Extension of the Roscoe and Brinkman viscosity model for unstable oil-in-water dispersions

Abstract

The Roscoe and Brinkman viscosity model was modified for oil–water dispersed flow without surfactants. The modification takes into account the viscosity decrease due to deformation of dispersed droplets in unstable dispersed flow. The mixture viscosity model was validated using 231 datasets from 8 pressure-gradient data sources. The predictions show good agreement with the experimental results. The mean percent error, mean absolute percent error and standard deviation are all used to evaluate the accuracy of the modified Roscoe and Brinkman viscosity model. Compared with previously reported models, the model proposed in this study shows improved prediction of the mixture viscosity.

Graphical Abstract

Keywords:

• Dispersed flow
• viscosity
• flow pattern
• oil-water flow
• liquid-liquid flow

Acknowledgment

This work was supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China under Grant No. 51779212; the National Science & Technology Major Project of China under Grant No. 2016ZX05025004-005; and the Science & Technology Project of Sichuan under Grant No. 2015JY0099.