Porous-DeepONet:Learning the Solution Operators of Parametric Reactive Transport Equations in Porous Media

Reactive transport equations in porous media are critical in various scientific and engineering disciplines,but solving these equations can be computationally expensive when exploring different scenarios,such as varying porous structures and initial or boundary conditions.The deep operator network(DeepONet)has emerged as a popular deep learning framework for solving parametric partial differential equations.However,applying the DeepONet to porous media presents significant challenges due to its limited capability to extract representative features from intricate structures.To address this issue,we propose the Porous-DeepONet,a simple yet highly effective extension of the DeepONet framework that leverages convolutional neural networks(CNNs)to learn the solution operators of parametric reactive transport equations in porous media.By incorporating CNNs,we can effectively capture the intricate features of porous media,enabling accurate and efficient learning of the solution operators.We demonstrate the effectiveness of the Porous-DeepONet in accurately and rapidly learning the solution operators of parametric reactive transport equations with various boundary conditions,multiple phases,and multiphysical fields through five examples.This approach offers significant computational savings,potentially reducing the computation time by 50–1000 times compared with the finite-element method.Our work may provide a robust alternative for solving parametric reactive transport equations in porous media,paving the way for exploring complex phenomena in porous media.

The impact of heterogeneity and pore network characteristics on single and multi-phase fluid propagation in complex porous media:An X-ray computed tomography study

This study investigates the impact of pore network characteristics on fluid flow through complex and heterogeneous porous media,providing insights into the factors affecting fluid propagation in such systems.Specifically,high-resolution or micro X-ray computed tomography(CT)imaging techniques were utilized to examine outcrop stromatolite samples of the Lagoa Salgada,considered flow analogous to the Brazilian Pre-salt carbonate reservoirs.The petrophysical results comprised two distinct stromatolite depositional facies,the columnar and the fine-grained facies.By generating pore network model(PNM),the study quantified the relationship between key features of the porous system,including pore and throat radius,throat length,coordination number,shape factor,and pore volume.The study found that the less dense pore network of the columnar sample is typically characterized by larger pores and wider and longer throats but with a weaker connection of throats to pores.Both facies exhibited less variability in the radius of the pores and throats in comparison to throat length.Additionally,a series of core flooding experiments coupled with medical CT scanning was designed and conducted in the plug samples to assess flow propagation and saturation fields.The study revealed that the heterogeneity and presence of disconnected or dead-end pores significantly impacted the flow patterns and saturation.Two-phase flow patterns and oil saturation distribution reveal a preferential and heterogeneous displacement that mainly swept displaced fluid in some regions of plugs and bypassed it in others.The relation between saturation profiles,porosity profiles,and the number of fluid flow patterns for the samples was evident.Only for the columnar plug sample was the enhancement in recovery factor after shifting to lower salinity water injection(SB)observed.

Effects of confining pressure and pore pressure on multipole borehole acoustic field in fluid-saturated porous media

In-situ stress is a common stress in the exploration and development of oil reservoirs. Therefore, it is of great significance to study the propagation characteristics of borehole acoustic waves in fluid-saturated porous media under stress.Based on the acoustoelastic theory of fluid-saturated porous media, the field equation of fluid-saturated porous media under the conditions of confining pressure and pore pressure and the acoustic field formula of multipole source excitation in open hole are given. The influences of pore pressure and confining pressure on guided waves of multipole borehole acoustic field in fluid-saturated porous media are investigated. The numerical results show that the phase velocity and excitation intensity of guided wave increase significantly under the confining pressure. For a given confining pressure, the phase velocity of the guided wave decreases with pore pressure increasing. The excitation intensity of guided wave increases at low frequency and then decreases at high frequency with pore pressure increasing, except for that of Stoneley wave which decreases in the whole frequency range. These results will help us get an insight into the influences of confining pressure and pore pressure on the acoustic field of multipole source in borehole around fluid-saturated porous media.

