Abstract
Nanoparticle deposition behavior observed at the Darcy scale represents an average of the processes occurring at the pore scale. Hence, the effect of various pore‐scale parameters on nanoparticle deposition can be understood by studying nanoparticle transport at pore scale and upscaling the results to the Darcy scale. In this work, correlation equations for the deposition rate coefficients of nanoparticles in a cylindrical pore are developed as a function of nine pore‐scale parameters: the pore radius, nanoparticle radius, mean flow velocity, solution ionic strength, viscosity, temperature, solution dielectric constant, and nanoparticle and collector surface potentials. Based on dominant processes, the pore space is divided into three different regions, namely, bulk, diffusion, and potential regions. Advection‐diffusion equations for nanoparticle transport are prescribed for the bulk and diffusion regions, while the interaction between the diffusion and potential regions is included as a boundary condition. This interaction is modeled as a first‐order reversible kinetic adsorption. The expressions for the mass transfer rate coefficients between the diffusion and the potential regions are derived in terms of the interaction energy profile. Among other effects, we account for nanoparticle‐collector interaction forces on nanoparticle deposition. The resulting equations are solved numerically for a range of values of pore‐scale parameters. The nanoparticle concentration profile obtained for the cylindrical pore is averaged over a moving averaging volume within the pore in order to get the 1‐D concentration field. The latter is fitted to the 1‐D advection‐dispersion equation with an equilibrium or kinetic adsorption model to determine the values of the average deposition rate coefficients. In this study, pore‐scale simulations are performed for three values of Péclet number, Pe = 0.05, 5, and 50. We find that under unfavorable conditions, the nanoparticle deposition at pore scale is best described by an equilibrium model at low Péclet numbers (Pe = 0.05) and by a kinetic model at high Péclet numbers (Pe = 50). But, at an intermediate Pe (e.g., near Pe = 5), both equilibrium and kinetic models fit the 1‐D concentration field. Correlation equations for the pore‐averaged nanoparticle deposition rate coefficients under unfavorable conditions are derived by performing a multiple‐linear regression analysis between the estimated deposition rate coefficients for a single pore and various pore‐scale parameters. The correlation equations, which follow a power law relation with nine pore‐scale parameters, are found to be consistent with the column‐scale and pore‐scale experimental results, and qualitatively agree with the colloid filtration theory. These equations can be incorporated into pore network models to study the effect of pore‐scale parameters on nanoparticle deposition at larger length scales such as Darcy scale.
Key Points:
Expressions for mass transfer rate coefficients between bulk and wall regions
Deposition rate coefficients follow a power law relation with pore‐scale parameters
Correlation equations qualitatively agree with colloid filtration theory
