Open Access

ARTICLE

Numerical Fluid Flow Modelling in Multiple Fractured Porous Reservoirs

Yatin Suri¹, Sheikh Zahidul Islam^{1, *}, Kirsten Stephen¹, Cameron Donald¹, Michael Thompson¹, Mohamad Ghazi Droubi¹, Mamdud Hossain¹

1 School of Engineering, Robert Gordon University, Aberdeen, UK.

* Corresponding Author: Sheikh Zahidul Islam. Email: .

(This article belongs to the Special Issue: CFD Modeling and Multiphase Flows)

Fluid Dynamics & Materials Processing 2020, 16(2), 245-266. https://doi.org/10.32604/fdmp.2020.06505

Received 01 March 2019; Accepted 30 July 2019; Issue published 21 April 2020

Abstract

This paper compares the fluid flow phenomena occurring within a fractured reservoir for three different fracture models using computational fluid dynamics. The effect of the fracture-matrix interface condition is studied on the pressure and velocity distribution. The fracture models were compared based on the variation in pressure and permeability conditions. The model was developed for isotropic and anisotropic permeability conditions. The results suggest that the fracture aperture can have a drastic effect on fluid flow. The porous fracture-matrix interface condition produces more realistic transport of fluids. By increasing the permeability in the isotropic porous matrix, the pressure drop was significantly higher in both the fracture and reservoir region. Under anisotropic conditions in the 3D fractured reservoir, the effect of the higher longitudinal permeability was found to lower the pressure in the fractured reservoir. Depending on the properties of the fractured reservoir, this study can enhance the understanding of fracture-matrix fluid interaction and provide a method for production optimisation.

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