Magnetotelluric survey for exploration of a volcanic-rock reservoir in the Yurihara oil and gas field,Japan*

The Yurihara oil and gas field is located on the southern edge of Akita Prefecture, northeastern Japan. In this area, drilling, surface geological surveys and many seismic surveys have been used to investigate the geological structure. Wells drilled into the Nishikurosawa Basalt Group (NBG) of Miocene age found oil and gas reservoirs at depths of 1.5–2 km. Oil and gas are now being produced commercially and further exploration is required in the surrounding areas. However, since the neighbouring areas are covered with young volcanic products from the Chokai volcano, and have a rough topography, the subsurface distribution of the NBG must be investigated using other methods in addition to seismic reflection. According to the well data, the resistivity of the NBG is comparatively higher than that of the overlying sedimentary formations, and therefore the magnetotelluric (MT) method is expected to be useful for the estimation of the distribution of the NBG. An MT survey was conducted along three survey lines in this area. Each line trended east–west, perpendicular to the regional geological strike, and was composed of about 25 measurement sites. Induction vectors evaluated from the magnetic field show that this area has a two-dimensional structure. The evaluated resistivity sections are in agreement with the log data. In conclusion, we were able to detect resistive layers (the NBG) below conductive layers. The results indicate that the NBG becomes gradually less resistive from north to south. In the centre of the northern line, an uplifted resistive area is interpreted as corresponding to the reservoir. By comparison with a seismic section, we prove the effectiveness of the integration of seismic and MT surveys for the investigation of the morphology and internal structure of the NBG. On other survey lines, the resistive uplifted zones are interpreted as possible prospective areas.     

Intrusion of Kuroshio-Derived bottom cold water into Osaka Bay and its possible cause

The bottom layer in Osaka Bay was occupied in August from 1980 to 1995 by a water mass of relatively low temperature and rich in nutrients in comparison to previous and following decades. The relationship between Osaka Bay bottom temperature and Kuroshio axis location south of Kii Peninsula has been investigated using the dataset archived by Osaka Research Institute of Environment of Agriculture and Fisheries and axis-location data provided by Marine Information Research Center. The correlation between bottom temperature in the bay and Kuroshio-axis distance from Cape Shionomisaki indicates that the bottom temperature in the bay decreases when the Kuroshio axis is a long distance from the cape, and vice versa. To investigate why the temperature distribution depends on the axis location, composite temperature maps are depicted using summer temperature data from 1970 to 2005 archived in the Japan Oceanographic Data Center (JODC) after dividing all data into two groups with different axis locations. These temperature maps and temperature-salinity plots using the same JODC data suggest a scenario: cold water in the Kuroshio intermediate layer is first upwelled on the eastern side of the Kii Peninsula and thereafter moves westward as a coastal boundary current in the Kelvin wave sense of the Northern Hemisphere when the Kuroshio axis is located around 74-km distance from Cape Shionomisaki. This scenario is validated using internal Froude number maps depicted using the JODC-archived hydrographic data and geostrophic current fields. In addition, the reanalysis daily data provided by Japan Coastal Ocean Predictability Experiment are used for the validation.     

A stochastic differential equation model for assessing drought and flood risks

Droughts and floods are two opposite but related hydrological events. They both lie at the extremes of rainfall intensity when the period of that intensity is measured over long intervals. This paper presents a new concept based on stochastic calculus to assess the risk of both droughts and floods. An extended definition of rainfall intensity is applied to point rainfall to simultaneously deal with high intensity storms and dry spells. The mean-reverting Ornstein–Uhlenbeck process, which is a stochastic differential equation model, simulates the behavior of point rainfall evolving not over time, but instead with cumulative rainfall depth. Coefficients of the polynomial functions that approximate the model parameters are identified from observed raingauge data using the least squares method. The probability that neither drought nor flood occurs until the cumulative rainfall depth reaches a given value requires solving a Dirichlet problem for the backward Kolmogorov equation associated with the stochastic differential equation. A numerical model is developed to compute that probability, using the finite element method with an effective upwind discretization scheme. Applicability of the model is demonstrated at three raingauge sites located in Ghana, where rainfed subsistence farming is the dominant practice in a variety of tropical climates.     

