Quantitative geophysical pore‐type characterization and its geological implication in carbonate reservoirs

This paper discusses and addresses two questions in carbonate reservoir characterization: how to characterize pore‐type distribution quantitatively from well observations and seismic data based on geologic understanding of the reservoir and what geological implications stand behind the pore‐type distribution in carbonate reservoirs. To answer these questions, three geophysical pore types (reference pores, stiff pores and cracks) are defined to represent the average elastic effective properties of complex pore structures. The variability of elastic properties in carbonates can be quantified using a rock physics scheme associated with different volume fractions of geophysical pore types. We also explore the likely geological processes in carbonates based on the proposed rock physics template. The pore‐type inversion result from well log data fits well with the pore geometry revealed by a FMI log and core information. Furthermore, the S‐wave prediction based on the pore‐type inversion result also shows better agreement than the Greensberg‐Castagna relationship, suggesting the potential of this rock physics scheme to characterize the porosity heterogeneity in carbonate reservoirs. We also apply an inversion technique to quantitatively map the geophysical pore‐type distribution from a 2D seismic data set in a carbonate reservoir offshore Brazil. The spatial distributions of the geophysical pore type contain clues about the geological history that overprinted these rocks. Therefore, we analyse how the likely geological processes redistribute pore space of the reservoir rock from the initial depositional porosity and in turn how they impact the reservoir quality.     

Metacraton: Nature,genesis and behavior

In this paper, we show with examples that cratons involved in intercontinental collisions in a lower plate position are often affected by orogenic events, leading to the transformation of their margins. In some cases, craton interiors can also be shaped by intense collisional processes, leading to the generation of intracratonic orogenic belts. We propose to call these events “metacratonization” and the resulting lithospheric tract “metacraton”. Metacratons can appear similar to typical orogenic belts (i.e. active margin transformed by collisional processes) but are actually sharply different. Their main distinctive characteristics (not all are present in each metacraton) are: (1) absence of pre-collisional events; (2) absence of lithospheric thickening, high-pressure metamorphism being generated by subduction, leading to high gradient in strain and metamorphic intensity; (3) preservation of allochthonous pre-collisional oceanic terranes; (4) abundant post-collisional magmatism associated with shear zones but not with lithospheric thickening; (5) presence of high-temperature–low-pressure metamorphism associated with post-collisional magmatism; (6) intracontinental orogenic belts unrelated to subduction and oceanic basin closures. Reactivation of the rigid but fractured metacratonic lithosphere will cause doming, asthenospheric volcanism emplacement, and mineralizations due to repetitive mineral enrichments. This paper provides several geological cases exemplifying these different metacratonic features in Scandinavia, Sahara, Central Africa and elsewhere. A special focus is given to the Saharan Metacraton because it is where the term “metacraton” originated and it is a vastly expanded tract of continental crust (5,000,000 km²). Metacratonization is a common process in the Earth's history. Considering the metacraton concept in geological studies is crucial for understanding the behavior of cratons and their partial destruction.     

Effects of Operational Parameters on Decolorization of C. I. Acid Red 88 by UV/H2O2 Process: Evaluation of Electrical Energy Consumption

In the present study, effects of operational parameters on the electrical energy consumption for photooxidative process (UV/H₂O₂) for the decolorization of C. I. Acid Red 88 (AR88) have been investigated. In a series of experiments, 20 mg L^?1 of AR88 solution were irradiated in the presence of different concentrations of H₂O₂ (to find out optimum amount of H₂O₂) by UV light intensity of 30 W m^?2 for certain irradiation times. The decolorization of the dye followed pseudo first‐order kinetics, and hence, the figure‐of‐merit electrical energy per order (E_EO) is appropriate for estimating the electrical energy efficiency. The electrical energy consumption was determined during the variation of some parameters such as initial H₂O₂ concentration, initial dye concentration, UV light intensity, pH, and the gap size of solution. Results showed that electrical energy could be reduced by optimizing operational parameters.     

