Prediction of imbibition from grain-scale interface movement

Predicted capillary pressure curves are consistent with experimental data presented in the literature. This provides strong (though indirect) support for the physically consistent dynamic criterion for the imbibition of a single pore. We illustrate two important and non-trivial consequences of the criterion that also agree with experiments: its implications when wettability (value of contact angle) of the medium varies, and its consistency with the Mayer-Stowe-Princen criterion for drainage at the level of individual pores. We then explore novel features of the criterion. For example, the percolation threshold for imbibition is a manifestation of two kinds of accessibility of the wetting phase, rather than one. Another feature is the strong coupling between the criterion and the spatial correlation of pore-level geometric features, which significantly affects the topology and connectivity of the wetting phase.