Speaker
Description
Geological carbon storage involves strongly coupled processes in which multiphase flow of CO$_2$ interacts with deformation of the porous matrix. While such poromechanical effects are known to influence pressure evolution, their role in the stability of CO$_2$ plume migration remains poorly understood and is often neglected in predictive models. In this work, we present a mathematical analysis of two-phase CO$_2$–brine flow coupled with linear poroelasticity, focusing on the onset and nature of flow instabilities induced by mechanical feedback.
Starting from a vertically migrating base plume in a homogeneous formation, we derive a coupled system of nonlinear Darcy flow and quasi-static elasticity with strain-dependent porosity and permeability. Linear stability analysis of this base state leads to a non-self-adjoint eigenvalue problem, from which we identify critical conditions for loss of plume symmetry as a function of injection pressure, elastic moduli, and poromechanical coupling strength. The results demonstrate that deformation-mediated permeability variations introduce instability mechanisms that are absent in rigid porous media. A weakly nonlinear analysis further reveals distinct bifurcation regimes, indicating transitions between gradual plume distortion and abrupt localization.
The analysis is supported by two-dimensional numerical simulations that confirm the predicted growth rates and bifurcation behavior. These findings provide a mechanistic understanding of when poromechanical coupling becomes essential for predicting CO$_2$ plume migration and highlight regimes in which neglecting deformation may lead to qualitatively incorrect forecasts. The proposed framework contributes to the mathematical modeling of nonlinear coupled processes in porous media with direct relevance to carbon capture and storage applications.
| Country | India |
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