oil reservoirs,resulting in a completely different flow pattern when compared with the single oil phase flow.This study proposes an analytical model to describe the water-oil two-phase flow.In this model,water slippage at the solid substrate is considered while oil slip is introduced to calculate the oil movement at the solid-oil boundary in dry conditions.It is proven that the oil flow profiles of both the two-phase model and single-phase model show parabolic shapes,but the oil flow capacity drops when water takes up the flow space and the impact of water is more significant when the pore dimension is smaller than 30 nm.Also,the oil flow velocity at a pore center is found to drop linearly given a larger water saturation in wet conditions.The effects of surface wettability and oil properties on water-oil flow are also discussed.Compared with the existing singlephase models,this model describes oil flow pattern in the wet condition with the incorporation of the influence of nanopore properties,which better predicts the oil transport in actual reservoir conditions.Water-oil relative permeability curves are also obtained to improve oil yield.

Liquid holdup measurement with double helix capacitance sensor in horizontal oil-water two-phase flow pipes

This paper presents the characteristics of a double helix capacitance sensor for measurement of the liquid holdup in horizontal oil–water two-phase flow. The finite element method is used to calculate the sensitivity field of the sensor in a pipe with 20 mm inner diameter and the effect of sensor geometry on the distribution of sensitivity field is presented. Then, a horizontal oil–water two-phase flow experiment is carried out to measure the response of the double helix capacitance sensor, in which a novel method is proposed to calibrate the liquid holdup based on three pairs of parallel-wire capacitance probes. The performance of the sensor is analyzed in terms of the flow structures detected by mini-conductance array probes.

Attractor comparison analysis for characterizing vertical upward oil gas water three-phase flow

We investigate the dynamic characteristics of oil-gas-water three-phase flow in terms of chaotic attractor comparison. In particular, we extract a statistic to characterize the dynamical difference in attractor probability distribution. We first take time series from Logistic chaotic system with different parameters as examples to demonstrate the effectiveness of the method. Then we use this method to investigate the experimental signals from oil-gas-water three-phase flow. The results indicate that the extracted statistic is very sensitive to the change of flow parameters and can gain a quantitatively insight into the dynamic characteristics of different flow patterns.

Experimental study on steam-water two-phase flow frictional pressure drops in helical coils

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Laboratory investigation into the oil diffusion from submarine pipeline under water flow

A physical model test has been conducted to study the oil diffusion from the submarine pipeline under water flow.The crude oil in the flume is spilled from a leakage point of the pipeline and diffused from the seabed to the surface. By the non-contact optical measuring technology, an image acquisition and data analysis system is designed to explore the spilled mechanism and characteristic. The oil trajectory, velocity and the rising time to the surface are obtained through this system. The influence of the water flow and the spilled discharge on the behavior of the spilled oil are analyzed from both qualitative and quantitative perspectives. The sensitivity study of the characteristic physical quantities to various factors are presented afterward. The spilled oil under water is mainly distributed in the form of the scattered particles with different sizes. The rising process of the oil can be divided into three stages: full, dispersion and aggregation period. The spilled discharge is the primary factor affecting the rising time of the oil particles. In the rising process of the oil particles, the vertical velocity of the oil is mainly affected by the spilled discharge, and the transverse velocity is more dependent on the water velocity. The deviation of the transverse oil velocity is much larger than that of the rising time and the vertical oil velocity. The study can provide a theoretical reference for the prediction system of oil spill emergency.

Phase transition model of water flow irradiated by high-energy laser in a chamber

In the absorption chamber of a high-energy laser energy meter, water is directly used as an absorbing medium and the interaction of the high-power laser and the water flow can produce a variety of physical phenomena such as phase transitions. The unit difference method is adopted to deduce the phase transition model for water flow irradiated by a high-energy laser. In addition, the model is simulated and verified through experiments. Among them, the experimental verification uses the photographic method, shooting the distribution and the form of the air mass of water flow in different operating conditions, which are compared with the simulation results. The research shows that it is achievable to reduce the intensity of the phase transition by increasing the water flow, reducing the power intensity of the beam, shortening the distance the beam covers, reducing the initial water temperature or adopting a shorter wavelength laser. The study＇s results will provide the reference for the design of a water-direct-absorption-type high-energy laser energy meter as well as an analysis of the interaction processes of other similar high-power lasers and water flow.

