Fully Coupled Implicit Hydro-Mechanical Multiphase Flow Simulation in Deformable Porous Media Using DEM

TL;DR

This paper introduces a fully coupled implicit hydro-mechanical discrete element method for simulating multiphase flow in deformable porous media, enabling accurate, efficient micro-scale analysis relevant to subsurface engineering.

Contribution

It develops an advanced two-way coupled model integrating an implicit finite volume approach with dynamic flow interface tracking, improving pressure prediction and simulation efficiency in deformable porous media.

Findings

Validated against Hele-Shaw experiments in rigid and deformable media.

Provides detailed grain-scale insights into multiphase flow mechanisms.

Enables micro-mechanical analysis of flow transitions and micro-scale interactions.

Abstract

Knowledge of the underlying mechanisms of multiphase flow dynamics in porous media is crucial for optimizing subsurface engineering applications like geological carbon sequestration. However, studying the micro-mechanisms of multiphase fluid--grain interactions in the laboratory is challenging due to the difficulty in obtaining mechanical data such as force and displacement. Transitional discrete element method models coupled with pore networks offer insights into these interactions but struggle with accurate pressure prediction during pore expansion from fracturing and efficient simulation during the slow drainage of compressible fluids. To address these limitations, we develop an advanced two-way coupled hydro-mechanical discrete element method model that accurately and efficiently captures fluid--fluid and fluid--grain interactions in deformable porous media. Our model integrates an unconditionally stable implicit finite volume approach, enabling significant timesteps for advancing fluids. A pressure-volume iteration scheme dynamically balances injection-induced pressure buildup with substantial pore structure deformation, while flow front-advancing criteria precisely locate the fluid--fluid interface and adaptively refine timesteps, particularly when capillary effects block potential flow paths. The model is validated against benchmark Hele-Shaw experiments in both rigid and deformable porous media, providing quantitative insights into the micro-mechanisms governing multiphase flow. For the first time, grain-scale inputs such as viscous and capillary pressures, energies, contact forces, and flow resistances are utilized to provide a detailed understanding of micro-scale fluid--fluid and fluid--grain flow patterns and their transitions.