Volume of suspension that flows through a small orifice before it clogs

摘要

We consider the following experiment. A container is filled with a suspension consisting of particles immersed in an incompressible liquid. An opening is made on the container wall and the suspension flows through the opening. We develop a mathematical model to compute the expected volume of suspension extracted before particles clog the opening. Our studies are relevant to the understanding of clogging of pore throats in porous media, which plays an important role in geomaterials, biological systems, and industrial applications.