Author Archives: Shashank Karra

Application Model: Proppant Transport in a Single Hydraulic Fracture Using MP-PIC CFD and a Graph Neural Network – Reduced Order Model (GNN-ROM)

This application model uses Barracuda Virtual Reactor to simulate proppant transport and bed formation within a single hydraulic fracture using the Multiphase Particle-in-Cell (MP-PIC) method. A non-Newtonian drag correction accounts for the shear-thinning behavior of the slickwater carrying the proppant, and the resulting settling and bed formation behavior are validated against the single-fracture experimental measurements of Zhou et al. (2023). The simulation captures the heel-skewed bed geometry and particle size segregation that govern how much of the fracture remains conductive after treatment. This validated CFD solution also serves as the benchmark for a Graph Neural Network reduced-order model (GNN-ROM), demonstrating a pathway toward fast, physics-based proppant transport prediction at the scale of full multi-fracture completions.

Application Model: Cement Calciner Decomposition Furnace

This application model uses Barracuda Virtual Reactor to simulate the direct reduction of iron ore in a MIDREX-style shaft furnace. The simulation tracks moving bed hydrodynamics and reduction reactions between iron oxide particles and a hydrogen–carbon monoxide gas mixture, enabling evaluation of solids conversion, gas species evolution, and furnace temperature profiles.

Application Model: Filtration Performance of Sand Screens in Oil & Gas Wells

This application model uses Barracuda Virtual Reactor to simulate the filtration of formation sand through a standalone sand screen in a wellbore geometry. The sand screen is represented as a baffle with a particle size dependent pass-through probability rather than resolved geometrically, allowing field scale simulation of screen performance. The simulation captures the size resolved retention behavior of the screen, comparing inlet and outlet particle size distributions to quantify how effectively the screen filters a realistic, polydisperse formation sand, providing a framework for evaluating screen selection and completion design ahead of deployment.