Hydrocarbon-Degrading Bacteria and Paraffin from Polluted Seashores 9 Years after the Nakhodka Oil Spill in the Sea of Japan

Pollution of petroleum hydrocarbons, in particular oil spills, has attracted much attention in the past and recent decades. Oil spills influence natural microbial community, and physical and chemical properties of the affected sites. The biodegradation of hydrocarbons by microorganisms is one of the primary ways by which oil spill is eliminated from contaminated sites. One such spill was that of the Russian tanker the Nakhodka that spilled heavy oil into the Sea of Japan on January 2, 1997. The impact of the Nakhodka oil spill resulted in a viscous sticky fluid fouling the shores and affected natural ecosystems. This paper describes the weathering of hydrocarbon-degrading bacteria （genus Pseudomonas） and crystallized organic compounds from the Nakhodka oil spill-polluted seashores after nine years. The Nakhodka oil has hardened and formed crust of crystalline paraffin wax as shown by XRD analysis （0.422, 0.377, and 0.250 nm d-spacing） in association with graphite and calcite after 9 years of bioremediation. Anaerobic reverse side of the oil crust contained numerous coccus typed bacteria associated with halite. The finding of hydrocarbon-degrading bacteria and paraffin wax in the oil crust may have a significant effect on the weathering processes of the Nakhodka oil spill during the 9- year bioremediation.     

Production and degradation of fluorescent dissolved organic matter derived from bacteria

Dynamics of fluorescent dissolved organic matter (FDOM) in ocean environments has received attention over the past few decades. Although it has appeared that in situ production of oceanic FDOM is mainly due to bacteria, the production and bio- and photodegradation processes of bacterial FDOM have not been elucidated. In this study, a culture experiment with bacteria was carried out to assess the production and biodegradation processes of bacterial FDOM. Photodegradation of bacterial FDOM and dissolved organic carbon (DOC) was also examined by exposure to a solar simulator. Bacterial FDOM consists of six components which were determined by parallel factor analysis (PARAFAC). Fluorescence intensities of protein-like FDOM increased with the bacterial biomass, but the increases of humic-like FDOM lagged behind the protein-like FDOM by 5–10 days. Exposure to simulated sunlight caused significant decreases in fluorescence intensities of all components; 52–94% of the initial intensities were lost during 24 h. While, the DOC concentration exhibited a small decrease through the experiment (1.9–11.1%). These results showed that photodegradability of bacteria derived DOC was much less than the fluorescence, indicating that the lifetime of bacteria-derived DOC is much longer than the length estimated by the fluorescence. The role of photobleached FDOM derived from bacteria may be significant in the biogeochemical cycle at the surface layer.     

Temporal variability and characterization of physicochemical properties in the neritic area of Sagami Bay,Japan

Seasonal and interannual variations in physicochemical properties were investigated in the neritic area of Sagami Bay, Kanagawa, Japan, from December 2000 to December 2005. Physicochemical properties (i.e. temperature, salinity, density, dissolved oxygen and dissolved inorganic nutrient concentration) revealed clear seasonal variations, which were similar to each other during all 5 years. Temperature, salinity and dissolved inorganic nutrients showed rapid, drastic variations within a few days and/or weeks. These variations are related to sea levels, principally due to the shifting effects of the Kuroshio Current axis: they were strongly affected by the Kuroshio Water and other waters, when sea level difference was greater than ca. 35 cm and lower than ca. 15 cm, respectively. Temperature difference (DF _T ) increased with sea level difference, and the difference of salinity and dissolved inorganic nutrients (NH₄ ⁺-N, NO₃ ⁻+NO₂ ⁻-N, NH₄ ⁺+NO₃ ⁻+NO₂ ⁻-N, PO₄ ³⁻-P and SiO₂-Si) increased and decreased with DF _T , respectively. All these correlations are significant. Total dissolved inorganic nitrogen (N), phosphate (P) and silicate (Si) revealed seasonal variations in the ranges of 0.57–16.08, 0.0070–0.91 and 0.22–46.38 μM, respectively. From the regression equations between these elements allowed the following relation to be obtained; Si:N:P = 14.8:13.4:1. Dissolved inorganic nutrients were characterized by Si and/or P deficiency, especially in the upper layer (0–20 m depth) during summer. Single and/or combined elements are discussed on the basis of potential and stoichiometric nutrient limitations, which could restrict phytoplankton (diatom) growth as a limiting factor.     

