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The Virtual Element Method for large scale Discrete Fracture Network simulations: fracture‐independent mesh generation
Author(s) -
Berrone Stefano,
Benedetto Matìas Fernando,
Borio Andrea,
Pieraccini Sandra,
Scialò Stefano
Publication year - 2015
Publication title -
pamm
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
ISSN - 1617-7061
DOI - 10.1002/pamm.201510006
Subject(s) - fracture (geology) , flow (mathematics) , scale (ratio) , focus (optics) , computer science , discrete element method , complex fracture , element (criminal law) , computational science , finite element method , mesh generation , geology , distributed computing , mechanics , geotechnical engineering , structural engineering , engineering , physics , quantum mechanics , political science , law , optics
We consider the problem of underground flow simulations in fractured media. This is a large scale, heterogeneous multi‐scale phenomenon involving very complex geological configurations. Within the Discrete Fracture Network (DFN) model, we focus on the resolution of the steady‐state flow in large fracture networks. Exploiting the peculiarity of the Virtual Element Method (VEM), which allows the use of rather general polygonal mesh elements, we propose an approach for building a suitable mesh for representing the solution on DFNs. (© 2015 Wiley‐VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)