MAGNETIC FIELD INFLUENCE ON VISCOUS FINGERING INSTABILITIES IN ENHANCED OIL RECOVERY WITHIN INCLINED DOMAINS

Abstract

Viscous fingering can be counted as one of the major challenges in enhanced oil recovery (EOR), resulting in unstable flow patterns during the fluid displacement process. This instability often arises when a less viscous fluid is introduced into a porous material that has already been saturated with a more viscous fluid. In this research, we examined how a magnetic field impacts this viscous fingering instability in a two-dimensional homogeneous porous medium, inclined at an acute angle relative to the horizontal axis, with fluid displacement occurring in the negative x-direction. In contrast to horizontal setups, this inclined structure allows gravity to control flow direction, influencing the interface between displaced and native fluids. We used COMSOL Multiphysics 6.2 to simulate the injection of carbonated water into an oil-saturated, homogeneous, isotropic porous medium that adheres to Darcy's law, both with and without an externally applied magnetic field. The computational domain is designed to replicate inclined geometries at selected acute angles. The simulation findings demonstrate that the fingering patterns continue to be highly irregular and unstable in the absence of a magnetic field. Regardless, in all the tilted examples examined, the displacement front becomes smoother and more constant when a magnetic field is introduced. These results imply that by inhibiting finger branching and encouraging smoother fluid movement, magnetic fields can significantly reduce interfacial viscous instabilities. This stabilizing effect demonstrates how the implementation of a magnetic field can serve as a useful technique to improve oil recovery efficiency, especially in sloping domains. The findings support the use of magnetic field-based tactics in sophisticated EOR methods, particularly in reservoirs with non-horizontal alignments or complicated geometries.