(51h) Numerical Simulation of Hydrate Dissociation in Porous Media

In this paper, we simulated the hydrate dissociation in porous media by depressurization method. We assumed that there exists a moving boundary which separates the total simulation zone into two zones. The first zone is composed of gas, water and sand while the second zone is composed of gas, hydrate and sand. The moving boundary is a function of time and will be calculated. We used the coordinate transformation method to immobilize the moving front. The governing equations for mass, energy and momentum after coordinate transformation were solved using method of line. For the two phase (gas/water) flow in porous media, the relative permeability concept is used to account for the interaction of gas and water. Finally, we analyzed the sensitivity of heat conductivity and permeability to the speed of hydrate dissociation. From our simulation, the lower well pressure and higher initial reservoir temperature will give higher front movement of the moving boundary.