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A reduced model for Darcy’s problem in networks offractures∗

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  02 July 2014

Luca Formaggia
Affiliation:
MOX - Dipartimento di Matematica “F. Brioschi” – Politecnico di Milano - via Bonardi 9, 20133 Milan, Italy.. luca.formaggia@polimi.it; anna.scotti@polimi.it
Alessio Fumagalli
Affiliation:
MOX - Dipartimento di Matematica “F. Brioschi” – Politecnico di Milano - via Bonardi 9, 20133 Milan, Italy.. luca.formaggia@polimi.it; anna.scotti@polimi.it IFP Energies nouvelles – 1 and 4, avenue de Bois-Prau, 92852 Rueil-Malmaison Cedex, France. ; alessio.fumagalli1984@gmail.com
Anna Scotti
Affiliation:
MOX - Dipartimento di Matematica “F. Brioschi” – Politecnico di Milano - via Bonardi 9, 20133 Milan, Italy.. luca.formaggia@polimi.it; anna.scotti@polimi.it
Paolo Ruffo
Affiliation:
ENI Spa – Exploration and Production Division – 5° Palazzo Uffici, Room 4046 E, GEBA Dept. - via Emilia 1, San Donato Milanese, 20097 (MI), Italy.; paolo.ruffo@eni.com

Abstract

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Subsurface flows are influenced by the presence of faults and large fractures which actas preferential paths or barriers for the flow. In literature models were proposed tohandle fractures in a porous medium as objects of codimension 1. In this work we considerthe case of a network of intersecting fractures, with the aim of deriving physicallyconsistent and effective interface conditions to impose at the intersection betweenfractures. This new model accounts for the angle between fractures at the intersectionsand allows for jumps of pressure across intersections. This fact permits to describe theflow when fractures are characterized by different properties more accurately with respectto other models that impose pressure continuity. The main mathematical properties of themodel, derived in the two-dimensional setting, are analyzed. As concerns the numericaldiscretization we allow the grids of the fractures to be independent, thus in generalnon-matching at the intersection, by means of the extended finite element method(XFEM). This increases the flexibility of the method in the case of complexgeometries characterized by a high number of fractures.

Information

Type
Research Article
Copyright
© EDP Sciences, SMAI 2014