A study on the temperature sensitivity of NMR porosity in porous media based on the intensity of magnetization Dedicated to the special issue “Magnetic Resonance in Porous Media”

The measurement of nuclear magnetic resonance(NMR)porosity is affected by temperature.Without considering the impact of NMR logging tools,this phenomenon is mainly caused by variations in magnetization intensity of the measured system due to temperature fluctuations and difference between the temperature of the porous medium and calibration sample.In this study,the effect of temperature was explained based on the thermodynamic theory,and the rules of NMR porosity responses to temperature changes were identified through core physics experiments.In addition,a method for correcting the influence of temperature on NMR porosity measurement was proposed,and the possible factors that may affect its application were also discussed.

Anisotropic dynamic permeability model for porous media

Based on the tortuous capillary network model,the relationship between anisotropic permeability and rock normal strain,namely the anisotropic dynamic permeability model(ADPM),was derived and established.The model was verified using pore-scale flow simulation.The uniaxial strain process was calculated and the main factors affecting permeability changes in different directions in the deformation process were analyzed.In the process of uniaxial strain during the exploitation of layered oil and gas reservoirs,the effect of effective surface porosity on the permeability in all directions is consistent.With the decrease of effective surface porosity,the sensitivity of permeability to strain increases.The sensitivity of the permeability perpendicular to the direction of compression to the strain decreases with the increase of the tortuosity,while the sensitivity of the permeability in the direction of compression to the strain increases with the increase of the tortuosity.For layered reservoirs with the same initial tortuosity in all directions,the tortuosity plays a decisive role in the relative relationship between the variations of permeability in all directions during pressure drop.When the tortuosity is less than 1.6,the decrease rate of horizontal permeability is higher than that of vertical permeability,while the opposite is true when the tortuosity is greater than 1.6.This phenomenon cannot be represented by traditional dynamic permeability model.After the verification by experimental data of pore-scale simulation,the new model has high fitting accuracy and can effectively characterize the effects of deformation in different directions on the permeability in all directions.

Prediction of Porous Media Fluid Flow with Spatial Heterogeneity Using Criss-Cross Physics-Informed Convolutional Neural Networks

Recent advances in deep neural networks have shed new light on physics,engineering,and scientific computing.Reconciling the data-centered viewpoint with physical simulation is one of the research hotspots.The physicsinformedneural network(PINN)is currently the most general framework,which is more popular due to theconvenience of constructing NNs and excellent generalization ability.The automatic differentiation(AD)-basedPINN model is suitable for the homogeneous scientific problem;however,it is unclear how AD can enforce fluxcontinuity across boundaries between cells of different properties where spatial heterogeneity is represented bygrid cells with different physical properties.In this work,we propose a criss-cross physics-informed convolutionalneural network(CC-PINN)learning architecture,aiming to learn the solution of parametric PDEs with spatialheterogeneity of physical properties.To achieve the seamless enforcement of flux continuity and integration ofphysicalmeaning into CNN,a predefined 2D convolutional layer is proposed to accurately express transmissibilitybetween adjacent cells.The efficacy of the proposedmethodwas evaluated through predictions of several petroleumreservoir problems with spatial heterogeneity and compared against state-of-the-art(PINN)through numericalanalysis as a benchmark,which demonstrated the superiority of the proposed method over the PINN.

Modeling of multiphase flow in low permeability porous media:Effect of wettability and pore structure properties

Multiphase flow in low permeability porous media is involved in numerous energy and environmental applications.However,a complete description of this process is challenging due to the limited modeling scale and the effects of complex pore structures and wettability.To address this issue,based on the digital rock of low permeability sandstone,a direct numerical simulation is performed considering the interphase drag and boundary slip to clarify the microscopic water-oil displacement process.In addition,a dual-porosity pore network model(PNM)is constructed to obtain the water-oil relative permeability of the sample.The displacement efficiency as a recovery process is assessed under different wetting and pore structure properties.Results show that microscopic displacement mechanisms explain the corresponding macroscopic relative permeability.The injected water breaks through the outlet earlier with a large mass flow,while thick oil films exist in rough hydrophobic surfaces and poorly connected pores.The variation of water-oil relative permeability is significant,and residual oil saturation is high in the oil-wet system.The flooding is extensive,and the residual oil is trapped in complex pore networks for hydrophilic pore surfaces;thus,water relative permeability is lower in the water-wet system.While the displacement efficiency is the worst in mixed-wetting systems for poor water connectivity.Microporosity negatively correlates with invading oil volume fraction due to strong capillary resistance,and a large microporosity corresponds to low residual oil saturation.This work provides insights into the water-oil flow from different modeling perspectives and helps to optimize the development plan for enhanced recovery.

