DEVELOPMENT OF RADIAL MODELS FOR FORMATION DAMAGE IN POROUS MEDIA

The continuously changing velocities in radial geometry have a significant effect on process characteristics, making it an intellectually challenging problem. In practical operations, fluid is generally pumped down injection wells from where it flows radially outward. Simulating this radial system with linear models is definitely restrictive. Consequently, the need for developing radial models for flow and particle entrapment in porous media is both fundamental and applied.

A radial network model, covering a 120° angle, has been developed to simulate formation damage due to deep bed filtration (DBF) of injected suspensions. The models draws upon our previously developed concepts of “wave-front movement” and “flow-biased probability” for linear systems. Systematic studies have been performed on formation damage using monodispersed and polydispersed suspensions. Case studies have been presented for constant flow rate and constant pressure injections, and comparisons are made between linear and radial systems.

Results show that the results obtained from linear models are conservative in comparison to those obtained from radial models. Furthermore, the use of monodispersed particles in mathematical models would show smaller differences between linear and radial predictions than would actually occur for polydispersed particles.