A comprehensive Darcy-type law for viscoplastic fluids: II. Rheology & topology

Abstract

We extend our recently proposed framework (Chaparian, Phys. Rev. Fluids 10(9) 093301, 2025) for deriving a Darcy-type law governing viscoplastic flows through porous media to incorporate more applied aspects. In particular, the present work considers a more realistic rheological model (i.e. Herschel-Bulkley, describing the shear-thinning nature of practical yield-stress fluids) along with a wider range of porous media topologies. In our earlier work, the problem was addressed by decomposing the full Bingham number spectrum (representing the ratio of the yield stress of the fluid to the characteristic viscous stress) into three main regions: (i) low Bingham numbers (weak yield stress limit) corresponding to Newtonian flow, (ii) high Bingham numbers (strong yield stress limit) representing yield limit/plastic flow, and (iii) intermediate Bingham numbers (transition regime). By deriving theoretical models for the two asymptotic limits of the spectrum and combining them, we obtained a Darcy-type law applicable across the entire range of Bingham numbers. In contrast to our original work, where the weak yield stress limit reduces to a Newtonian flow, here, this limit instead follows a power-law asymptote that captures the shear-thinning dominated behaviour of Herschel-Bulkley fluids. In the present study, we derive a scaling to address this limit. The framework is further generalised to incorporate a broader spectrum of porous media topologies, enabling a systematic assessment of how pore geometry influences the resulting macroscopic flow law. The proposed framework provides a unified theoretical basis for predicting yield-stress fluid transport through complex porous media and establishes a pathway towards finding macroscopic models applicable to a wide range of natural systems and industrial processes.