MODELING OF LASER MACHINING ON POLYMETHYL METHACRYLATE TO FABRICATE MICROFLUIDIC CHIP

The use of a CO2 laser system for fabrication of microfluidic chip on polymethyl methacrylate （PMMA） is presented to reduce fabrication cost and time of chip. The grooving process of the laser system and a model for the depth of microchannels are investigated. The relations between the depth of laser-cut channels and the laser beam power, velocity or the number of passes of the beam along the same channel are evaluated. In the experiments, the laser beam power varies from 0 to 50 W, the laser beam scanning velocity varies from 0 to 1 000 mm/s and the passes vary in the range of 1 to 10 times. Based on the principle of conservation of energy, the influence of the laser beam velocity, the laser power and the number of groove passes are examine. Considering the grooving interval energy loss, a modified mathematical model has been obtained and experimental data show good agreement with the theoretical model. This approach provides a simple way of predicting groove depths. The system provides a cost alternative of the other methods and it is especially useful on research work of rnicrofluidic prototyping due to the short cycle time of production.

Probing the influence of secondary fracture connectivity on fracturing fluid flowback efficiency

A deep understanding of the geometric impacts of fracture on fracturing fluid flowback efficiency is essential for unconventional oil development. Using nuclear magnetic resonance and 2.5-dimensional matrix-fracture visualization microfluidic models, qualitative and quantitative descriptions of the influences of connectivity between primary fracture and secondary fracture on flowback were given from core scale to pore network scale. The flow patterns of oil-gel breaking fluid two-phase flow during flowback under different fracture connectivity were analyzed. We found some counterintuitive results that non-connected secondary fracture (NCSF, not connect with artificial primary fracture and embedded in the matrix) is detrimental to flowbackefficiency. The NCSF accelerates the formation of oil channeling during flowback, resulting in a large amount of fracturing fluid trapped in the matrix, which is not beneficial for flowback. Whereas the connected secondary fracture (CSF, connected with the artificial primary fracture) is conducive to flowback. The walls of CSF become part of primary fracture, which expands the drainage area with low resistance, and delays the formation of the oil flow channel. Thus, CSF increases the high-speed flowback stage duration, thereby enhancing the flowback efficiency. The fracturing fluid flowback efficiency investigated here follows the sequence of the connected secondary fracture model (72%) > the matrix model (66%) > the non-connected secondary fracture model (38%). Our results contribute to hydraulic fracturing design and the prediction of flowback efficiency.

Automatic measurement of three-phase contact angles in pore throats based on digital images

With the help of digital image processing technology, an automatic measurement method for the three-phase contact angles in the pore throats of the microfluidic model was established using the microfluidic water flooding experiment videos as the data source. The results of the new method were verified through comparing with the manual measurement data.On this basis, the dynamic changes of the three-phase contact angles under flow conditions were clarified by the contact angles probability density curve and mean value change curve. The results show that, for water-wetting rocks, the mean value of the contact angles is acute angle during the early stage of the water flooding process, and it increases with the displacement time and becomes obtuse angle in the middle-late stage of displacement as the dominant force of oil phase gradually changes from viscous force to capillary force. The droplet flow in the remaining oil occurs in the central part of the pore throats, without three-phase contact angle. The contact angles for the porous flow and the columnar flow change slightly during the displacement and present as obtuse angles in view of mean values, which makes the remaining oil poorly movable and thus hard to be recovered. The mean value of the contact angle for the cluster flow tends to increase in the flooding process, which makes the remaining oil more difficult to be recovered. The contact angles for the membrane flow are mainly obtuse angles and reach the highest mean value in the late stage of displacement, which makes the remaining oil most difficult to be recovered. After displacement, the remaining oils under different flow regimes are just subjected to capillary force, with obtuse contact angles, and the wettability of the pore throat walls in the microfluidic model tends to be oil-wet under the action of crude oil.