Percolation Approach to Find Hydraulic Conductivity in Realistic Geologic Media

提出了一种基于渗流理论的处理方法，该方法使用一个独特的详细和现实的编织带沉积结构数字模型来处理水力传导率的放大。关键路径分析，基于渗流理论，已被用来解决问题的放大的水力传导性的简化模型和生成的结果与模拟各向同性介质，并与各向异性media.The沉积存款的数字表示目前正在创建的同事，以纳入现实的架构从厘米到公里的规模。正如作者所说，这种规模的模型是前所未有的。数字存款将代表河流辫状带沉积的分层沉积结构，常见于含水层和石油储层。使用这样的数字模型将允许在原则上详细的预测以及与模拟的比较作为"地面真相"，至少在理论处理模型的能力方面。1)将有可能开发一个简单的数值程序，用于生成作为支持体积比例的函数的K值分布。这一惯例将可能适用于相当广泛的现实媒体。2)验证所提出的假设有关隔离的地质和统计（渗流）的影响，空间相关性将有助于应用关键路径分析，以任意和现实的地质介质。3)多尺度异质性与在每个尺度下的（不同的）各向异性将产生比先前通过所提出的技术研究的K对尺度及其空间相关性的更复杂的依赖性，允许潜在的各种影响的定量隔离。更广泛的影响，从这样的研究包括增加了解如何异质性在多个尺度上影响规模-水力传导系数及其分布的相关性。由此产生的数值例程应用关键路径分析更任意（和现实）的媒体将提供给社会。一名研究生将接受物理学、水文地质学和沉积学的交叉训练。

A percolation theoretically based treatment of the upscaling of the hydraulic conductivity using a uniquely detailed and realistic digital model of the sedimentary structure of a braid belt is proposed. Critical path analysis, based on percolation theory, has been used to address the question of upscaling the hydraulic conductivity for simplified models and generated results in agreement with simulations for isotropic media, and with field results for anisotropic media.The digital representation of the sedimentary deposit is currently being created by colleagues to incorporate realistic architecture from the scale of centimeters up to the scale of kilometers. As the authors state, a model with this range of scales is unprecedented. The digital deposit will represent the hierarchical sedimentary architecture of fluvial braid-belt deposits, common in both aquifers and petroleum reservoirs. Using such a digital model will allow in principle detailed predictions as well as comparison with simulations as "ground truth," at least as regards the ability of theory to treat the model.Intellectual merit of the proposal is three-fold. 1) It will be possible to develop a simple numerical routine for generating a distribution of K values as a function of support volume scale. This routine will likely be adaptable to a fairly wide range of realistic media. 2) Verification of the hypotheses proposed relating the isolation of geological and statistical (percolation) effects on spatial correlation will assist in application of critical path analysis to arbitrary and realistic geologic media. 3) The likely combination of multi-scale heterogeneity with (different) anisotropy at every scale will produce a more complex dependence of both K on scale and its spatial correlations than has previously been investigated by the proposed techniques, allowing potentially a quantitative isolation of various effects.Broader impacts from such a study include an increased understanding of how heterogeneity on multiple scales influences the scale-dependence of the hydraulic conductivity and its distribution. The resulting numerical routine for applying critical path analysis to more arbitrary (and realistic) media will be made available to the community. And a graduate student will be trained at a nexus of physics, hydrogeology,and sedimentology.