Finite Difference Approach on Magnetohydrodynamic Stratified Fluid Flow Past Vertically Accelerated Plate in Porous Media with Viscous Dissipation

This study intends to evaluate the influence of temperature stratification on an unsteady fluid flow past an accelerated vertical plate in the existence of viscous dissipation.It is assumed that the medium under study is a grey,non-scattered fluid that both fascinates and transmits radiation.The leading equations are discretized using the finite differencemethod(FDM).UsingMATLABsoftware,the impacts of flowfactors on flowfields are revealed with particular examples in graphs and a table.In this regard,FDM results show that the velocity and temperature gradients increase with an increase of Eckert number.Furthermore,tables of the data indicate the influence of flow-contributing factors on the skin friction coefficients,and Nusselt numbers.When comparing constant and variable flow regimes,the constant flow regime has greater values for the nondimensional skin friction coefficient.This research is both innovative and fascinating since it has the potential to expand our understanding of fluid dynamics and to improve many different sectors.

Pore structure and liquid flow velocity distribution in water-saturated porous media probed by MRI

Magnetic resonance imaging （MRI） was used to probe the structure and flow velocity within the interparticle space of a packed bed of agar beads under water-saturated condition. The images of the velocity field at three different flow rates were obtained. To determine the pore-parameter of the porous media, the internal structure of the bed was also obtained using image processing technique. The results show that the porosity of the sample is 31.28% and the fitting curve for the distribution of pore equivalent diameter follows Gaussian distribution. The velocity profiles do shift as the flow rate varies and the solution flow through the void space is not a homogeneous flow in any pores. The velocity distributions within the pore are roughly parabolic with the local maximum being near the center. About half of the velocity components are in the class of 0-1 cm/s. The frequency of lower velocity components is lower at higher flow rate, but to higher velocity components, it is just the opposite.

Review on the Development of Oil and Gas Flow in Underground Porous Media

Through reviewing the flow theory’s birth and development history in underground porous media and contrasting the mechanics of underground fluids and mechanics of viscous fluids, this paper points out the main factors, which affect the development of the theory on oil and gas porous flow. The development law and development route of the mechanics of fluids in porous media are also summarized in this paper.

Training image analysis for three-dimensional reconstruction of porous media

In order to obtain a better sandstone three-dimensional （3D） reconstruction result which is more similar to the original sample, an algorithm based on stationarity for a two-dimensional （2D） training image is proposed. The second-order statistics based on texture features are analyzed to evaluate the scale stationarity of the training image. The multiple-point statistics of the training image are applied to obtain the multiple-point statistics stationarity estimation by the multi-point density function. The results show that the reconstructed 3D structures are closer to reality when the training image has better scale stationarity and multiple-point statistics stationarity by the indications of local percolation probability and two-point probability. Moreover, training images with higher multiple-point statistics stationarity and lower scale stationarity are likely to obtain closer results to the real 3D structure, and vice versa. Thus, stationarity analysis of the training image has far-reaching significance in choosing a better 2D thin section image for the 3D reconstruction of porous media. Especially, high-order statistics perform better than low-order statistics.

Gas Condensate Two Phase Flow Performance in Porous Media Considering Capillary Number and Non-Darcy Effects

Retrograde condensation frequently occurs during the development of gas condensate reservoirs. The loss of productivity is often observed due to the reduced relative permeability to gas as condensate accumulates near the well bore region. How to describe the condensate blockage effect exactly has been a continuous research topic. However, up to now, the present methods usually over-estimate or underestimate the productivity reduction due to an incorrect understanding of the mechanism of flow in porous medium, which inevitably results in an inaccurate prediction of production performance. It has been found in recent numerous theoretical and experimental studies that capillary number and non-Darcy flow have significant influence on relative permeability in regions near the well bore. The two effects impose opposite impacts on production performance, thus leading to gas condensate flow showing characteristics different from general understanding. It is significant for prediction of performance in gas condensate wells to understand the two effects exactly. The aim of the paper is to describe and analyze the flow dynamics in porous media accurately during the production of gas condensate reservoirs. Based on the description of three-zone flow mechanism, capillary number and non-Darcy effect are incorporated in the analysis of relative permeability, making it possible to describe the effect of condensate blockage. The effect of capillary number and inertial flow on gas and condensate relative permeability is analyzed in detail. Novel Inflow Performance Relation (IPR) models considering high velocity effects are formulated and the contrast analysis of different IPR models is conducted. The result shows that the proposed method can help predict the production performance and productivity more accurately than conventional methods.

