Flow in fractured porous media

The equations governing fluid flow through fractured porous media consist of two equations of motion and two continuity equations. These equations are coupled by an interaction term that represents the mass flux of fluid from the primary pores into the fractures. Numerical (finite element) solution of the governing equations was used to investigate the relative magnitude of some of the terms of the equations. The acceleration term in the equation of motion for the fractures was found to be small and for the cases investigated can be neglected. Elimination of this acceleration term allows the governing equations to be greatly simplified, a simplification that allows for the numerical solution of the governing equations on a larger region