Forced imbibition in porous media: a fourfold scenario

Abstract

We establish a comprehensive description of the patterns formed when a wetting liquid displaces a viscous fluid confined in a porous medium. Building on model microfluidic experiments, we evidence four imbibition scenarios all yielding different large-scale morphologies. Combining high-resolution imaging and confocal microscopy, we show that they originate from two liquid-entrainment transitions and a Rayleigh-Plateau instability at the pore scale. Finally, we demonstrate and explain the long-time coarsening of the resulting patterns.

5 pages, 3 figures

References in corpus (2)

• Revisiting the Saffman-Taylor experiment: imbibition patterns and liquid-entrainment transitions
• Capillary instability on a hydrophilic stripe

Cited by in corpus (5)

• Tuning capillary flow in porous media with hierarchical structures
• Forced Imbibition in Stratified Porous Media
• Discrepancy in Oil Displacement Mechanisms at the Equivalent Interfacial Tensions: Differentiating Contributions from Surfactant and Nanoparticles on Interfacial Activities
• Flowing emulsions through disorder: Critical depinning and smectic rivers
• Forced Imbibition in Stratified Porous Media: Fluid Dynamics and Breakthrough Saturation