Simulation of residual oil displacement in a sinusoidal channel with the lattice Boltzmann method

TL;DR

This paper uses the lattice Boltzmann method to simulate residual oil displacement in a sinusoidal channel, validating models for complex multi-component flow with variable physical parameters.

Contribution

It introduces a lattice Boltzmann simulation approach for oil displacement in complex geometries, bridging the gap between simple and realistic models.

Findings

Validation against analytical solutions

Analysis of parameter effects on displacement accuracy

Discussion of requirements for precise simulation

Abstract

We simulate oil slug displacement in a sinusoidal channel in order to validate computational models and algorithms for multi-component flow. This case fits in the gap between fully realistic cases characterized by complicated geometry and academic cases with simplistic geometry. Our computational model is based on the lattice Boltzmann method and allows for variation of physical parameters such as wettability and viscosity. The effect of variation of model parameters is analyzed, in particular via comparison with analytical solutions. We discuss the requirements for accurate solution of the oil slug displacement problem.