Research on Apparent Friction Factor in Perforated and Slotted Horizontal Filters to Dewater Opencast Mines Using Numerical Analysis

Abstract

In the mining industry, the horizontal wells have been using for dewatering purpose for several years. Due to unique characteristics, those horizontal filters are recommended to balance both the mechanical strength and hydraulic performance. Pressure drop along the horizontal well is one of the essential factors that affect the performance of a wellbore, the dewatering capacity as well. The pressure drop is caused due to four separate factors: wall friction, perforation roughness, inflow acceleration and mixing effects. In this publication, numerical analysis was implemented with different types of perforated and slotted pipes to investigate the effects of two later factors: inflow acceleration and the mixing effects. The simulated data using ANSYS 14.5 was analyzed using universal velocity distribution law in combination with the roughness function and influx flow. The results revealed that the apparent friction factor is a linear function of roughness friction factor and the total inflow rate ratio.