Gas-Liquid Two-Phase Flow and Drilling Fluid Engineering

This community investigates the physics of gas-liquid interactions in pipes and vessels, and the formulation of fluids used to drill oil and gas wells.

The work centers on characterizing flow patterns, pressure drops, and mass transfer in horizontal and vertical systems. A significant portion focuses on water-based and oil-based drilling fluids, specifically addressing fluid loss control, rheology, and additive performance under high-temperature and high-salt conditions. Numerical simulation and machine learning are applied to model these multiphase flows and optimize drilling parameters. The community also examines related processes such as fluidized beds and gas-liquid separation, applying these principles to improve wellbore stability and reservoir contact.

The community’s output is most concentrated in research tracked for Argon, where it represents 0.8% of that element’s literature, and Barium, where it accounts for 0.4%. These elements appear in the context of fluid additives and chemical formulations rather than as primary structural materials.

The community comprises 4,104 papers, published primarily in Chemical Engineering Science, Journal of Petroleum Science and Engineering, and Industrial & Engineering Chemistry Research.

Recent work continues to focus on advanced polymer additives for drilling fluids, including hyperbranched copolymers and nanocomposites for fluid loss reduction. New modeling approaches for vertical gas-liquid flow and the application of machine learning to optimize fluidized bed reactors are also prominent in the latest publications.

Papers behind this description

Research progress and development of deep and ultra-deep drilling fluid technology — Petroleum Exploration and Development, 2024 — doi:10.1016/s1876-3804(24)60522-760522-7)
A micro-crosslinked amphoteric hydrophobic association copolymer as high temperature- and salt-resistance fluid loss reducer for water-based drilling fluids — Petroleum Science, 2024 — doi:10.1016/j.petsci.2024.01.021
Novel Water-Based Drilling and Completion Fluid Technology to Improve Wellbore Quality During Drilling and Protect Unconventional Reservoirs — Engineering, 2022 — doi:10.1016/j.eng.2021.11.014
A state of the art review on the performance of high-pressure and high-temperature drilling fluids: Towards understanding the structure-property relationship of drilling fluid additives — Journal of Petroleum Science and Engineering, 2022 — doi:10.1016/j.petrol.2022.110318
Energy performance and unsteady gas-liquid flow characteristics of a multiphase rotodynamic pump: An experiment — Applied Energy, 2024 — doi:10.1016/j.apenergy.2024.124112
Mixing mass transfer mechanism and dynamic control of gas-liquid-solid multiphase flow based on VOF-DEM coupling — Energy, 2023 — doi:10.1016/j.energy.2023.127015
Critical review of vertical gas-liquid slug flow: An insight to better understand flow hydrodynamics' effect on heat and mass transfer characteristics — International Journal of Heat and Mass Transfer, 2024 — doi:10.1016/j.ijheatmasstransfer.2024.125422
A Comprehensive Review of Nanotechnology Applications in Oil and Gas Well Drilling Operations — Energies, 2024 — doi:10.3390/en17040798
A Hyperbranched Copolymer as High-Temperature and Salt-Resistance Fluid Loss Reducer for Water-Based Drilling Fluids: Preparation, Evaluation, and Mechanism Study — SPE Journal, 2025 — doi:10.2118/231144-pa
Adaptive mesh refinement for VOF modeling gas-liquid two-phase flow: A summary of some algorithms and applications — Chemical Engineering Science, 2025 — doi:10.1016/j.ces.2025.121291
A comprehensive review of beneficial applications of viscoelastic surfactants in wellbore hydraulic fracturing fluids — Fuel, 2023 — doi:10.1016/j.fuel.2022.127228
Nanoparticle applications as beneficial oil and gas drilling fluid additives: A review — Journal of Molecular Liquids, 2022 — doi:10.1016/j.molliq.2022.118725
Evaluation of the Adaptive Behavior of a Shell-Type Elastic Element of a Drilling Shock Absorber with Increasing External Load Amplitude — Vibration, 2025 — doi:10.3390/vibration8040060
Application of Polymers in Hydraulic Fracturing Fluids: A Review — Polymers, 2025 — doi:10.3390/polym17182562
A comprehensive review of gas-liquid two-phase flow in static mixers — Chemical Engineering and Processing - Process Intensification, 2025 — doi:10.1016/j.cep.2025.110434
Advances in Polymer Nanocomposites for Drilling Fluids: A Review — Materials, 2025 — doi:10.3390/ma18204809
CFD analysis of operating parameters and machine learning-aided optimization of reactor performance in a polyethylene pyrolysis fluidized bed — Fuel, 2026 — doi:10.1016/j.fuel.2026.138977
Energy-Efficient and Reliable Hydrodynamic Separation of Spent Drilling Fluids: Experiments, Modeling, and Process Stability — Energies, 2026 — doi:10.3390/en19071659