Effect of Surface Type on the Flow Characteristics in Shale Nanopores

The underlying mechanism of shale gas migration behavior is of great importance to understanding the flow behavior and the prediction of shale gas flux. The slippage of the methane molecules on the surface is generally emphasized in nanopores in most predicted methods currently. In this work, we use molecular dynamic (MD) simulations to study the methane flow behavior in organic (graphene) and inorganic (quartz) nanopores with various pore size. It is observed that the slippage is obvious only on the graphene nanopores and disappeared on the quartz surface. Compared with the traditional Navier-Stokes equation combined with the no-slip boundary, the enhancement of the gas flux is nonnegligible in the graphene nanopores and could be neglected in the quartz nanopores. In addition, the flux contribution ratios of the adsorption layer, Knudsen layer, and the bulk gas are analyzed. In quartz nanopores, the contributions of the adsorption layer and the Knudsen layer are slight when the pore size is larger than 10 nm. It is also noted that even if the Knudsen number is the same, the flow mode may be various with the effect of the pore surface type. Our work should give molecular insights into gas migration mechanisms in organic and inorganic nanopores and provide important reference to the prediction of the gas flow in various types of shale nanopores.

Distributions of Two Atoms Collisions over the Surface of the Condensed Phase

The processes of heat and mass transfer are closely related to the evaporation of a substance from the surface of the condensed phase. The interaction of outgoing molecules from the surface of the condensed phase with condensed phase molecules plays a fundamental role. A simpler case of evaporation is the departure of atoms from the surface of the condensed phase, i.e. the atoms overcome the potential barrier on the surface of the condensed phase. Depending on the evaporation rate, a Knudsen layer appears above the surface of the condensed phase. In this paper, based on the model of rigid spheres, the density distributions of the collision distances and the average values of the collision distances of two atoms emitted simultaneously from the surface of the condensed phase above the surface are analyzed. Distributions of the collision distance depending on the surface temperature, the size of the potential barrier, and the size of the evaporation area are obtained. Computer experiments were performed using the Monte Carlo method. To obtain the results of numerical simulation, a parallel algorithm adapted to calculations on graphics processors with CUDA technology was developed.

Modeling of Knudsen Layer Effects in the Micro-Scale Backward-Facing Step in the Slip Flow Regime

The effect of the Knudsen layer in the thermal micro-scale gas flows has been investigated. The effective mean free path model has been implemented in the open source computational fluid dynamics (CFD) code, to extend its applicability up to slip and early transition flow regime. The conventional Navier-Stokes constitutive relations and the first-order non-equilibrium boundary conditions are modified based on the effective mean free path, which depends on the distance from the solid surface. The predictive capability of the standard `Maxwell velocity slip—Smoluchwoski temperature jump’ and hybrid boundary conditions `Langmuir Maxwell velocity slip—Langmuir Smoluchwoski temperature jump’ in conjunction with the Knudsen layer formulation has been evaluated in the present work. Simulations are carried out over a nano-/micro-scale backward facing step geometry in which flow experiences adverse pressure gradient, separation and re-attachment. Results are validated against the direct simulation Monte Carlo (DSMC) data, and have shown significant improvement over the existing CFD solvers. Non-equilibrium effects on the velocity and temperature of gas on the surface of the backward facing step channel are studied by varying the flow Knudsen number, inlet flow temperature, and wall temperature. Results show that the modified solver with hybrid Langmuir based boundary conditions gives the best predictions when the Knudsen layer is incorporated, and the standard Maxwell-Smoluchowski can accurately capture momentum and the thermal Knudsen layer when the temperature of the wall is higher than the fluid flow.