Bryan H. Their growth potential, however, is limited by financial risks imposed by uncertain subsurface reservoir conditions, especially the spatial distribution of fluid flow paths in fracture-dominated reservoirs.
Here, we investigate the behaviour of these novel, micron-sized hydrogel microspheres passing through channels with temperature below the volume-phase-transition temperature. Specially, we were interested in seeing if they can be used to reduce short-circuited flow paths when microgel volume fractions are below and at the conditions necessary for jamming.
Flow resistance effects were observed by injecting microgels into a bench-scale microfluidic setup simulating an EGS reservoir. Measurements of the pressure drop, fluid density, and mass flow rate at specified temperatures and microgel volume fractions were performed to estimate the resulting frictional power loss after a volume of the microgel injectate had migrated into the system.
The data acquisition over time allows us to see if the injection conditions yield jamming. If jamming was not observed, the estimated friction power loss can be correlated with microgel volume fraction and temperature to evaluate the effectiveness of the microgels in resisting flow.
The licensed amount of water extraction and injection is 50 liters per second with an undisturbed groundwater temperature of 9. Over the first three storage cycles, the average injection and extraction temperatures for the warm side are The average temperature differences across the main heat exchanger from the ATES side are 4.
