Automated extraction of in situ contact angles from micro-computed tomography images of porous media

Ibekwe, Anelechi; Pokrajac, Dubravka; Tanino, Yukie

doi:10.1016/j.cageo.2020.104425

Cited by 16 publications

(7 citation statements)

References 43 publications

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“…The test fluids were air and tap water in all experiments. Previous in situ contact angle measurements using the same test fluids confirm that the water-air-glass bead system is water wetting [21].…”

Section: A Displacement Sequencementioning

confidence: 56%

“…Experiments were performed on L = 38-mm-long, 21mm-diameter packed columns of soda-lime glass spheres (Mo-Sci Corporation, USA; 850-to 1000-μm diameter range). The test fluids and the sample holder are the same as those used in [20,21]. Following a protocol we developed previously [20], the surface of the spheres was mechanically altered by tumbling them in a barrel lined with sandpaper of mean grit diameter d s = 201, 18.3, or 12.6 μm for a period of either t t = 4 or 12 h; the specific combinations of grit size and tumbling duration considered in the present experiments are summarized in Table I.…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Impact of grain roughness on residual nonwetting phase cluster size distribution in packed columns of uniform spheres

2020

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We imaged the pore-scale distribution of air and water within packed columns of glass spheres of different textures using x-ray microcomputed tomography after primary drainage and after secondary imbibition. Postimbibition residual air saturation increases with roughness size. Clusters larger than a critical size of about 15 to 40 pores are distributed according to a power law, with exponents ranging from τ = 2.29 ± 0.04 to 3.00 ± 0.13 and displaying a weak negative correlation with roughness size. The largest cluster constitutes 7 to 20% of the total residual gas saturation, with no clear correlation with roughness size. These results imply that activities that enhance grain roughness by, e.g., creating acidic conditions in the subsurface, will promote capillary trapping of nonwetting phases under capillary-dominated conditions. Enhanced trapping, in turn, may be desirable in some engineering applications such as geological CO 2 storage, but detrimental to others such as groundwater remediation and hydrocarbon recovery.

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Section: A Displacement Sequencementioning

confidence: 56%

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Impact of grain roughness on residual nonwetting phase cluster size distribution in packed columns of uniform spheres

2020

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“…Contact angle measurements on flat surfaces of minerals at ambient conditions have been used as a classical method to define the wetting state of rock surfaces. With the recent improvements in X-ray µCT imaging and processing, it is now feasible to perform in-situ contact angle measurement or direct test of surface wettability at pore-scale [ 215 , 223 , 224 , 225 , 226 , 227 , 228 ].…”

Section: Imaging Techniquesmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Poonoosamy et al [ 153 ] integrated a microfluidic chip with high-resolution imaging including optical microscopy and Raman spectroscopy for in-situ, non-destructive and real-time monitoring of chemical and transport processes. X-ray µCT imaging has recently made it feasible to perform in-situ contact angle measurement feasible [ 215 , 223 , 224 , 225 , 226 , 227 , 228 ]. Factors such as grain roughness and mineral heterogeneity within the pores can affect contact angle values at the pore-scale [ 308 , 309 , 310 , 311 ].…”

Section: Applications Of Micromodels and Imaging Techniquesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Review of Microfluidic Devices and Imaging Techniques for Fluid Flow Study in Porous Geomaterials

Jahanbakhsh

Wlodarczyk

Hand

et al. 2020

Sensors

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Understanding transport phenomena and governing mechanisms of different physical and chemical processes in porous media has been a critical research area for decades. Correlating fluid flow behaviour at the micro-scale with macro-scale parameters, such as relative permeability and capillary pressure, is key to understanding the processes governing subsurface systems, and this in turn allows us to improve the accuracy of modelling and simulations of transport phenomena at a large scale. Over the last two decades, there have been significant developments in our understanding of pore-scale processes and modelling of complex underground systems. Microfluidic devices (micromodels) and imaging techniques, as facilitators to link experimental observations to simulation, have greatly contributed to these achievements. Although several reviews exist covering separately advances in one of these two areas, we present here a detailed review integrating recent advances and applications in both micromodels and imaging techniques. This includes a comprehensive analysis of critical aspects of fabrication techniques of micromodels, and the most recent advances such as embedding fibre optic sensors in micromodels for research applications. To complete the analysis of visualization techniques, we have thoroughly reviewed the most applicable imaging techniques in the area of geoscience and geo-energy. Moreover, the integration of microfluidic devices and imaging techniques was highlighted as appropriate. In this review, we focus particularly on four prominent yet very wide application areas, namely “fluid flow in porous media”, “flow in heterogeneous rocks and fractures”, “reactive transport, solute and colloid transport”, and finally “porous media characterization”. In summary, this review provides an in-depth analysis of micromodels and imaging techniques that can help to guide future research in the in-situ visualization of fluid flow in porous media.

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“…Our paper provides, for the first time, a comprehensive characterisation of wettability and IFT of the hydrogen-brine-quartz system using in-situ methods. Threedimensional (3D) imaging using X-ray microcomputed tomography (micro-CT) imaging allows contact angles to be determined in opaque porous media (Scanziani et al 2017, Alratrout et al, 2017, Ibekwe et al 2020, Sun et al, 2020a. Wettability is represented by the spatial distribution of contact angle at the three-phase contact line between the two fluids and the solid surface.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

In-situ hydrogen wettability characterisation for Underground Hydrogen Storage

Higgs¹,

Wang²,

Sun³

et al. 2021

Preprint

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Hydrogen storage in subsurface aquifers or depleted gas reservoirs represents a viable seasonal and/or long-term energy storage solution. However, currently, there is a scarcity of subsurface petrophysical data for the hydrogen system, limiting modelling work and industrial rollout. In this work, we address the knowledge gap by determining the wettability and Interfacial Tension (IFT) of the hydrogen-brine-quartz system using a multi-modal, in-situ approach. We utilise the captive bubble, pendant drop and in-situ 3D micro-Computed Tomography (CT) methods to rigorously characterise a hydrogen-brine-Bentheimer rock system, applicable to high quartz sandstone storage systems generally. The captive bubble method determined the effective contact angle ranged between 29°-39° for pressures 6.89-20.68MPa and salinities from distilled water to 5000ppm NaCl brine. In-situ methods confirmed the water-wet system with the mean of the macroscopic and apparent contact angle distributions being 39.77° and 59.75° respectively. Further confirmation of the water-wet system was provided by curvature analysis of fluid clusters. The pendant drop method determined that IFT decreased with increasing pressure in distilled water from 72.45 mN/m at 6.89MPa to 69.43 mN/m at 20.68MPa. No correlation was found between IFT and salinity for the 1000ppm and 5000ppm brines. Our fundamental studies provide insights into the physics of hydrogen wetting in multiphase environments of subsurface reservoirs. With this, we can make informed estimates of relative permeability and capillary pressure for the hydrogen-brine system to model the storage capacity and withdrawal rate of hydrogen in target reservoirs.

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Automated extraction of in situ contact angles from micro-computed tomography images of porous media

Cited by 16 publications

References 43 publications

Impact of grain roughness on residual nonwetting phase cluster size distribution in packed columns of uniform spheres

Impact of grain roughness on residual nonwetting phase cluster size distribution in packed columns of uniform spheres

Review of Microfluidic Devices and Imaging Techniques for Fluid Flow Study in Porous Geomaterials

In-situ hydrogen wettability characterisation for Underground Hydrogen Storage

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