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Subsurface Flow Module

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Peering into the Mouth of a VolcanoPeering into the Mouth of a Volcano

FEMLAB GmbH, Zürich, Switzerland
A group of scientists from three institutions are researching how to use information about electromagnetic fields in volcanoes to investigate and observe...

Contamination of Groundwater-Fed Springs in UgandaContamination of Groundwater-Fed Springs in Uganda

Royal Institute of Technology (KTH), Stockholm, Sweden
Dr. Roger Thunvik and Robinah Kulabako of the Royal Institute of Technology in Stockholm use COMSOL Multiphysics to define just how the water contamination...

Example Models

Free Convection in Porous MediumFree Convection in Porous Medium

This example treats the modeling of sub-surface flow where free convection in porous media is analyzed. The results are compared with published literature in the field. The model couples the momentum balance to an energy balance...

Finite WellFinite Well

This model defines transient flow to a well of finite radius in a confined aquifer. The results from this analysis are compared to the well known Theis solution for flow to a point well. What distinguishes this model from the Theis...

Leaky WellLeaky Well

In layered sedimentary sequences confining units often sandwich viable reservoirs. If the confining units create less than perfect seals, fluids from an overlying reservoir can leak into the pumped reservoir below it. Often the pumping...

Perforated WellPerforated Well

Analysis of fluid flow into wells often begins with the assumption that the intake fluid is uniform along the entire length of wellbore. This assumption runs into trouble when applied to the modeling of perforated wells. When these wells...

Phase ChangePhase Change

This example demonstrates how to model a phase change and predict its impact on a heat transfer analysis. When a material changes phase, for instance from solid to liquid, energy is added to the solid. Instead of creating a temperature...

Solute InjectionSolute Injection

Predicting the transport of contaminants that move with subsurface fluids generally means analyzing at least two physics. This model tracks a contaminant that enters an aquifer at a point, such as an injection well or toxic spill, and...

Biot PoroelasticityBiot Poroelasticity

The Poroelasticity interface couples Darcy's law and solid mechanics to assess deformation of porous media that results from fluid withdrawals. The model builds on top of the Terzaghi Compaction example. Results from Terzaghi...

Pore-Scale FlowPore-Scale Flow

This non-conventional model of porous media flow utilizes Navier-Stokes equations in the interstices of a porous media. The model comes from the pore-scale flow experiments conducted by Arturo Keller, Maria Auset, and Sanya...

Sorbing SoluteSorbing Solute

In this example water ponded in a ring on the ground moves into a relatively dry soil column and carries a chemical with it. As it moves through the variably saturated soil column, the chemical attaches to solid particles, slowing the...

Terzaghi CompactionTerzaghi Compaction

Fluids that move through pore spaces in an aquifer or reservoir can shield the porous medium from stress because they bear part of the load from, for instance, overlying rocks, sediments, fluids, and buildings. Withdrawing fluids from the...

Two-Phase Flow in Porous MediaTwo-Phase Flow in Porous Media

The first model describes the simultaneous flow of two immiscible fluids in porous media - here air displaces water in a multi-step inlet pressure experiment. We solve for the pressure and the degree saturation for the air and water...

Variably Saturated FlowVariably Saturated Flow

This example utilizes the Richards’ Equation interface to assess how well geophysical irrigation sensors see the true level of fluid saturation in variably saturated soils. The challenge to characterizing fluid movement in variably...

Reaction ChainReaction Chain

This model describes the simultaneous transport of three solutes in a chain reaction within a variably saturated flow field. Involved are advection, dispersion, sorption, biodegradation, decay, and volatilization. The parent solute...

Darcy - Brinkman ExampleDarcy - Brinkman Example

This example model characterizes a transition in flow regimes: slow flow in porous media quickens to a perforation in a well casing and ultimately moves into and up the well. Darcy’s law describes flow velocities at a distance from...

Buoyancy Flow with DarcyBuoyancy Flow with Darcy's Law: The Elder Problem

Density variations can initiate flow even in a still fluid. In earth systems, density variations can arise from naturally occurring salts, subsurface temperature changes, or migrating pollution. This buoyant or density-driven flow factors...

Open-Hole Multilateral WellOpen-Hole Multilateral Well

Multilateral wells—those with multiple legs that branch off from a single conduit—can produce oil efficiently because the legs can tap multiple productive zones and navigate around impermeable ones. Unfortunately, drilling engineers...

Discrete FractureDiscrete Fracture

This example models free flow through a fracture in a block of porous media, where flow in the fracture is much faster than in the matrix block. The Darcy's law physics interface is used to model the flow in the the porous...

Pesticide Transport and Reaction in SoilPesticide Transport and Reaction in Soil

Aldicarb is a commercial pesticide, used on a variety of crops, including cotton, fruits, potatoes, and beans. This arises in the possibility that the general population may be exposed to aldicarb through the ingestion of contaminated...

Aquifer Characterization through Inverse Modeling from Pump TestsAquifer Characterization through Inverse Modeling from Pump Tests

This model uses the Optimization interface to solve the inverse problem for determining the spatially variable hydraulic conductivity on a discretized quadratic grid from a number of aquifer pump tests. Because the number of...

Forchheimer FlowForchheimer Flow

This is a tutorial model of the coupling between flow of a fluid in an open channel and a porous block attached to one of the channel walls. The flow is described by the Navier-Stokes equation in the free region and a...