Residual NAPL Morphology Effects on Electrical Resistivity: Insights From Micromodel Displacement Experiments and Pore Network Simulations

Abstract Characterizing residual non‐aqueous phase liquids (NAPLs) in porous media is essential for designing contaminated site remediation strategies. The direct current resistivity method is increasingly being used at sites contaminated by NAPLs, which uses the Archie's second law to connect NAPL saturation with the resistivity of porous media. A power‐law relationship connecting the phase morphology measured by Euler characteristic with resistivity has also been observed at the pore‐scale. Because these relationships are limited for porous media with specific wettability, previous research works have demonstrated deviations from Archie's second law in both the laboratory and field experiments. To evaluate the effects of residual NAPL morphology with different wettability on bulk resistivity, we developed two 2D‐micromodels and measured their electrical resistivity and phase morphology during phase displacement under laboratory‐controlled conditions. Furthermore, pore network simulations of a variety of conditions were performed in absence of surface conduction. Results show that NAPL distributed in dead ends of the pore space has limited influence on bulk resistivity since they do not control the current path and voltage distribution. The correlations between resistivity index and Euler characteristic are determined by NAPL ganglia size and pore throat width. A power‐law relationship is found between the Archie's saturation exponent and the average size of the residual NAPL ganglia, indicating that this exponent can be interpreted as the rate of change of the pore water connectivity with saturation. These insights provide a physical framework connecting the morphology and wettability of the NAPL ganglia with the Archie's saturation exponent.