Work

Numerical simulation method for thermal-seepage coupling in artificial ground freezing using liquid nitrogen under high-seepage conditions

Year: 2025

Type: article

Abstract: • A thermal-seepage coupling model for artificial liquid nitrogen freezing was proposed based on SFCC data. • Accurately simulates freezing under high seepage conditions. • The prediction error is kept below 5 % in both no-seepage and high-seepage cases. • Outperforms traditional EPM in accuracy and efficiency. • Enhances AGF reliability in high-permeability formations. Using SFCC measurements obtained via nuclear magnetic resonance, a temperature–pore ice content relationship was established and a numerical simulation method for a thermo-seepage coupling model that accounts for high-seepage effects was developed. The method’s performance was evaluated by comparing results to an analytical solution for a single-pipe liquid nitrogen freezing scenario without seepage and to experimental data from a three-pipe freezing model under high-seepage conditions. Additionally, the approach was compared to the conventional Enthalpy-Porosity Method (EPM). The results show that: under no-seepage conditions, the numerical model predicts temperature distributions and freezing front radii with deviations below 5 %; under high-seepage conditions, the temperature discrepancy between simulation and experiment remains within 2 °C. Compared to EPM, the proposed method significantly reduces errors in closure time and computation time across seepage velocities ranging from 2.5 to 15 m/d; moreover, at high flow rates, the freezing wall maintains a nearly horizontally symmetric closure, avoiding the offset and distortion observed with EPM. This method enhances the accuracy and physical consistency of artificial ground freezing (AGF) simulations under high-seepage conditions, while also improving numerical stability and computational efficiency, thereby providing a more reliable tool for engineering design and safety assessment of liquid nitrogen freezing in high-permeability formations.

Source: Results in Engineering

DOI: 10.1016/j.rineng.2025.107896

Authors: Zhe Yang, Haibing Cai, Bin Wang, Changqiang Pang, Mengkai Li

Institutions: Anhui University of Science and Technology, Binzhou Polytechnic

Language: English

Topic: Climate change and permafrost

Subfield: Atmospheric Science

Field: Earth and Planetary Sciences

Domain: Physical Sciences

Open Access status: gold

Estimated APC paid: $1,940

Funders: National Natural Science Foundation of China, Natural Science Foundation of Anhui Province