Analysis of Seepage for Power-Law Fluids in the Fractal-Like Tree Network

作者：Wang, Shifang; Yu, Boming^*

来源：Transport in Porous Media, 2011, 87(1): 191-206.

DOI：10.1007/s11242-010-9675-8

• Fractal-like tree network
• Power-law fluids
• Permeability

This work studies the flow characteristics of power-law fluids in the fractal-like tree network. A fractal model is developed for the permeability of power-law fluid flow in fractal-like tree network based on straight capillary model, generalized Darcy's law and constitutive equation for power-law fluids. Analytical expression for permeability of power-law fluids in the network is presented and found to be a function of network microstructural parameters such as the branching diameter ratio, the branching length ratio, the total number of branching levels, the bifurcation angle, the branching number, the diameter of the zeroth branching level and the power exponent of power-law fluids. Both the phase permeabilities and the relative permeabilities are also derived and found to be a function of power exponent for the wetting phase and non-wetting phase, the saturation and other microstructural parameters and independent of the bifurcation angle.

• 出版日期2011-3
• 单位华中科技大学; 湖北第二师范学院