ON THE THEORY OF FLOW OF UNDERGROUND FLUIDS IN COMPRESSIBLE STRATA

Abstract

The problem of flow of a fluid within a compressible porous medium is investigated. It is shown that in general, the motion of the fluid cannot be separated from that of the medium. This leads to a very complex problem of consolidation. However, considerable simplification can be made in applications to the flow of underground fluids. In that case, the general geometry of the consolidation can be predicted since the latter can take place in the vertical direction only. Furthermore, in many cases it is possible to neglect the volume compressibility of the porous matrix.Two cases have been considered: that of local isotropy of stress and permeability and that of local anisotropy of these two quantities. The basic differential flow equation for the two cases is deduced.