Integrating Laboratory-Measured Contact Angles into Time-Dependent Wettability-Adjusted LBM Simulations for Oil–Water Relative Permeability

Chenglin Liu, Changwei Sun, Ling Dai, Guanqun Wang, Haipeng Shao, Wei Li and Wei Long ()
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Chenglin Liu: Shenzhen Branch of China National Offshore Oil Corporation Limited, Shenzhen 518054, China
Changwei Sun: Shenzhen Branch of China National Offshore Oil Corporation Limited, Shenzhen 518054, China
Ling Dai: Shenzhen Branch of China National Offshore Oil Corporation Limited, Shenzhen 518054, China
Guanqun Wang: ICORE GROUP INC, Shenzhen 518057, China
Haipeng Shao: ICORE GROUP INC, Shenzhen 518057, China
Wei Li: Research Institute of Tsinghua University in Shenzhen, Shenzhen 518057, China
Wei Long: School of Computer Science, Nanjing University of Information Science and Technology (NUIST), Nanjing 210044, China

Energies, 2025, vol. 18, issue 9, 1-20

Abstract: Oil–water relative permeability is essential for reservoir development and enhanced oil recovery (EOR). Traditional core displacement experiments assume static wettability, whereas in real reservoirs, wettability evolves over time due to waterflooding and rock–fluid interactions, significantly altering flow behavior. Existing numerical methods, including conventional lattice Boltzmann models (LBM), fail to account for these changes and lead to inaccurate predictions. This study integrates laboratory-measured contact angles into a time-dependent wettability-adjusted LBM framework, ensuring real-time wettability updates during simulation. Micro-CT imaging captures oil–water displacement and contact angle evolution at different flooding stages, which are incorporated into the Shan–Chen LBM model. Results show that neglecting the time-dependent wettability overestimates the residual oil saturation and underestimates the water-phase permeability. In contrast, our method reduces the residual oil saturation by up to 35% and expands the two-phase flow region by 15%, aligning closely with experimental observations. This approach enhances the accuracy of relative permeability modeling, providing a more reliable tool for optimizing waterflooding strategies and improving oil recovery efficiency.

Keywords: relative permeability; time-dependent wettability; digital rock; lattice Boltzmann method; contact angle; waterflooding (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: Q Q0 Q4 Q40 Q41 Q42 Q43 Q47 Q48 Q49 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2025
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