Maja Rücker, assistant professor at the Eindhoven University of Technology (Netherlands), will give the Anneliese Niethammer Lecture of the winter semester 2021/22 on 19 October. She will talk about: "Flow in sub-surfaces reservoirs – from molecular interactions to fluid dynamics".
Speaker: Ass. Prof. Dr. Maja Rücker, TU Eindhoven (Netherlands)
Title: „Flow in sub-surfaces reservoirs – from molecular interactions to fluid dynamics”
Date: 19 October 2021
Time: 4:00 pm CET
Place: The lecture will be a hybrid lecture. A small audience is possible in Pfaffenwaldring 61 MML, additionally the lecture is offered online. After registration, you will receive the meeting information.
Registration: we kindly ask for prior registration via e-mail.: >>> katharina.heck@iws.uni-stuttgart.de.
Abstract
Flow in porous media plays a role in various applications ranging from building materials, ink-jet printing, to fuel cells. This subject is of particular interest in subsurface reservoirs, where the flow dynamics of the various fluids present determine the efficiency of water filtration, environmental remediation projects, oil- and gas production as well as CO2- or hydrogen storage applications, which are crucial to combat climate change.
Considering a porous medium with two immiscible fluids in it, the fluid flow and distribution will depend on the wettability of the system. This property is known to control the formation and collapse of fluid pathways within the pore structure of the medium. However, its origin lies in the strength of molecular interactions between the different components of fluids and solid. In this seminar, we will discuss how these molecular interactions influence our observations at the larger scale and how the larger scale dynamics, in return, alter the molecular interactions.
The physics connecting those length scales is important for the development of digital technologies advancing our capabilities to assess risks and facilitate the optimal utilization of our sub-surface resources.
About Maja Rücker
Treatment and development of sub-surface fluid reservoirs in rocks, such as aquifers, hydrocarbon reservoirs, H2 or CO2 storage sites, is crucial for the reduction of stress on water supply, energy demand, climate and environment. Insight in how fluids behave within the confined space of the porous rock is key for decision-making processes in the associated applications. Maja Rücker studies molecular interactions of fluids within porous materials and how these link to the macroscopic flow phenomena (incl. multiphase flow responses, reactive transport), develops integrated experimental workflows for upscaling and advances digital modelling approaches used, e.g. to assist decision making for effective utilization of sub-surface resources.
Maja Rücker received her PhD in Petroleum Engineering in a joint project of the Rock & Fluid Physics team at Shell Global Solutions International B.V. and Imperial College London and holds a BSc and MSc degree in Geoscience from the Johannes-Gutenberg University, Mainz. She worked from 2018-2020 as a Research Assistant and later as Research Associate in the Chemical Engineering Department at Imperial College London, where she is now a visiting researcher. In November 2020, she joined the Energy Technology group at the Mechanical Engineering Department at the Eindhoven University of Technology as an Assistant Professor.
About the SFB 1313 Anneliese Niethammer Lecture Series
Anneliese Niethammer was the first female professor of the University of Stuttgart in 1947. The lecture series, dedicated to Anneliese Niethammer, is organised by the Collaborative Research Center (SFB) 1313 and takes place once a semester. Renowned international female researchers speak on relevant topics of current research in the research area of porous media.
