Viscous Fingering During Heavy-Oil Displacement by Chemical Solutions:
Emulsion Instability and Partial-Miscibility
Abstract
The viscous fingering morphologies at a particular stage of emulsion
displacements are observed to follow similar development patterns as
that of the partially-miscible viscous fingering behavior (existent
between the commonly studied fully miscible and immiscible systems).
Chemically-induced viscous fingering before and after the finger droplet
development resembling the partially-miscible fluid behavior is
investigated using fractal dimensions and various -classic and modified-
dimensionless scaling groups. We demonstrate, through the quantitative
analysis using the empirical data collected from our previous
experimental study, that the finger droplet formation morphologies
observed in partially-miscible injection are indicative of an emulsion
hydrodynamic instability behavior. The dominant parameters responsible
for such droplet formation and their relationship to fractal dimension
and hydrodynamic stability are mapped in a phase diagram with the
original experimental images.