A Unified Dimensionless Parameter for Finite Element Mesh for Beams Resting on Elastic Foundation

Discretising a structure into elements is a key step in finite element(FE)analysis.The discretised geometry used to formulate an FE model can greatly affect accuracy and validity.This paper presents a unified dimensionless parameter to generate a mesh of cubic FEs for the analysis of very long beams resting on an elastic foundation.A uniform beam resting on elastic foundation with various values of flexural stiffness and elastic supporting coefficients subject to static load and moving load is used to illustrate the application of the proposed parameter.The numerical results show that(a)Even if the values of the flexural stiffness of the beam and elastic supporting coefficient of the elastic foundation are different,the same proposed parameter“s”can ensure the same accuracy of the FE solution,but the accuracy may differ for use of the same element length;(b)The proposed dimensionless parameter“s”can indeed be used as a unified index to generate the mesh for a beam resting on elastic foundation,whereas the use of the same element length as a criterion may be misleading;(c)The errors between the FE and analytical solutions for the maximum vertical displacement,shear force and bending moment of the beam increase with the dimensionless parameter“s”;and(d)For the given allowable errors for the vertical displacement,shear force and bending moment of the beam under static load and moving load,the corresponding values of the proposed parameter are provided to guide the mesh generation.

Theoretical analysis of microscopic oil displacement mechanism by viscoelastic polymer solution

The microscopic oil displacement mechanism in viscoelastic polymer flooding is theoretically analyzed with mechanical method.The effects of viscoelasticity of polymer solution on such three kinds of residual oil as in pore throat,in sudden expansion pore path,and in dead end are analyzed.Results show that the critical radius of mobile residual oil for viscoelastic polymer solution is larger than that for viscous polymer solution,which makes the oil that is immobile in viscous polymer flooding displaced u...

Classification of Oil-Gas-Water Three-Phase Flow in a Pipeline Based on BP Neural Network Analysis

The flow pattern in a pipeline is a very important topic in petroleum exploitation. This paper is to classify the flow pattern of oil-gas-water flow in a pipeline by using BP neural network. The effects of different parameter combinations are investigated to find the most important ones. It is shown that BP neural network can be used in the analysis of the flow pattern of three-phase flow in pipelines. In most cases, the mean square error is large for the horizontal pipes. The optimized neuron number of the middle layer changes with conditions. So, we must changes the neuron number of the middle layer in simulation for any conditions to seek the best results. These conclusions can be taken as references for further study of the flow pattern of oil-gas-water in a pipeline.

A novel pore-fracture dual network modeling method considering dynamic cracking and its applications

Unconventional reservoirs are normally characterized by dual porous media, which has both multi-scalepore and fracture structures, such as low permeability or tight oil reservoirs. The seepage characteristicsof such reservoirs is mainly determined by micro-fractures, but conventional laboratory experimentalmethods are difficult to measure it, which is attribute to the dynamic cracking of these micro-fractures.The emerging digital core technology in recent years can solve this problem by developing an accuratepore network model and a rational simulation approach. In this study, a novel pore-fracture dualnetwork model was established based on percolation theory. Fluid flow in the pore of two scales, microfracture and matrix pore, were considered, also with the impact of micro-fracture opening and closingduring flow. Some seepage characteristic parameters, such as fluid saturations, capillary pressure, relative permeabilities, displacement efficiency in different flow stage, can be predicted by proposedcalculating method. Through these work, seepage characteristics of dual porous media can be achieved.