Flow Characteristics of Crude Oil with High Water Fraction during Non-heating Gathering and Transportation

In order to ensure the safety of the non-heating gathering and transportation processes for high water fraction crude oil,the effect of temperature,water fraction,and flow rate on the flow characteristics of crude oil with high water fraction was studied in a flow experimental system of the X Oilfield.Four distinct flow patterns were identified by the photographic and local sampling techniques.Especially,three new flow patterns were found to occur below the pour point of crude oil,including EW/O&W stratified flow with gel deposition,EW/O&W intermittent flow with gel deposition,and water single-phase flow with gel deposition.Moreover,two characteristic temperatures,at which the change rate of pressure drop had changed obviously,were found during the change of pressure drop.The characteristic temperature of the first congestion of gel deposition in the pipeline was determined to be the safe temperature for the non-heating gathering and transportation of high water cut crude oil,while the pressure drop reached the peak at this temperature.An empirical formula for the safe temperature was established for oil-water flow with high water fraction/low fluid production rate.The results can serve as a guide for the safe operation of the non-heating gathering and transportation of crude oil in high water fraction oilfields.

THE STUDY ON THREE-DIMENSIONAL MATHEMATICAL MODEL OF RIVER BED EROSION FOR WATER-SEDIMENT TWO-PHASE FLOW

Based on the tensor analysis of water-sediment two-phase how, the basic model equations for clear water flow and sediment-laden flow are deduced in the general curve coordinates for natural water variable-density turbulent how. Furthermore, corresponding boundary conditions are also presented in connection with the composition and movement of non-uniform bed material. The theoretical results are applied to the calculation of the float open caisson in the construction period and good results are obtained.

Multifractal analysis of inclined oil-water countercurrent flow

Characterizing countercurrent flow structures in an inclined oil-water two-phase flow from one-dimensional measurement is of great importance for model building and sensor design.Firstly,we conducted oil-water two-phase flow experiments in an inclined pipe to measure the conductance signals of three typical water-dominated oil-water flow patterns in inclined flow,i.e.,dispersion oil-in-water pseudo-slug flow （PS）,dispersion oil-in-water countercurrent flow （CT）,and transitional flow （TF）.In pseudo-slug flow,countercurrent flow and transitional flow,oil is completely dispersed in water.Then we used magnitude and sign decomposition analysis and multifractal analysis to reveal levels of complexity in different flow patterns.We found that the PS and CT flow patterns both exhibited high complexity and obvious multifractal dynamic behavior,but the magnitude scaling exponent and singularity of the CT flow pattern were less than those of the PS flow pattern; and the TF flow pattern exhibited low complexity and almost monofractal behavior,and its magnitude scaling was close to random behavior.Meanwhile,at short time scales,all sign series of two-phase flow patterns exhibited very similar strong positive correlation; at high time scales,the scaling analysis of sign series showed different anti-correlated behavior.Furthermore,with an increase in oil flow rate,the flow structure became regular,which could be reflected by the decrease in the width of spectrum and the difference in dimensions.The results suggested that different oil-water flow patterns exhibited different nonlinear features,and the varying levels of complexity could well characterize the fluid dynamics underlying different oil-water flow patterns.

TWO-PHASE FLOW FOR A HORIZONTAL WELL PENETRATING A NATURALLY FRACTURED RESERVOIR WITH EDGE WATER INJECTION

This paper examines the two-phase flow for a horizontal well penetrating a naturally fractured reservoir with edge water injection by means of a fixed streamlinemodel,The mathematical model of the verical two-dimensional flow or oil-water for a horizontal well in a medium with double-porosity is established ,and whose accuratesolutions are obtained by using the characteristic method .The saturation distributionsin the fractured system and the matrix system as well as the formula of the time of water free production are presented .All these results provide a theoretical basis and a computing method for oil displacement by edge water from naturally fracturedreservirs.

Availability of MCNP & MATLAB for reconstructing the water-vapor two-phase flow pattern in neutron radiography

The China Advanced Research Reactor (CARR) is scheduled to be operated in the autumn of 2008.In this paper,we report preparations for installing the neutron radiography instrument (NRI) and for utilizing it efficiently. The 2-D relative neutron intensity profiles for the water-vapor two-phase flow inside the robe were obtained using the MCNP code without influence of y-ray and electronic-noise.The MCNP simulation of the 2-D neutron intensity profile for the water-vapor two-phase flow was demonstrated.The simulated 2-D neutron intensity profiles could be used as the benchmark data base by calibrating part of the data measured by the CARR-NRI.The 3-D objective images allow us to understand the flow pattern more clearly and it is reconstructed using the MATLAB through the threshold transformation techniques.And thus it is concluded that the MCNP code and the MATLAB are very useful for constructing the benchmark data base for the investigation of the water-vapor two-phase flow using the CARR-NRI.

