THE IMPACT OF AIR-WATER IMMISCIBLE DISPLACEMENT ON PORE-SCALE CONFIGURATION OF TRAPPED ORGANIC LIQUID
EMSL Project ID
44744
Abstract
Multi-fluid flow and contaminant fate and transport in the environment are controlled at a fundamental level by pore-scale properties such as immiscible-fluid distribution and morphology. Though several indirect methods exist to measure these properties, they are typically not easy to measure directly. High-resolution computer-assisted X-ray micro-tomography has been proven to allow for direct, non-destructive measurements of fluid distributions and fluid-fluid interfacial areas at the pore scale for a variety of porous media. We will use this method to obtain three-dimensional images of the pore structure, water, organic-immiscible liquid, air, and of the fluid-fluid interfaces. Data sets obtained using state-of-the-art imaging methods provide the opportunity to significantly enhance the knowledge-base in the field of hydrogeology. The objective of this study is to examine the impact of immiscible fluid displacement on the pore-scale configuration of organic liquid in a three-fluid-phase system comprising natural porous media. High-resolution, three-dimensional images of an organic liquid (trichloroethene) in three-phase (water/organic-liquid/air) systems will be obtained using X-ray micro-tomography before and after water imbibition. Observation of multi-fluid configurations will be used to compare changes in morphology and organic-liquid/water interfacial area to improve our understanding of three-phase fluid distribution and mobilization behavior.
Project Details
Project type
Limited Scope
Start Date
2011-06-01
End Date
2011-08-01
Status
Closed
Released Data Link
Team
Principal Investigator
Team Members
Related Publications
Comparison of fluid-fluid interfacial areas measured with X-ray microtomography and interfacial partitioning tracer tests for the same samples
McDonald K ,Carroll K C,Brusseau M 2016. "Comparison of Fluid-fluid Interfacial Areas Measured with X-ray Microtomography and Interfacial Partitioning Tracer Tests for the Same Samples" Water Resources Research 52():. 10.1002/2016WR018775
The impact of transitions between two-fluid and three-fluid phases on fluid configuration and fluid-fluid interfacial area in porous media
Carroll K C,McDonald K ,Marble J ,Russo A ,Brusseau M 2015. "The Impact of Transitions Between Two-fluid and Three-fluid Phases on Fluid Configuration and Fluid-fluid Interfacial Area in Porous Media" Water Resources Research 51():7189–7201. 10.1002/2015WR017490