In Situ, Vol.19, No.1, 23-39, 1995
LABORATORY STUDIES IN FRACTURED POROUS-MEDIA PART .2. CAPILLARY CROSS-FLOW
Physical phenomena such as capillary, gravity, and viscous crossflow at the interface of two different porous media or in the fracture space between matrix blocks are believed to affect the flow of multiphases. There is very little published work on capillary, gravity, and viscous crossflow in fractured porous media. An experimental and theoretical work has been initiated to understand crossflow in fractured porous media. In this paper, the results of our experimental effort on capillary crossflow in fractured porous media are presented. Drainage performance of a stack of 12 matrix slabs, three in each row, was measured. Experiments on a stack of matrix blocks were also conducted to compare the results. The data show that capillary crossflow across side faces of a matrix block is important. Capillary crossflow across subvertical fractures enhances drainage performance in fractured porous media.