NUMERICAL STUDY ON NATURAL CONVECTION HEAT TRANSFER INSIDE RECTANGULAR ENCLOSURE FILLED WITH ANISOTROPIC POROUS MEDIA

Natural convection heat transfer inside horizontal rectangular enclosure filled with the anisotropic porous media, with isothermally heated bottom and cooled top while the vertical walls are adiabatic, is analyzed numerically by applying the Brinkman model-a modified form of Darcy model giving consideration to the viscous effect. The results show that: (1)the permeability ratio (K*=Ky/Kx) is an important factor affecting natural convection heat transfer in the porous media. As K' decreases, the circulation intensity of the natural convectioncells increase significantly, resulting in an enhancement of heat transfer coefficient; (2)the increase of Darcy number (aa=Ky/H2) implies that the viscous effect is more significant. As Da≥10-, there exists a certain difference between the Darcy model and the Brinkman model. It is more significant at a lower permeability ratio. In particalar, with K*≤0. 25, the Nusselt number for Da=10-3 would differ form that of Darcy model up to an amount of 30K. The Darcy flow as depicted by Darcy model is no longer existing and an analysis neglecting the viscous effect will inevitably be of considerable error.

A new numerical technique for simulating the coupled seismic and electromagnetic waves in layered porous media

Chen＇s technique of computing synthetic seismograms, which decomposes every vector with a set of basis of orthogonality and completeness before applying the Luco-Apsel-Chen （LAC） generalized reflection and transmission coefficients method, is confirmed to be efficient in dealing with elastic waves in multi-layered media and accurate in any frequency range. In this article, we extend Chen＇s technique to the computation of coupled seismic and electromagnetic （EM） waves in layered porous media. Expanding the involved mechanical and electromagnetic fields by a set of scalar and vector wave-function basis, we obtain the fundamental equations which are subsequently solved by using a recently developed version of the LAC generalized reflection and transmission coefficients method. Our approach and corresponding program is validated by reciprocity tests. We also show a numerical example of a two-layer model with an explosion source. The P-to-EM conversion waves radiated from the interface may have potential application.

Visualization of CO_2 and oil immiscible and miscible flow processes in porous media using NMR micro-imaging

CO2 flooding is considered not only one of the most effective enhanced oil recovery （EOR） methods, but also an important alternative for geological CO2 storage. In this paper, the visualization of CO2 flooding was studied using a 400 MHz NMR micro-imaging system. For gaseous CO2 immiscible displacement, it was found that CO2 channeling or fingering occurred due to the difference of fluid viscosity and density. Thus, the sweep efficiency was small and the final residual oil saturation was 53.1%. For supercritical CO2 miscible displacement, the results showed that piston-like displacement occurred, viscous fingering and the gravity override caused by the low viscosity and density of the gas was effectively restrained, and the velocity of CO2 front was uniform. The sweep efficiency was so high that the final residual oil saturation was 33.9%, which indicated CO2 miscible displacement could enhance oil recovery more than CO2 immiscible displacement. In addition, the average velocity of CO2 front was evaluated through analyzing the oil saturation profile. A special core analysis method has been applied to in-situ oil saturation data to directly evaluate the local Darcy phase velocities and capillary dispersion rate.

