The pore-scale effects of seismic stimulation on two-phase flow are modeled numerically in random 2D grain0pack geometries. Seismic stimulation aims to enhance oil production by sending seismic waves across a reservoir to liberate immobile patches of oil. For seismic amplitudes above a welldefined ͑analytically expressed͒ dimensionless criterion, the force perturbation associated with the waves indeed can liberate oil trapped on capillary barriers and get it flowing again under the background pressure gradient. Subsequent coalescence of the freed oil droplets acts to enhance oil movement further because longer bubbles overcome capillary barriers more efficiently than shorter bubbles do. Poroelasticity theory defines the effective force that a seismic wave adds to the background fluid-pressure gradient. The lattice-Boltzmann model in two dimensions is used to perform pore-scale numerical simulations. Dimensionless numbers ͑groups of material and force parameters͒ involved in seismic stimulation are defined carefully so that numerical simulations can be applied to field-scale conditions. Using the analytical criteria defined in the paper, there is a significant range of reservoir conditions over which seismic stimulation can be expected to enhance oil production.

We present an experimental study of two-phase flow in a quasi-two-dimensional porous medium. The two phases, a water-glycerol solution and a commercial food grade rapeseed/canola oil, having an oil to water-glycerol viscosity ratio M = 1.3, are injected simultaneously into a Hele-Shaw cell with a mono-layer of randomly distributed glass beads. The two liquids are injected into the model from alternating point inlets. Initially, the porous model is filled with the water-glycerol solution. We observe that after an initial transient state, an overall static cluster configuration is obtained. While the oil is found to create a connected system spanning cluster, a large part of the water-glycerol clusters left behind the initial invasion front is observed to remain immobile throughout the rest of the experiment. This could suggest that the water-glycerol flow-dynamics is largely dominated by film flow. The flow pathways are thus given through the dynamics of the initial invasion. This behavior is quite different from that observed in systems with large viscosity differences between the two fluids, and where compressibility plays an important part of the process.

We present here a direct comparison between a slow quasi-two-dimensional pore scale drainage experiment and a two-component 2D lattice Boltzmann simulation. An experimental setup consisting of approximately 10 × 10 pores is mapped onto the 2D lattice Boltzmann model with the aspiration of reproducing the behavior and dynamics of a slow drainage process on a pore scale.

We report the results from a series of chalk flow-through-compaction experiments performed at three effective stresses (0.5, 3.5, and 12.3 MPa) and two temperatures (92 and 130 • C). The results show that both stress and temperature are important to both chemical alteration and mechanical deformation. The experiments were conducted on cores drilled from the same block of outcrop chalks from the Obourg quarry within the Saint Vast formation (Mons, Belgium). The pore pressure was kept at 0.7 MPa for all experiments with a continuous flow of 0.219 M MgCl 2 brine at a constant flow rate; 1 original pore volume (PV) per day. The experiments have been performed in tri-axial cells with independent control of the external stress (hydraulic pressure in the confining oil), pore pressure, temperature, and the injected flow rate. Each experiment consists of two phases; a loading phase where stress-strain dependencies are investigated (approximately 2 days), and a creep phase that lasts for 150-160 days. During creep, the axial deformation was logged, and the effluent samples were collected for ion chromatography analyses. Any difference between the injected and produced water chemistry gives insight into the rock-fluid interactions that occur during flow through the core. The observed effluent concentration shows a reduction in Mg 2+ , while the Ca 2+ concentration is increased. This, together with SEM-EDS analysis, indicates that magnesium-bearing mineral phases are precipitated leading to dissolution of calcite. This is in-line with other flow-through experiments reported earlier. The observed dissolution and precipitation are sensitive to the effective stress and test temperature. Higher stress and temperature lead to increased Mg 2+ and Ca 2+ concentration changes. The observed strain can be partitioned additively into a mechanical and chemical driven component.