Estimation on ureolysis-based microbially induced calcium carbonate precipitation progress for geotechnical applications

There are some key challenges in the geotechnical applications of microbially induced CaCO₃ precipitation technique. These challenges mainly arise from lack of enough control on precipitation patterns within the soil. Monitoring precipitation progress in treatment solution (biogrout) before injection provides useful information on controlling the precipitation pattern. In this study, a hybrid of electrical conductivity change measurements and precipitation mass measurements was proposed for the monitoring. The results were described as characteristic curves which would provide useful information on interpreting, estimating, and steering the precipitation pattern within the soil. The effects of some influencing factors on the precipitation patterns were also statistically investigated. XRD, FTIR, and SEM were used for the microscale identification analysis of the precipitated solids.     

Assessing the effects of the climate change on land cover changes in different time periods

The present research evaluated the relation between the normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI) changes and the climate change during 2000–2014 in Qazvin Plain, Iran. Daily precipitation and mean temperature values during 2015–2040 and 2040–2065 were predicted using the statistical downscaling model (SDSM), and these values were compared with the values of the base period (2000–2014). The MODIS images (MOD13A2) were used for NDVI monitoring. In order to investigate the effects of climate changes on vegetation, the relationship between the NDVI and climatic parameters was assessed in monthly, seasonal, and annual time periods. According to the obtained results under the B2 scenario, the mean annual precipitation at Qazvin Station during 2015–2040 and 2040–2065 was 6.7 mm (9.3%) and 8.2 mm (11.36%) lower than the values in the base period, respectively. Moreover, the mean annual temperature in the mentioned periods was 0.7 and 0.92 °C higher than that in the base period, respectively. Analysis of the correlations between the NDVI and climatic parameters in different periods showed that there is a significant correlation between the seasonal temperature and NDVI (P < 0.01). Moreover, the NDVI will increase 0.009 and 0.011 during 2015–2040 and 2040–2065, respectively.     

Seismic modelling for reservoir studies: a comparison between convolutional and full-waveform methods for a deep-water turbidite sandstone reservoir

Two seismic modelling approaches, that is, two-dimensional pre-stack elastic finite-difference and one-dimensional convolution methods, are compared in a modelling exercise over the fluid-flow simulation model of a producing deep-water turbidite sandstone reservoir in the West of Shetland Basin. If the appropriate parameterization for one-dimensional convolution is used, the differences in three-dimensional and four-dimensional seismic responses from the two methods are negligible. The key parameters to ensure an accurate seismic response are a representative wavelet, the distribution of common-depth points and their associated angles of incidence. Conventional seismic images generated by the one-dimensional convolutional model suffer from lack of continuity because it only accounts for vertical resolution. After application of a lateral resolution function, the convolutional and finite-difference seismic images are very similar. Although transmission effects, internal multiples and P-to-S conversions are not included in our convolutional modelling, the subtle differences between images from the two methods indicates that such effects are of secondary nature in our study. A quantitative comparison of the (normalized root-mean-square) amplitude attributes and waveform kinematics indicates that the finite-difference approach does not offer any tangible benefit in our target-oriented seismic modelling case study, and the potential errors from one-dimensional convolution modelling are comparatively much smaller than the production-induced time-lapse changes.     

Optimal Allocation of Water Resources Using a Two-Stage Stochastic Programming Method with Interval and Fuzzy Parameters

Natural Resources Research - Efficient water allocation is one of the most prominent issues in water resources management. In this research, a two-stage interval-parameter stochastic fuzzy...     

Meteorites from the Lut Desert (Iran)

We present for the first time a detailed report on the discovery of a new meteorite collection region in the Lut Desert, eastern–southeastern Iran, describing its geological, morphological, and climatic setting. Our search campaigns, alongside with the activity of meteorite hunters, yielded >200 meteorite finds. Here, we report on their classification, spatial distribution, and terrestrial weathering. All the collected meteorites are ordinary chondrites (OCs). The most abundant by far are the highly weathered paired H5 distributed in the northwest of Kalut area (central Lut, Kerman dense collection area). The second are well‐preserved paired L5 also found in Kalut region. A detailed study of the geochemistry and mineralogy of selected meteorites reveals significant effects of terrestrial weathering. Fe,Ni metal (hereafter simply metal) and troilite are transformed into Fe oxyhydroxides. A rather unusual type of troilite weathering to pyrite/marcasite is observed in most of the Lut Desert meteorites. Magnetic measurements and X‐ray diffractometry confirm the occurrence of terrestrial weathering products, with the dominance of maghemite, goethite, and hematite. Mobile elements, such as Li, Sr, Mo, Ba, Tl, Th, and U, are enriched with respect to fresh falls. Meanwhile, a decrease in the V, Cr, Co, Rb (and possibly Fe) due to terrestrial weathering is detectable. The total carbon and CaCO₃ is higher than in samples from other hot deserts. The weathering effects observed in the Lut Desert OCs can be used as distinctive indicators to distinguish them from meteorites from other regions of the Earth. Measurements of terrestrial age (¹⁴C) show a range of 10–30 ka, which is in the range of ages reported for meteorites from other hot deserts except the Atacama Desert (Chile). Considering the high potential of the Lut Desert in meteorite preservation, systematic works should lead to the discovery of more samples giving access to interesting material for future studies.     

