CFD Modelling of Oil-Water Multiphase Flow in Horizontal Concentric Annuli with a Multiple-Size Group Approach

Abstract

Multiphase flow is a simultaneous movement of several immiscible phases, such as gas, oil, water and solid particles, and it is observed in petroleum industry in a wide area of operations. The most expected flow conduit are cylindrical pipes, however there are areas of application where multiphase flow takes place in annuli. Underbalanced drilling operations feature multiphase flow of gas-liquid phases in annuli, and there are a lot of models for this type of flow. However there is lack of data on oil-water flow in horizontal annuli.