Quantitative research of the liquid film characteristics in upward vertical gas, oil and water flows

The study of liquid film characteristics in multiphase flow is a very important research topic, however,the characteristics of the liquid film around Taylor bubble structure in gas, oil and water three-phase flow are not clear. In the present study, a novel liquid film sensor is applied to measure the distributed signals of the liquid film in three-phase flow. Based on the liquid film signals, the liquid film characteristics including the structural characteristics and the nonlinear dynamics characteristics in three-phase flows are investigated for the first time. The structural characteristics including the proportion, the appearance frequency and the thickness of the liquid film are obtained and the influences of the liquid and gas superficial velocities and the oil content on them are investigated. To investigate the nonlinear dynamics characteristics of the liquid film with the changing flow conditions, the entropy analysis is introduced to successfully uncover and quantify the dynamic complexity of the liquid film behavior.

Experimental and numerical simulation of air-water two-phase flow in the rod bundle with grid spacer

Experimental and numerical simulation were carried out on vertically upward air-water two-phase flow in the rod bundle with grid spacer. The related numerical simulation has been performed by using the Computational Fluid Dynamics code-CFX4.2, in which lateral interfacial effects based on a two-fluid model are accounted for. This model has been used to evaluate the velocity fields of gas and liquid phases, as well as phase distribution between elements in rod bundle by simulating 1/4 zone of experimental model, and mixing vanes of spacer in this area. Fur- thermore, this model has been used to predict the effects of spacer on flow and pressure drop along the rod bundle. The calculation results show that the mixing vane has significant influence on axial and lateral velocity. In order to obtain some experimental data to verify the numerical solutions, a series of tests, using a specially designed 3×3 rod bundle test section with AFA-2G structure spacer have been performed. An optical probe was used to measure local void fractions. At the same time, the pressure loss has been measured. A comparison between the calculated void pro- file and pressure loss and the measured results shows that the predicted void profiles are consistent at low gas appar- ent velocity. This research shows that the code CFX4.2 can be used to describe the 3-D air-water two-phase flow in the rod bundle channel with grid spacer.

Displacement of Oil in a Porous Medium on Diphasic Flow by Water Injection

The purpose of this article is to show the role and influence of fluid injection, porosity on two-phase flows in porous media for the purpose of improving and increasing recovery efficiency assisted by oil. An experimental study was carried out in porous media, it is a plexiglass cylinder filled with sands saturated with crude oil. Pressure drop and data processing for two-phase flow are measured and processed using a differential pressure sensor connected to an acquisition computer. It thus makes it possible to determine the pressure difference between the inlet and the outlet of the porous medium over time. In this experiment, the flow rates at the inlet and the outlet of the porous medium were measured as a function of time using a flow rate and a pump. To describe these flows we will use Darcy’s model.

Thermo-Hydrodynamics of Core-Annular Flow of Water, Heavy Oil and Air Using CFX

The transport of heavy and ultra-viscous oil employing the core-flow technique has been increasing recently, because it provides a greater reduction of the pressure drop during the flow. In this context, the effect of temperature and the presence of gas on the thermo-hydrodynamics of a three-phase water-heavy oil-air flow in a horizontal pipe under the influence of gravity and drag forces, using the commercial software ANSYS CFX?, have been evaluated. The standard κ ? ε turbulence model, the mixture model for heavy oil-water system and the particle model for heavy oil-gas and water-gas systems, were adopted. Results of velocity, volume fraction, pressure and temperature fields of the phases present along the pipe are presented and discussed. It has been found that the presence of the air phase and the variation in the temperature affect the behavior of annular flow and pressure drop.

