The numerical simulation of behaviors of oil-water-emulsion flow in pores by using phase field method

In the emulsion flooding processes, the flow of the emulsion droplets facilitates the oil recovery. However, there is currently limited insight into the microscopic enhanced oil recovery mechanism of emulsion droplets. It is essential to conduct further research to explore the interactions among the emulsion phase, oil phase, and water phase. In this work, the role of emulsion droplets on the mobilization of residual oil was numerically studied by the phase field method. We have studied the relevant mechanism in a single flow region structure, and a porous media. The results show that droplet radius, interfacial tension, and wettability all affect the flow behavior of the emulsion phase. The flow of emulsion results in much more displacement efficiency and sweep efficiency, which helps recover trapped oil in pore corners and the low permeability areas in the porous medium. In contrast to water flooding, the emulsion flooding elevated the oil recovery from 42.8% to 48.5% in the high-permeability region and from 10.9% to 40.4% in the low-permeability region.

Automated summary

In emulsion flooding processes, the flow of emulsion droplets plays a significant role in enhancing oil recovery. In this study, the mobilization of residual oil by emulsion droplets was numerically investigated using the phase field method in both a single flow region structure and porous media. The results showed that the droplet radius, interfacial tension, and wettability all influenced the flow behavior of the emulsion phase. The emulsion flow resulted in higher displacement efficiency and sweep efficiency, allowing for the recovery of trapped oil in pore corners and low permeability areas. Compared to water flooding, emulsion flooding significantly increased oil recovery in both high-permeability and low-permeability regions.