Looping Network Meetings

#77 January 12, 2026

Monday 15:00 (Paris/Warsaw time)

Michał Dzikowski (Uniwersytet Warszawski)

Tracking acidization wormholes using X-rays

Abstract:
During the flow of a matrix-dissolving fluid through porous media, positive feedback between flow and reaction can create various, time-evolving forms. These forms exhibit a range of geometries, from complex, cave-like structures (wormholes) to simple frontal dissolution. This complex example of hydrodynamic instability is sensitive not only to flow parameters but also to the spatial properties of the porous media. While the effects of flow rate and reaction rate on the morphologies of wormholes are now understood, the mechanisms governing their propagation dynamics and flow redistribution remain significantly less characterized.

We will present results of experimental studies focused on the fast-progressing dominant wormhole regime - relevant in a range of industrial and natural cases, including carbon capture and storage (CCS). In each of the experiments, a limestone core was confined within a Hessler cell and flooded with hydrochloric acid. During the core infiltration, 4D tomographic data were gathered, which was subsequently processed to obtain the time evolution of the wormholes' 3D shape. Such datasets allowed for the evaluation of a wide range of geometrical properties, which could be correlated with both numerical and analytical studies. To understand the dynamics of fluid interaction with the surrounding porous matrix, high temporal and spatial resolution data are required. We leveraged the capabilities of the ID-19 beamline at the European Synchrotron Radiation Facility (ESRF) to capture 4D X-ray computed tomography (X-CT) high-resolution images of developing wormholes. In a separate experiment, long time series were also captured using a lab X-ray scanner. Finally, we got insight into the flowfield evolution, and we utilized tracer injection experiments.

In this communication, we particularly focus on how the dynamics of the instability that grows in natural, highly heterogeneous rock relate to an often-used analytical model of a tube growth and the onset of the instability.

Recording