Wettability and Lenormand's diagram

Journal article

Fluid–fluid displacement in porous media has been viewed through the lens of Lenormand's phase diagram since the late 1980s. This diagram suggests that the character of the flow is controlled by two dimensionless parameters: the capillary number and the viscosity ratio. It is by now well known, however, that the wettability of the system plays a key role in determining the pore-scale displacement mechanisms and macroscopic invasion patterns. Here, we endow Lenormand's diagram with the impact of wettability using dynamic and quasi-static pore-network models. By using the fractal dimension and the ratio of characteristic viscous and capillary pressures we delineate the five principal displacement regimes within the extended phase diagram: stable displacement, viscous fingering, invasion percolation, cooperative pore filling and corner flow. We discuss the results in the context of pattern formation, displacement-front dynamics, pore-scale disorder and displacement efficiency.

Authors: Primkulov, BK; Pahlavan, AA; Fu, X; Zhao, B; Macminn, C

• Publication status: Published
• Peer review status: Peer reviewed
• Publisher: Cambridge University Press
• Journal: Journal of Fluid Mechanics
• Volume: 923
• Article number: A34
• Publication date: 2021-08-02
• Acceptance date: 2021-06-16
• DOI: 10.1017/jfm.2021.579
• EISSN: 1469-7645
• ISSN: 0022-1120
• Language: English
• Keywords: FFR