Отправлено: 31.08.16 14:07. Заголовок: Computational challenges in the analyses of petrophysics using microtomography and upscaling

Computational challenges in the analyses of petrophysics using microtomography and upscaling: A review
Jie Liu, Gerald G. Pereira, Qingbin Liu, Klaus Regenauer-Lieb

Microtomography provides detailed 3D internal structures of materials in micro- to tens of nano-meter
resolution and is quickly turning into a new technology for studying petrophysical properties of rocks. An
important step is the upscaling of these properties as micron or sub-micron resolution can only be
achieved on the sample-scale of millimeters or even less than a millimeter. We have developed a
computational workflow for the analysis of microstructures including the upscaling of material properties.
Computations of properties are first performed using conventional material science simulations at
micro to nano-scale. The subsequent upscaling of these properties is done by a novel renormalization
procedure based on percolation theory. In this paper we discuss the computational challenges arising
from the workflow, which include:
1) characterization of microtomography for extremely large data sets;
2) computational fluid dynamics simulations at pore-scale for permeability estimation;
3) solid mechanical computations at pore-scale for estimating elasto-plastic properties;
4) Extracting critical exponents
from derivative models for scaling laws. We conclude that significant progress in each of these
challenges is necessary to transform microtomography from the current research problem into a robust
computational big data tool for multi-scale scientific and engineering problems