Particle Network Model for Simulating the Filtration of a Microfine Cement Grout in Sand

This paper describes the application of a quasi-one-demensional (1D) network, bubble model to simulate the filtration of a microfine cement suspension injected through a column of sand. The bubble model represents the soil column as a series of homogeneous sites linked through bundles of cylindrical bonds that characterize the distribution of pores. The model captures mechanisms of particle sieving at the inlet sites and infiltration within each of the bonds under the action of hydrodynamic and gravitational forces. The behavior of each bond is based on numerical simulations of particle transport, collection, mounding, and clogging within a cylindrical model pore. Two empirical parameters are introduced to account for uncertainties in particle attachment at the pore wall and observed mechanisms of resuspension of hindered particles. In principal, these parameters can be calibrated from measurements of effluent concentrations. The bubble model provides useful physical insights to explain the transient dynamics of filtration processes. The model is able to provide consistent predictions of pore pressures measured in 1D column injection tests reported in the literature.