A proposed model for multiphase flow through naturally fractured reservoirs

When attempting to model fluid flow through any type of medium, the researcher must decide which kinds of fluids and the type of flow to model. In the case of fractured porous media where most of the flow takes place through fractures, the flow can become truly turbulent. However, as demonstrated for many encounters with fracture flow, the laminar flow regime probably prevails. The development of fracture flow models has proceeded alkong two different approaches: the statistical and the enumerative approaces. In the statistical approach, the fractured rock mass is considered a statistically homogencous medium consisting of a combination of fractures and porous rock matrix. The fractures are considered ubiquitous, and the system is called statistically homogeneous because the probability of finding a fracture at any given point in the system is considered the same as finding one at any other point. In the enumerative approach, a fractured rock medium is studied by attempting to model the actual geometry of fractures and porous rock matrix. The locations, orientation, and aperture variations for each individual fracture must be considered in this approach.