Modification of REE distribution of ordinary chondrites from Atacama (Chile) and Lut (Iran) hot deserts: Insights into the chemical weathering of meteorites

The behavior of rare earth elements (REEs) during hot desert weathering of meteorites is investigated. Ordinary chondrites (OCs) from Atacama (Chile) and Lut (Iran) deserts show different variations in REE composition during this process. Inductively coupled plasma–mass spectrometry (ICP‐MS) data reveal that hot desert OCs tend to show elevated light REE concentrations, relative to OC falls. Chondrites from Atacama are by far the most enriched in REEs and this enrichment is not necessarily related to their degree of weathering. Positive Ce anomaly of fresh chondrites from Atacama and the successive formation of a negative Ce anomaly with the addition of trivalent REEs are similar to the process reported from Antarctic eucrites. In addition to REEs, Sr and Ba also show different concentrations when comparing OCs from different hot deserts. The stability of Atacama surfaces and the associated old terrestrial ages of meteorites from this region give the samples the necessary time to interact with the terrestrial environment and to be chemically modified. Higher REE contents and LREE‐enriched composition are evidence of contamination by terrestrial soil. Despite their low degrees of weathering, special care must be taken into account while working on the REE composition of Atacama meteorites for cosmochemistry applications. In contrast, chondrites from the Lut desert show lower degrees of REE modification, despite significant weathering signed by Sr content. This is explained by the relatively rapid weathering rate of the meteorites occurring in the Lut desert, which hampers the penetration of terrestrial material by forming voluminous Fe oxide/oxyhydroxides shortly after the meteorite fall.     

Mineralogy and Geochemistry of Uraniferous Sandstones in Fault Zone,Wadi El Sahu Area,Southwestern Sinai,Egypt: Implications for Provenance,Weathering and Tectonic Setting

Paleozoic rocks in the Wadi El Sahu area are affected by many major faults in different directions. A reverse fault trending NE-SW is exposed for about 300 m of its length as it cuts through the Abu Hamata and Adedia formations on the south side of Wadi El Sahu. A secondary ascending hydrothermal solution carrying heavy metals and radioactive minerals passed through the fault plain and the surrounding fractures, forming mineralized and radioactive zone. The mineralized zone thickness ranges from 60 cm to 200 cm along the fault plain. These rocks were analyzed radiometrically using a portable gamma-ray spectrometer, chemically by employing ICP-ES and ICP-MS, as well as mineralogically by both binocular and Environmental Scanning Electron microscope. Gold content was also determined by fire assay. REE and U contents reached up to 2682 and 1216 ppm, respectively. Mineralogical investigations indicated the presence of uraninite, torbernite, autunite, sklodowskite, kasolite as uranium minerals, thorite as a thorium mineral, monazite, allanite and xenotime as REE-bearing minerals, zircon and columbite as accessory minerals, gold and nickel as precious and base metals, in addition to cassiterite, chalcopyrite, chalcocite and chrysocolla. High REE and U contents are attributed to the circulation of epigenetic U and REE-bearing hydrothermal solutions along the fault plain and its surrounding fractures. Hydrothermal alteration processes could then be confirmed by the presence of the M-type tetrad effect in the REE-patterns of the ferruginous sandstone. The non-chondritic ratio of Nb/Ta, Zr/Hf and Y/Ho in the studied sandstone may be attributed to the tetrad effect. The Ce and Eu anomaly with unusual REE-patterns was represented by the presence of conjugated M-W tetrad effects, indicating either the dual effect of hydrothermal solutions or groundwater with seawater. The results clarify that the tetrad-effects could be used as evidence for the environment of deposition and as an indication for gold mineralization.     

On the implementation of Prabhu’s exact solution of the stochastic reservoir equation

After 50 years of Prabhu’s paper on the exact solution of the stochastic reservoir equation for the important class of gamma inflow distributions with an integral shape parameter, a detailed implementation of the exact solution is still lacking, despite its potential usefulness from both theoretical and practical points of view. This paper explores some properties of Prabhu’s exact solution and investigates the numerical difficulties associated with its implementation. The solution is also extended to derive the distributions of deficit, spillage, yield, and actual release from the reservoir. Explicit analytical solutions for three relatively simple cases are given in detail as examples and comparisons with approximate numerical solutions are made, which reveal some shortcomings of approximate methods. The implementation of the solution in the general case reveals some numerical problems associated with large values of the shape parameter of the inflow distribution and large ratios of reservoir size to draft, mainly due to accumulation of round-off errors. A Matlab program has been developed to calculate emptying and filling probabilities over a wide range of reservoir parameters using extended precision. Comparison of Prabhu’s solution with the numerical solution of the reservoir integral equation highlights possible problems with the numerical solution, which may produce inaccurate or even invalid results for large reservoirs, large drift, and large skewness of the inflow distribution. A comparison between gamma and lognormal distributions as models of skew revealed that as the reservoir size, drift, and skewness increase, the probability of emptying of the reservoir becomes smaller for the case of gamma inflow than in the case of lognormal flow having the same skewness coefficient.     

Sustainable soil stabilisation with ground granulated blast-furnace slag activated by olivine and sodium hydroxide

Acta Geotechnica - Ground granulated blast-furnace slag (GGBS), activated with olivine (Mg2SiO4) and sodium hydroxide (NaOH), was used to stabilise a clayey soil. Mechanical and microstructural...