Study on Flow Unit of Heavy Oil Bottom Water Reservoir with Over-Limited Thickness in Offshore Oilfield

The upper Ming section of L oilfield is a typical offshore heavy oil bottom-water reservoir with thick fluvial layers. All horizontal wells are developed by natural energy. Due to the few drilling holes and influence by the resolution of seismic data, it is difficult to describe reservoirs with thickness over 20 meters. In this paper, seismic resonance amplitude inversion technology is introduced to restore the real response of thick reservoirs and interbeds by drilling and drilling verification, and the geological bodies with different thickness are displayed by frequency division RGB three primary colors. Flow units of heavy oil reservoirs with bottom water are divided according to the three major factors of interlayer, lithologic internal boundary and water-oil thickness ratio which have the greatest influence on horizontal well development, thick sand bodies are divided into 10 different flow units in three levels, each unit is separated from each other, and the reservoir structure, water-cut characteristics and water-flooding characteristics are different. The reliability of the research is improved by using the dynamic data of horizontal wells and newly drilled passing wells, which provides a basis for tapping the potential of heavy oil reservoirs with bottom water.

Prediction of curved oil–water interface in horizontal pipes using modified model with dynamic contact angle

In this study,interface shapes of horizontal oil–water two-phase flow are predicted by using Young-Laplace equation model and minimum energy model.Meanwhile,the interface shapes of horizontal oil–water twophase flow in a 20 mm inner diameter pipe are measured by a novel conductance parallel-wire array probe(CPAP).It is found that,for flow conditions with low water holdup,there is a large deviation between the model-predicted interface shape and the experimentally measured one.Since the variation of pipe wetting characteristics in the process of fluid flow can lead to the changes of the contact angle between the fluid and the pipe wall,the models mentioned above are modified by considering dynamic contact angle.The results indicate that the interface shapes predicted by the modified models present a good consistence with the ones measured by CPAP.

Comparison of oil displacement mechanisms and performances between continuous and dispersed phase flooding agents

To compare the oil displacement mechanisms and performances of continuous phase flooding agent(traditional polymer solution) and dispersed phase flooding agent(particle-type polymer SMG dispersion), the particle phase separation of SMG dispersion migrating in pores was simulated by using the microfluidic technology. Theoretically guided by the tree fork concentration distribution of red cells in biological fluid mechanics, the concentration distribution mathematical model of SMG in different pores is established. Furthermore, the micro and macro physical simulation experiments of continuous and dispersed phase flooding agents were carried out. The results show that the continuous flooding agent enters all the swept zones and increases the flow resistance in both larger and small pores. On the contrary, the particle phase separation phenomenon occurs during the injection process of dispersed flooding agent. The SMG particles gather in the larger pore to form bridge blinding, and the carrier fluid displace oil in the small pore. Working in cooperation, the SMG particle and carrier fluid drive the residual oil in the low permeability layers step by step and achieve the goal of enhanced oil recovery. The laboratory experimental results indicate that, the oil increment and water reduction effect of dispersed flooding agent is much better than that of continuous flooding agent, which is consistent with the field test results.

Experimental investigation of the effects of various parameters on viscosity reduction of heavy crude by oil-water emulsion

The effects of water content, shear rate, temperature, and solid particle concentration on viscosity reduction （VR） caused by forming stable emulsions were investigated using Omani heavy crude oil. The viscosity of the crude oil was initially measured with respect to shear rates at different temperatures from 20 to 70℃. The crude oil exhibited a shear thinning behavior at all the temperatures. The strongest shear thinning was observed at 20℃. A non-ionic water soluble surfactant （Triton X-100） was used to form and stabilize crude oil emulsions. The emulsification process has significantly reduced the crude oil viscosity. The degree of VR was found to increase with an increase in water content and reach its maximum value at 50 % water content. The phase inversion from oil- oil emulsion occurred at 30 in-water emulsion to water-in- % water content. The results indicated that the VR was inversely proportional to temperature and concentration of silica nanoparticles. For water-in-oil emulsions, VR increased with shear rate and eventually reached a plateau at a shear rate of around 350 s^-1. This was attributed to the thinning behavior of the continuous phase. The VR of oil-in-water emulsions remained almost constant as the shear rate increased due to the Newtonian behavior of water, the continuous phase.

Simulation Experiments in Electromagnetic Tomography Well Logging in Two-phase Flow

Electromagnetic Computer Tomography （ECT） is a method to probe the interior of an inhomogeneous medium via surface measurement in a non-linear way. Due to the great differences in conductivity and permittivity between oil and water in the well, Electromagnetic Tomography Well Logging （ETWL）, a new flow imaging measurement system, is proposed to describe the distribution and movement of oil/water two-phase flow in the well by scanning the detected region and applying a suitable data processing algorithm. The results of the numerical simulation and physical modeling show that the system could provide a clear image of the flow profile.