New phase of modeling the viscous coupling effects of multiphase fluid flow

Many applications, including carbon dioxide storage and oil recovery, involve the simultaneous flow of two or more phases of matter (solid, liquid, gas, etc.) through porous materials. Pore-scale modeling of such multiphase flow has struggled to capture important phenomena referred to as viscous coupling effects. But now, a research team has developed a method that overcomes this limitation with potential applications to improve fuel technologies and carbon capture systems.