Primary migration theory of petroleum and its application to petroleum exploration

Current concepts of oil and gas generation by thermal decomposition of kerogen are reviewed. Primary oil migration mechanisms requiring large quantities of water to serve as a carrier for the movement of oil from source rock to reservoir are discussed. Previous investigators regarded the expulsion of interlayer water from montmorillonite and montmorillonite-illite mixed-layer minerals by transformation during diagenesis as the most important source of the carrier water.The process of diagenesis is subdivided into three stages based on the results of experimental compaction studies on montmorillonite clay, on studies of the expulsion mechanism of interlayer and interstitial waters, and on the observed changes in pores and mineral grains in argillaceous sediments during these stages. As a result, we concluded that the migration of oil chiefly occurs during the late compaction stage when the sediment's porosity ranges from 30 to 10%.This conclusion implies that a large amount of oil can move during the period when the active generation of oil corresponds with the primary migration of carrier water. For instance, in the oil-bearing Miocene sediments of the Akita area of northern Japan, the oil generation temperature ranged from 100 to 150°C and the average migration depth was between 1300 and 2600 m. Therefore, the possibility of large oil pool formation will be high in the basin where the paleo-geothermal gradient is about 5.0°C/100 m. In fact, it is expected that the paleo-geothermal gradients in the vicinities of large oil fields will be very close to this value.Prediction of the type and amount of hydrocarbons in the exploration area will be possible by an examination of the paleo-geothermal gradient in the area and by a study of the relation between absolute porosity and burial depth of argillaceous rocks.     

Effectivity of dissolved SF6 tracer for clarification of rainfall–runoff processes in a forested headwater catchment

Understanding rainfall‐runoff processes is crucial for prevention and prediction of water‐related natural disasters. Sulfur hexafluoride (SF₆) is a potential tracer, but few researches have applied it for rainfall‐runoff process studies. We observed multiple tracers including SF₆ in spring water at 1‐ to 2‐hr intervals during rainstorm events to investigate the effectivity of SF₆ tracer in rainfall–runoff studies through the clarification of rainfall–runoff process. The target spring is a perennial spring in a forested headwater catchment with an area of 0.045 km² in Fukushima, Japan. The relationship between the SF₆ concentration in spring water and the spring discharge volume was negative trend; the SF₆ concentration in spring water becomes low as the spring discharge volume increases especially during rainstorms. The hydrograph separation using SF₆ and chloride ion tracers was applied for determining the contribution of principal sources on rainfall–runoff water. It suggested more than 60% contribution of bedrock groundwater at the rainfall peak and high percentage contribution continued even in the hydrograph recession phase. Based on observed low SF₆ concentration in groundwater after heavy rainfall, the replacement of groundwater near the spring with bedrock groundwater is indicated as a mechanism for water discharge with low SF₆ concentration during rainfall events. Consequently, rainstorm events play an important role as triggers in discharging water stored in the deeper subsurface area. In addition, SF₆ tracer is concluded as one of the strongest tracers for examining rainfall–runoff process studies. And, therefore, this study provided new insights into the dynamics of groundwater and its responses to rainfall in terms of SF₆ concentration variance in water in headwater regions.