AWARDEE OF MATHEMATICS AND MECHANICS PRIZE

GUO SHANGPING

Abstract

Guo Shangping, working in the field of mechanics and petroleum development, was born in Sichuan Province in 1930. He graduated from Chongqing University in 1951 and studied in Moscow Petroleum Institute in 1953-1957,where he received vice-doctorate. Afterwards he has successively worked in scientific research institutes under Chinese Academy of Sciences and Ministry of Petroleum Industry (now the China National Petroleum Co.).
He advanced a new idea of “microscopic porous flow mechanics " as well as “biological porous flow mechanics " in the early 1960 and worked on the two directions from the late 1970s up to now.
He with his colleagues developed a complete set of techniques for microscopic imitation and measurement, accomplished experimental researches by using these techniques and obtained a series of new results about the mechanisms of multi-phase flow, non-newtonian flow ,anisothermal flow and physico-chemical flow through porous media. Then they established a theory of microscopic porous flow and published a monograph 《Physico-chemical porous flow -Microscopic mechanisms》.
He with his colleagues proved that the tiny tubule systems in human body and biobody belong to porous media so that the flow through such systems may be regarded as porous flow and the relevant fluid mechanics problems can be treated as problems of porous flow mechanics .On the basis of experimental study with animals (rabbits)as well as reaserch by using imitating porous media and natural biofluids such as human blood ,horse blood , sheep blood ,and liver bile etc., he found that the basic law of biofluid porous flow is usually not the Darcy's linear law ,but some non-Darcy's law . Then he established the math models for biofluid porous flow through multi-biomedia in some viscera and tissue such as lung,liver and muscle tissue etc.
Applying the theory of porous flow to oilfield development, he has made important contributions to petroleum industry of China. He was one of the main designers of plan for developing Karamay oilfield in 1950s and the leader of groups studying and predicting fluid flow performance in the reservoirs of Karamay oilfield in 1950s and the central Saerty area of Daqing oilfield in the early 1960s.  In 1950s, he put forward a theory of fluid flow through artificially fractured reservoir as well as a concept of “mass fracturing"and proved that mass fracturing is able to intensify oil production effectively and economically.  In1990s, he advanced an idea of “the quaternary oil recovery", the experimental research has illustrated that it can further enhance the oil recovery after the end of a tertiary oil recovery.
Prof. Guo was elected a member of Chinese Academy of Sciences in 1995.