Effects of Porous Media Characteristics on Heat Transfer Mechanisms in Porous Oil Shale Beds

摘要

1. Slow heating applications (＜10°C per day), such as EcoShale™ and in-situ processes, have considerably different heat transfer dynamics than fast heating applications, such as surface retorts. 2. In slow heating applications, whether the shale is heated directly or indirectly, heating can span the range from conduction dominated heat transfer to steady, convective heating, and on through to highly transient, chaotic Rayleigh-Benard convection. 3. The physical characteristics of the porous shale bed in terms of porosity, particle size distribution (PSD), and permeability can dictate which fluid dynamic and heat transfer regime the system is in. 4. Numerical experiments have been performed on porous shale beds with different porous media characteristics, with dimensionless numbers (Rayleigh, Grashof, and Reynolds) providing a good indication of which fluid dynamic and heat transfer regime the system is in.