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Diego Fernando Gómez Páez

Facultad de Ciencias Físico-Químicas

Escuela de Ingeniería de Petróleos

Mayo de 2010

Darcy’s Law

[1]
1. Introduction

Henry Darcy, a French hydraulic engineer interested in purifying water supplies using sand
filters, conducted experiments to determine the flow rate of water through the filters.

Published in 1856, his conclusions have served as the basis for all modern analysis of
ground water flow.

A few career highlights:

 In 1828, Darcy was assigned to a deep well drilling project that found water for the
city of Dijon, in France, but could not provide an adequate supply for the town.
However, under his own initiative, Henry set out to provide a clean, dependable
water supply to the city from more conventional spring water sources. That effort
eventually produced a system that delivered 8 m3/min from the Rosoir Spring
through 12.7 km of covered aqueduct.
 In 1848 he became Chief Director for Water and Pavements, Paris. In Paris he
carried out significant research on the flow and friction losses in pipes, which forms
the basis for the Darcy-Weisbach equation for pipe flow.
 He retired to Dijon and, in 1855 and 1856 he conducted the column experiments
that established Darcy's law for flow in sands.

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2. Darcy’s Experiment [2]

Starting late in 1855, Henry Darcy supervised a succession of experiments with the
objective to determine the relation between the volumetric flow rate of water through
sand beds and the hydraulic head loss. All experiments were completed in the courtyard of
an unnamed hospital in Dijon. The first set was carried out with the assistance of Mr.
Charles Ritter from October 29th to November 2nd. Four different packings of Saone River
sand were tested, with each designated a test Series. For each Series, three to ten
different experiments were performed. The inlet pressure was varied for each experiment
while holding the outlet at atmospheric pressure. A second experimental set was carried
out on February 17 and 18, 1856 by Ritter on a single sand packing. In this set, both inlet
and outlet pressure was varied. A total of 35 experiments were reported and used in the
final analysis. The Chief Engineer, Mr. Baumgarten is reported to have repeated the
experiments, but the data presented does not list any duplication.

Darcy's apparatus is shown in Figure 2.1. It was a vertical steel column with an inside
diameter of 0.35 m and sealed on both ends by bolted flange plates. Its total height was
reported in the text as 2.5 meters, but it is dimensioned on Figure 3 as 3.5 m. At the
bottom, an outlet reservoir was created by supporting a set of screens above the bottom,
which in turn supported the sand. An inlet reservoir was created by leaving a void
between the between the sand and the column top. A tap at the top allowed air to be bled
from the system. Water flow rate was determined by timing the effluent accumulation in a
volumetric box. Supply and effluent lines were mounted on the column side, and both had
valves to allow control. Water was supplied directly from the hospital house line, which
induced considerable oscillations as users elsewhere turned faucets on and off.

Mercury U-tube manometers were connected to both reservoirs to provide pressure

measurements. At low-flows they were read to + 1 mm, while at high flow oscillations
only allowed reading to within + 5 mm. Darcy reported this represented knowing the
water pressure within 26.2 mm and 1.30 m for low and high flows respectively.

Each packing used Saone River sand. Unwashed sand was used in the first two Series, the
third used washed sand, and the forth used very well washed sand that was slightly larger
in grain size. The sand used in the February experiments was not reported. Packing height
was intentionally varied from 0.58 to 1.71 m. Sand was placed in the column by dropping
it into the water filled column, which was intended to eliminate air entrapment.

Each run consisted of setting the inlet supply valve and allowing the column to reach
equilibrium. Then the manometers were read and the volume flow measured over a period
of 10 to 25 minutes. Most direct data measurements were not reported. Instead for the
November experiments, the computed flow rate and the head loss in meters of water were
reported. In the February experiments, the outlet pressure was set by an unrecorded
method, and inlet and outlet heads relative to the bottom of the filter were reported.

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Figure 2.1: Darcy’s Apparatus.

Source: http://biosystems.okstate.edu/darcy/columnsmall.JPG

[3]
3. Darcy’s Equation

Darcy's Law is a generalized relationship for flow in porous media. It shows the volumetric
flow rate is a function of the flow area, elevation, fluid pressure and a proportionality
constant. It may be stated in several different forms depending on the flow conditions.
Since its discovery, it has been found valid for any Newtonian fluid. Likewise, while it was
established under saturated flow conditions, it may be adjusted to account for unsaturated
and multiphase flow. The following outlines its common forms and assumes water is the
working fluid unless otherwise stated.

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One-Dimensional Flow

Simple Discrete Form

A one-dimensional flow column is shown in Figure 3.1.

Figure 3.1: One dimensional flow column.

Source: http://biosystems.okstate.edu/darcy/LaLoi/basics.htm

For a finite 1-D flow, it may be stated as

(3.1)

Where
Q = Volumetric flow rate (m3/s or ft3/s)

A = Flow area perpendicular to L (m2 or ft2)

K = Hydraulic conductivity (m/s or ft/s)

L = Flow path length (m or ft)

h =Change in hydraulic head (m or ft)

The hydraulic head at a specific point, h is the sum of the pressure head and the
elevation, or

(3.2a)

(3.2b)

Where,

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p = water pressure (N/m2, lb/ft2)

= water density (kg/m3)

g = water specific weight (lb/ft3)

g = acceleration of gravity (m/s2 or ft/s2)

z = elevation (m or ft)

Equation (3.2a) is the normal SI form of the equation, while (3.2b) is the usual form used
with English units. The hydraulic head is the height that water would rise in a peizometer.
Thus, h is simply the difference in height of water in peizometers placed at the inlet and
the outlet ( h = hin - hout). Substituting (3.2a) into (3.1) yields,

(3.3)

Equation (3.3) is approximately the form Darcy used to analyze his experimental data.
Note that the flow is not a function of the absolute pressure or the elevation. It is only a
function of the change in hydraulic head.

Differential Form

A more general form of the equation results when the limit of h with respect to the flow
direction l, as the flow path L goes to zero. Applying that step to equations (3.1) and (3.3)
yields,

(3.4)

The minus sign on the right hand terms reflects that the hydraulic head always decreases
in the direction of flow.

4. Permeability [3]

When the fluid is other than water at standard conditions, the conductivity is replaced by
the permeability of the media. The two properties are related by,

(4.1)

Where

k = permeability (m2 or ft2)

m = fluid absolute viscosity, (N s/m2 or lb s/ft2)

n = fluid kinematic viscosity, (m2/s or ft2/s)

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Ideally, the permeability of a porous media is the same to different fluids. Thus, you may
predict the flow of one fluid, from the measurement of a second with equation [20].
However in practice, the solid matrix may swell or sink with different fluids and produce
different values of k. Substitution of equation (4.1) into (3.4) yields,

(4.2)

5. References

[1] http://www.ees.nmt.edu/Hydro/courses/erth441/lectures/L2_Darcys_Law.pdf

[2] http://biosystems.okstate.edu/darcy/Summary.htm

[3] http://biosystems.okstate.edu/darcy/LaLoi/basics.htm

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