The validity of the cubic law for laminar flow of fluids through open fractures consisting of parallel planar plates has been established by others over a wide range of conditions with apertures ranging down to a minimum of 0.2 µm. The law may be given in simplified form by Q/Δh = C(2b)3, where Q is the flow rate, Δh is the difference in hydraulic head, C is a constant that depends on the flow geometry and fluid properties, and 2b is the fracture aperture. The validity of this law for flow in a closed fracture where the surfaces are in contact and the aperture is being decreased under stress has been investigated at room temperature by using homogeneous samples of granite, basalt, and marble. Tension fractures were artificially induced, and the laboratory setup used radial as well as straight flow geometries. Apertures ranged from 250 down to 4µm, which was the minimum size that could be attained under a normal stress of 20 MPa. The cubic law was found to be valid whether the fracture surfaces were held open or were being closed under stress, and the results are not dependent on rock type. Permeability was uniquely defined by fracture aperture and was independent of the stress history used in these investigations. The effects of deviations from the ideal parallel plate concept only cause an apparent reduction in flow and may be incorporated into the cubic law by replacing C by C/ƒ. The factor ƒ varied from 1.04 to 1.65 in these investigations. The model of a fracture that is being closed under normal stress is visualized as being controlled by the strength of the asperities that are in contact. These contact areas are able to withstand significant stresses while maintaining space for fluids to continue to flow as the fracture aperture decreases. The controlling factor is the magnitude of the aperture, and since flow depends on (2b)3, a slight change in aperture evidently can easily dominate any other change in the geometry of the flow field. Thus one does not see any noticeable shift in the correlations of our experimental results in passing from a condition where the fracture surfaces were held open to one where the surfaces were being closed under stress.

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VALIDITY OF CUBIC LAW FOR FLUID FLOW IN A DEFORMABLE ROCK FRACTURE - eScholarship

Background
Engineering student team projects are frequently used to meet professional learning outcomes. Industrial and organizational psychologists study teams in the industry settings for which we prepare students, yet this research does not effectively inform engineering education.

Purpose
This research review sought to demonstrate the relevance of literature on teams literature from industrial and organizational psychology to engineering education and to identify implications for practice and future directions for research.

Scope/Method
Phase 1 systematically reviewed 104 articles published from 2007 to 2012 describing engineering and computer science student team projects and sought to answer the following questions: What professional learning outcomes have been met by team projects? What negative student team behaviors have faculty sought to minimize? What literature has been used to inform development of teamwork outcomes? Phase 2 reviewed five team effectiveness constructs selected according to the results of Phase 1: social loafing, interdependence, conflict, trust, and shared mental models. Examples from Phase 1 articles and our own work explain how this research informs facilitation and assessment of engineering student teams.

Conclusions
Engineering faculty sought to achieve a variety of outcomes through team projects, including teamwork, communication, sustainability, and consideration of global/societal design context. They sought to avoid social loafing and conflict while building trust to ensure equal team effort. That few Phase 1 articles engaged the literature about team effectiveness indicates there is great opportunity to apply industrial and organizational psychology research to engineering education.

Team Effectiveness Theory from Industrial and Organizational Psychology Applied to Engineering Student Project Teams: A Research Review

Thermo-hydro-mechanical-chemical couplings controlling CH4 production and CO2 sequestration in enhanced coalbed methane recovery

Porosity and permeability characterization of coal: A micro-computed tomography study

A critical review of low salinity water flooding: Mechanism, laboratory and field application

This paper evaluates the teaching and learning outcomes from a first-year project-based engineering course at the University of New South Wales. The students worked in teams to design and build a device to sequester 'CO2' into a reservoir. We present our observation of the peer assessments, performance prediction and diversity of the students. We found that some teams collaborated more effectively than others. We quantified this effectiveness using an online peer assessment that enables students to rate the performance of their teammates. These ratings were incorporated into the assignment of individual marks for group assignments. The analysis of the marks students achieved for various assessments and components of the course is presented. We observed that female students tended to out-perform their peers in both individual and team assessments, and students who did well in individual components of the course also did well in the team components. The use of early assessments to predict performance in later assessments seems to be difficult. However, there is a strong connection between students' results for their design proposal and their results for the final design work. We are able to show statistically a significant improvement for marks for presentations but not for report writing. Anonymous surveys showed that about 90% of students were satisfied with their experience of the course. Students found this course to be challenging and enjoyable, giving them a good start in developing their skills as engineers.

Project-based Learning for First-Year Engineering Students: Design of CO2 Sequestration

A Laboratory and Numerical Simulation Study of Co-Optimizing CO2 Storage and CO2 EOR

Experimental investigation of upscaling relative permeability for two phase flow in fractured porous media

This paper presents an investigation of the potential use of thin spray-on liners (TSLs) in underground coal mines as a gas management tool. The coal samples used were taken from a coal mine in Australia. Three different TSLs were examined. The experiments include single phase gas flow tests through intact and treated dry coal samples. Experimental observations indicate that TSLs can reduce gas permeability of coal by up to three orders of magnitude. However, the degree of the impact depends strongly on the type of TSLs. Further, the initial permeability of coal and TSL thickness also affect the efficiency of the process. There is a linear relation between the efficiency of the TSLs in controlling gas flow and their adhesion strength to the coal sample.

Furqan Hussain

Papers

Project-based Learning for First-Year Engineering Students: Design of CO2 Sequestration

A Laboratory and Numerical Simulation Study of Co-Optimizing CO2 Storage and CO2 EOR

Experimental investigation of upscaling relative permeability for two phase flow in fractured porous media

Experimental study for reducing gas inflow by use of thin spray-on liners in underground coal mines

Effect of Gravity on Near-Miscible CO 2 Flooding