Real-time visualization of Haines jumps in sandstone with laboratory-based microcomputed tomography

Abstract

In this work, we present a novel laboratory-based microcomputed tomography (micro-CT) experiment designed to investigate the pore-scale drainage behavior of natural sandstone under dynamic conditions. The fluid distribution in a Bentheimer sandstone was visualized every 4 s with a 12 s measurement time, allowing the investigation of single-pore and few-pore-filling events. To our knowledge, this is the first time that such measurements were performed outside of synchrotron facilities, illustrating the growing application potential of laboratory-based micro-CT with subminute temporal resolutions for geological research at the pore scale. To illustrate how the workflow can lead to an improved understanding of drainage behavior, the experiment was analyzed using a decomposition of the pore space into individual geometrical pores. Preliminary results from this analysis suggest that the distribution of drainage event sizes follows a power law scaling, as expected from percolation theory.