Numerical simulation of displacement characteristics of CO_2 injected in pore-scale porous media

Pore structure of porous media, including pore size and topology, is rather complex. In immiscible twophase displacement process, the capillary force affected by pore size dominates the two-phase flow in the porous media, affecting displacement results. Direct observation of the flow patterns in the porous media is difficult, and therefore knowledge about the two-phase displacement flow is insufficient. In this paper, a two-dimensional(2D) pore structure was extracted from a sandstone sample, and the flow process that CO_2 displaces resident brine in the extracted pore structure was simulated using the Navier eStokes equation combined with the conservative level set method. The simulation results reveal that the pore throat is a crucial factor for determining CO_2 displacement process in the porous media. The two-phase meniscuses in each pore throat were in a self-adjusting process. In the displacement process,CO_2 preferentially broke through the maximum pore throat. Before breaking through the maximum pore throat, the pressure of CO_2 continually increased, and the curvature and position of two-phase interfaces in the other pore throats adjusted accordingly. Once the maximum pore throat was broken through by the CO_2, the capillary force in the other pore throats released accordingly; subsequently, the interfaces withdrew under the effect of capillary fore, preparing for breaking through the next pore throat.Therefore, the two-phase displacement in CO_2 injection is accompanied by the breaking through and adjusting of the two-phase interfaces.

Study of the permeability characteristics of porous media with methane hydrate by pore network model

The permeability in the methane hydrate reservoir is one of the key parameters in estimating the gas production performance and the flow behavior of gas and water during dissociation.In this paper,a three-dimensional cubic pore-network model based on invasion percolation is developed to study the effect of hydrate particle formation and growth habit on the permeability.The variation of permeability in porous media with different hydrate saturation is studied by solving the network problem.The simulation results are well consistent with the experimental data.The proposed model predicts that the permeability will reduce exponentially with the increase of hydrate saturation,which is crucial in developing a deeper understanding of the mechanism of hydrate formation and dissociation in porous media.

Evaluation of gas wettability and its effects on fluid distribution and fluid flow in porous media

The special gas wettability phenomenon of reservoir rocks has been recognized by more and more researchers.It has a significant effect on efficient development of unconventional reservoirs.First,based on the preferentially gas-covered ability and surface free energy changes,definition and evaluation methods have been established.Second,a method for altering rock wettability and its mechanisms have been studied,surface oriented phenomena of functional groups with low surface energy are the fundamental reason for gas wettability alteration of rock.Third,the effect of gas wettability on the surface energy,electrical properties and dilatability are investigated.Last,the effects of gas wettability on capillary pressure,oil/gas/water distribution and flow are investigated with capillary tubes and etchedglass network models.The gas wettability theory of reservoir rocks has been initially established,which provides theoretical support for the efficient production of unconventional reservoirs and has great significance.

GURTIN VARIATIONAL PRINCIPLE AND FINITE ELEMENT SIMULATION FOR DYNAMICAL PROBLEMS OF FLUID-SATURATED POROUS MEDIA

Based on the theory of porous media, a general Gurtin variational principle for the initial boundary value problem of dynamical response of fluid-saturated elastic porous media is developed by assuming infinitesimal deformation and incompressible constituents of the solid and fluid phase. The finite element formulation based on this variational principle is also derived. As the functional of the variational principle is a spatial integral of the convolution formulation, the general finite element discretization in space results in symmetrical differential-integral equations in the time domain. In some situations, the differential-integral equations can be reduced to symmetrical differential equations and, as a numerical example, it is employed to analyze the reflection of one-dimensional longitudinal wave in a fluid-saturated porous solid. The numerical results can provide further understanding of the wave propagation in porous media.

Insight into the structural evolution of porous and fractured media by forced aeration during heap leaching

Despite lots of techniques in improving the heap leaching performance,many constraints on the industrial applications remain.We proposed a correspondingly effective and new idea of introducing forced aeration to improve the bad permeability and leaching effect of Yangla Copper Mine(YCM)during heap leaching.The dual-media theory was employed to study the impact mechanism of forced aeration on the variations of porous and fractured media during the column leaching experiments.An X-Ray Computed Tomography(CT)set was utilized to perform the pore imaging of the specimens and the fracture morphology of the particles within the columns was analyzed by Scanning Electron Microscope(SEM)as aeration rate(AR)changed.The results show that there exists copious fine particles within the heap of YCM,the particle size distribution of which is not reasonable.The forced aeration can not only promote the development of the porous and fractured structures but effectively break the blocked seepage paths.Then the leaching degree is improved and the seepage performance of the solute within the solution is enhanced.Therefore,the forced aeration is probable of making the leaching performance greatly improved.