Study on Seepage for Random Packed Porous Media Using the Lattice
Boltzmann Method
Abstract
The permeability coefficient of seepage is an important factor that is
widely used in various engineering fields. There are numerous issues
that influence the permeability coefficient, among which the porosity,
particle size, particle size distribution and Reynolds number are of
great importance. In this paper, a C++ code based on the
three-dimensional lattice Boltzmann method (LBM) was developed and used
to investigate the effects of the abovementioned factors on the
permeability coefficient. A multiple relaxation time (MRT) collision
scheme of the LB equations was used in the simulation. Porous media were
prepared using the random packing method. Laminar flow and turbulent
flow were simulated separately for particle Reynolds numbers in a range
from 0.001 to 3,000. It was proven that in addition to the influence of
porosity and particle size distribution on the permeability, the
influence of the Reynolds number was obvious and could not be ignored.
As the Reynolds number increased, the permeability of porous media
decreased gradually. Based on the numerical simulation results, a
modified formula for the permeability coefficient is proposed.