Inertia Effects in the Dynamics of Viscous Fingering of Miscible Fluids in Porous Media: Circular Hele-Shaw Cell Configuration

Abstract

We present a numerical study of viscous fingering occurring during the displacement of a high viscosity fluid by low viscosity fluid in a circular Hele-Shaw cell. This study assumes that the fluids are miscible and considers the effects of inertial forces on fingering morphology, mixing, and displacement efficiency. This study shows that inertia has stabilizing effects on the fingering instability and improves the displacement efficiency at a high log-mobility-viscosity ratio between displacing and displaced fluids. Under certain conditions, inertia slightly reduces the finger-split phenomenon and the mixing between the two fluids.

Keywords

• miscible fluids
• safman instability
• Hele-Shaw