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Constant head-transient method using pressure and flow data for determining permeability and specific storage of
1Climate Change Response Research Division, Korea Institute of Geoscience and Mineral Resources, Daejeon 34132, South Korea.
Methodsx
|September 5, 2024
Summary
A new constant head-transient method accurately estimates hydraulic properties of tight rocks. This approach combines flow and pressure data, reducing test times for improved permeability and specific storage measurements.
Area of Science:
- Geosciences
- Hydrogeology
- Rock Mechanics
Background:
- Accurate estimation of hydraulic properties like permeability and specific storage is crucial for understanding fluid flow in tight rock formations.
- Traditional methods may be time-consuming or lack accuracy for extremely low permeability samples such as shale and crystalline rocks.
Purpose of the Study:
- To develop and validate a novel 'constant head-transient method' for enhanced estimation of permeability and specific storage in tight rocks.
- To improve the efficiency and accuracy of hydraulic property measurements in low-permeability geological materials.
Main Methods:
- Experimental tests on cylindrical rock samples under confining pressure.
- Application of a constant upstream pressure boundary condition with finite downstream storage.
- Simultaneous measurement of upstream fluid flow (using a syringe pump) and downstream pressure transients.
- Data analysis combining flow and pressure objective functions for parameter estimation.
Main Results:
- The constant head-transient method allows for direct measurement of upstream flow, overcoming limitations of methods with fluctuating upstream pressures.
- Minimizing downstream storage significantly reduces overall test duration.
- Combining both upstream flow and downstream pressure transient data provides more accurate estimations of permeability and specific storage compared to using pressure data alone.
- Optimal curve fitting is achieved by integrating both flow and pressure objective functions.
Conclusions:
- The developed constant head-transient method offers a more accurate and time-efficient approach for characterizing the hydraulic properties of tight rocks.
- This method is particularly beneficial for samples with extremely low permeability where traditional techniques may struggle.
- The combined use of flow and pressure data is key to achieving reliable results in transient flow analysis.
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