3-dimensional wells and tunnels for finite element grids

Modeling fluid, vapor, and air injection and extraction from wells poses a number of problems. The length scale of well bores is centimeters, the region of high pressure gradient may be tens of meters and the reservoir may be tens of kilometers. Furthermore, accurate representation of the path of a deviated well can be difficult. Incorporating the physics of injection and extraction can be made easier and more accurate with automated grid generation tools that incorporate wells as part of a background mesh that represents the reservoir. GEOMESH is a modeling tool developed for automating finite element grid generation. This tool maintains the geometric integrity of the geologic framework and produces optimal (Delaunay) tetrahedral grids. GEOMESH creates a 3D well as hexagonal segments formed along the path of the well. This well structure is tetrahedralized into a Delaunay mesh and then embedded into a background mesh. The well structure can be radially or vertically refined and each well layer is assigned a material property or can take on the material properties of the surrounding stratigraphy. The resulting embedded well can then be used by unstructured finite element models for gas and fluid flow in the vicinity of wells or tunnels. This 3D well representation allows the study of the free- surface of the well and surrounding stratigraphy. It reduces possible grid orientation effects, and allows better correlation between well sample data and the geologic model. The well grids also allow improved visualization for well and tunnel model analysis. 3D observation of the grids helps qualitative interpretation and can reveal features not apparent in fewer dimensions

Geological applications of automatic grid generation tools for finite elements applied to porous flow modeling

The construction of grids that accurately reflect geologic structure and stratigraphy for computational flow and transport models poses a formidable task. Even with a complete understanding of stratigraphy, material properties, boundary and initial conditions, the task of incorporating data into a numerical model can be difficult and time consuming. Furthermore, most tools available for representing complex geologic surfaces and volumes are not designed for producing optimal grids for flow and transport computation. We have developed a modeling tool, GEOMESH, for automating finite element grid generation that maintains the geometric integrity of geologic structure and stratigraphy. The method produces an optimal (Delaunay) tetrahedral grid that can be used for flow and transport computations. The process of developing a flow and transport model can be divided into three parts: (1) Developing accurate conceptual models inclusive of geologic interpretation, material characterization and construction of a stratigraphic and hydrostratigraphic framework model, (2) Building and initializing computational frameworks; grid generation, boundary and initial conditions, (3) Computational physics models of flow and transport. Process (1) and (3) have received considerable attention whereas (2) has not. This work concentrates on grid generation and its connections to geologic characterization and process modeling. Applications of GEOMESH illustrate grid generation for two dimensional cross sections, three dimensional regional models, and adaptive grid refinement in three dimensions. Examples of grid representation of wells and tunnels with GEOMESH can be found in Cherry et al. The resulting grid can be utilized by unstructured finite element or integrated finite difference models

On the development of a three-dimensional finite-element groundwater flow model of the saturated zone, Yucca Mountain, Nevada

Development of a preliminary three-dimensional model of the saturated zone at Yucca Mountain, the potential location for a high-level nuclear waste repository, is presented. The development of the model advances the technology of interfacing: (1)complex three-dimensional hydrogeologic framework modeling; (2) fully three-dimensional, unstructured, finite-element mesh generation; and (3) groundwater flow, heat, and transport simulation. The three-dimensional hydrogeologic framework model is developed using maps, cross sections, and well data. The framework model data are used to feed an automated mesh generator, designed to discretize irregular three-dimensional solids,a nd to assign materials properties from the hydrogeologic framework model to the tetrahedral elements. The mesh generator facilitated the addition of nodes to the finite-element mesh which correspond to the exact three-dimensional position of the potentiometric surface based on water-levels from wells. A ground water flow and heat simulator is run with the resulting finite- element mesh, within a parameter-estimation program. The application of the parameter-estimation program is designed to provide optimal values of permeability and specified fluxes over the model domain to minimize the residual between observed and simulated water levels

Numerical and laboratory experiments on the dynamics of plume-ridge interaction. Progress report

Mantle plumes and passive upwelling beneath ridges are the two dominant modes of mantle transport and thermal/chemical fluxing between the Earth`s deep interior and surface. While plumes and ridges independently contribute to crustal accretion, they also interact and the dispersion of plumes within the upper mantle is strongly modulated by mid-ocean ridges. The simplest mode of interaction, with the plume centered on the ridge, has been well documented and modeled. The remaining question is how plumes and ridges interact when the plume is located off-axis; it has been suggested that a pipeline-like flow from the off-axis plume to the ridge axis at the base of the rigid lithosphere may develop. Mid-ocean ridges migrating away from hot mantle plumes can be affected by plume discharges over long times and ridge migration distances. Salient feature of this model is that off-axis plumes communicate with the ridge through a channel resulting from the refraction and dispersion of an axi-symmetric plume conduit along the base of the sloping lithosphere. To test the dynamics of this model, a series of numerical and laboratory dynamic experiments on the problem of a fixed ridge and an off-axis buoyant upwelling were conducted. Results are discussed

Effects of magmatic processes on the potential Yucca Mountain repository: Field and computational studies

Assessing the risk of future magmatic activity at a potential Yucca Mountain radioactive waste repository requires, in addition to event probabilities, some knowledge of the consequences of such activity. Magmatic consequences are divided into an eruptive component, which pertains to the possibility of radioactive waste being erupted onto the surface of Yucca Mountain, and a subsurface component, which occurs whether there is an accompanying eruption or not. The subsurface component pertains to a suite of processes such as hydrothermal activity, changes in country rock properties, and long term alteration of the hydrologic flow field which change the waste isolation system. This paper is the second in a series describing progress on studies of the effects of magmatic activity. We describe initial results of field analog studies at small volume basaltic centers where detailed measurements are being conducted of the amount of wall rock debris that can be erupted as a function of depth in the volcanic plumbing system. Constraints from field evidence of wall rock entrainment mechanisms are also discussed. Evidence is described for a mechanism of producing subhorizontal sills versus subvertical dikes, an issue that is important for assessing subsurface effects. Finally, new modeling techniques, which are being developed in order to capture the three dimensional complexities of real geologic situations in subsurface effects, are described

Managing Knowledge in Enterprise Systems

Enterprise Systems are formidable and powerful information systems that have positioned themselves as a landmark in the evolution of Information Technology. The selection, implementation, use and continuous change of Enterprise Systems (ES) (e.g. mySAP.com) require a great amount of knowledge and experience. Due to the lack of inhouse ES knowledge and the high costs of engaging experienced implementation consultants, organizations realize the need to better leverage their knowledge resources. Managing this knowledge is increasingly important with the second wave of ES projects focusing E-Business applications like Customer Relationship Management (CRM) and Supply Chain Management (SCM). These new applications embrace an open-integration strategy that will incorporate and support other vendors ' applications as part of its Internet-based enterprise computing platform. This paper proposes a framework for managing knowledge in Enterprise Systems. The framework draws its strength from meta-case studies and comprehensive literature analyses, which is consolidated into a three-dimensional framework