Volume 58

Study on the Plugging Mechanism of Nanocellulose in Porous Media with Different Permeabilities Based on Microfluidic Chip Experiments Guanghui Xu, Junjian Li, Fei Xu

Abstract

This study aims to reveal the plugging mechanism of nanocellulose, a natural and environmentally friendly nanomaterial, in porous media with different permeabilities. To achieve this, we designed three homogeneous 2.5D microfluidic chips with varying permeabilities and one heterogeneous microfluidic chip, and conducted dynamic experiments to observe the plugging effects of nanocellulose. The results show that nanocellulose migrates, captures, and aggregates, blocking the pore throats in porous media, significantly improving the heterogeneity of the model and expanding the displacement volume. In the homogeneous low-permeability chips, the permeability reduction was more pronounced, and the degree of permeability reduction showed an approximately linear relationship with the amount of nanocellulose injected. Under water-flooding conditions, the permeability reduction was greater compared to gas-flooding, indicating that nanocellulose contributes to enhancing the relative permeability of the gas phase. In the heterogeneous model, nanocellulose exhibited stronger plugging effects on high-permeability channels, further reducing the heterogeneity of the model. This study provides new experimental evidence for the application of nanocellulose in plugging porous media, demonstrating its broad potential for industrial applications.

Keywords Nanocellulose, Microfluidic Chips, Plugging Mechanism, Water Flooding / Gas Flooding