PNNL

Abstract

A numerical model based on smoothed particle hydrodynamics (SPH) was used to simulate reactive transport and mineral precipitation in porous and fractured porous media. The model was used to study effects of the Damkohler and Peclet numbers and pore-scale heterogeneity on reactive transport and the character of mineral precipitation, and to estimate effective reaction coefficients and mass transfer coefficients. The changes in porosity, fluid and solute fluxes and transport parameters resulting from mineral precipitation were also investigated. The simulation results show that the SPH, Lagrangian particle method, is an effective tool for studying pore scale flow and transport. The particle nature of SPH allows complex physical processes such as diffusion, reaction and mineral precipitation to be modeled with relative ease.