Wormhole formation in dissolving fractures
Geophysics
2015-05-13 v2 Chemical Physics
Abstract
We investigate the dissolution of artificial fractures with three-dimensional, pore-scale numerical simulations. The fluid velocity in the fracture space was determined from a lattice-Boltzmann method, and a stochastic solver was used for the transport of dissolved species. Numerical simulations were used to study conditions under which long conduits (wormholes) form in an initially rough but spatially homogeneous fracture. The effects of flow rate, mineral dissolution rate and geometrical properties of the fracture were investigated, and the optimal conditions for wormhole formation determined.
Cite
@article{arxiv.0902.1374,
title = {Wormhole formation in dissolving fractures},
author = {P. Szymczak and A. J. C. Ladd},
journal= {arXiv preprint arXiv:0902.1374},
year = {2015}
}
Comments
to be published in J. Geophys Res