Numerical study of non-aqueous phase liquid transport in a single filled fracture by lattice boltzmann method

In this article, the Non-Aqueous Phase Liquid (NAPL) transport in the single filled fracture was studied with the Shan-Chen multi-component multiphase Lattice Boltzmann Method (LBM) with special consideration of wettability effects. With the help of the model, the contact angle of the non-wetting phase and wetting phase interface at a solid wall could be adjusted. By considering a set of appropriate boundary conditions, the fractured conductivity was investigated in condition that the NAPL blocks the channels in the single filled fracture. In order to study the wettability effects on the NAPL transport, a constant driving force was introduced in the Shan-Chen multi-component multiphase LBM. Flow regimes with different wettabilities were discussed. Simulated results show that the LBM is a very instrumental method for simulating and studying the immiscible multiphase flow problems in single filled fracture.