Solid Particles Transport in Porous Media: Experimentation and Modelling

Abstract

Solid particle detachment, transport and deposition in natural or artificial porous media have been the subject of an intense research effort in the last four decades. Particle-facilitated contaminants transport, accidents due to internal erosion in the hydraulic structures and permeability decreases of the oil wells, drinking water supply or artificial recharge of the aquifers, aroused a growing interest. In this study, results of two laboratory experimental systems for tracer tests in columns are presented. System 1 concerns step-input injection method where two studies were realized. The first study is devoted for studying deposition kinetics (K-dep) of the Suspended Particles (SP) and the second for evaluation the porous medium damage (clogging and release). However, system 2 concerns the pulse injection method whose aim was to study the SP deposition kinetics. The interpretation and analysis of the Break-Through Curves (BTCs) were obtained using the analytical and numerical solution of convection-dispersion equation (1D) including a source term (deposition and release term). Using system 2 results showed a decrease of the deposition kinetics coefficient with flow velocity until a critical velocity where K-dep decreases. For high injected volumes of the SP in system 1, the permeability decreases occurs throughout of the entrance of the porous medium.