Characterizing the effect of elastic interactions on the effective elastic properties of porous,cracked rocks

Elastic interactions between pores and cracks reflect how they are organized or spatially distributed in porous rocks. The principle goal of this paper is to understand and characterize the effect of elastic interactions on the effective elastic properties. We perform finite element modelling to quantitatively study how the spatial arrangement of inclusions affects stress distribution and the resulting overall elasticity. It is found that the stress field can be significantly altered by elastic interactions. Compared with a non‐interacting situation, stress shielding considerably stiffens the effective media, while stress amplification appreciably reduces the effective elasticity. We also demonstrate that the T‐matrix approach, which takes into account the ellipsoid distribution of pores or cracks, can successfully characterize the competing effects between stress shielding and stress amplification. Numerical results suggest that, when the concentrations of cracks increase beyond the dilute limit, the single parameter crack density is not sufficient to characterize the contribution of the cracks to the effective elasticity. In order to obtain more reliable and accurate predictions for the effective elastic responses and seismic anisotropies, the spatial distribution of pores and cracks should be included. Additionally, such elastic interaction effects are also dependent on both the pore shapes and the fluid infill.     

Ductility‐dependent intensity measure that accounts for ground‐motion spectral shape and duration

The calculated nonlinear structural responses of a building can vary greatly, even if recorded ground motions are scaled to the same spectral acceleration at a building's fundamental period. To reduce the variation in structural response at a particular ground‐motion intensity, this paper proposes an intensity measure (IM_comb) that accounts for the combined effects of spectral acceleration, ground‐motion duration, and response spectrum shape. The intensity measure includes a new measure of spectral shape that integrates the spectrum over a period range that depends on the structure's ductility. The new IM is efficient, sufficient, scalable, transparent, and versatile. These features make it suitable for evaluating the intensities of measured and simulated ground motions. The efficiency and sufficiency of the new IM is demonstrated for the following: (i) elastic‐perfectly plastic single‐degree‐of‐freedom (SDOF) oscillators with a variety of ductility demands and periods; (ii) ductile and brittle deteriorating SDOF systems with a variety of periods; and (iii) collapse analysis for 30 previously designed frames. The efficiency is attributable to the inclusion of duration and to the ductility dependence of the spectral shape measure. For each of these systems, the transparency of the intensity measure made it possible to identify the sensitivity of structural response to the various characteristics of the ground motion. Spectral shape affected all structures, but in particular, ductile structures. Duration only affected structures with cyclic deterioration. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

A stochastic based approach for a new site classification method: application to the Algerian seismic code

Building codes have widely considered the shear wave velocity to make a reliable subsoil seismic classification, based on the knowledge of the mechanical properties of material deposits down to bedrock. This approach has limitations because geophysical data are often very expensive to obtain. Recently, other alternatives have been proposed based on measurements of background noise and estimation of the H/V amplification curve. However, the use of this technique needs a regulatory framework before it can become a realistic site classification procedure. This paper proposes a new formulation for characterizing design sites in accordance with the Algerian seismic building code(RPA99/ver.2003), through transfer functions, by following a stochastic approach combined to a statistical study. For each soil type, the deterministic calculation of the average transfer function is performed over a wide sample of 1-D soil profiles, where the average shear wave(S-W) velocity, V s, in soil layers is simulated using random field theory. Average transfer functions are also used to calculate average site factors and normalized acceleration response spectra to highlight the amplification potential of each site type, since frequency content of the transfer function is significantly similar to that of the H/V amplification curve. Comparison is done with the RPA99/ver.2003 and Eurocode8(EC8) design response spectra, respectively. In the absence of geophysical data, the proposed classification approach together with micro-tremor measures can be used toward a better soil classification.     

Evaluating Tsunami Hazard in the Northwestern Indian Ocean

We evaluate here the tsunami hazard in the northwestern Indian Ocean. The maximum regional earthquake calculated from seismic hazard analysis, was used as the characteristic earthquake for our tsunami hazard assessment. This earthquake, with a moment magnitude of M _w 8.3 and a return period of about 1000 years, was moved along the Makran subduction zone (MSZ) and its possible tsunami wave height along various coasts was calculated via numerical simulation. Both seismic hazard analysis and numerical modeling of the tsunami were validated using historical observations of the Makran earthquake and tsunami of the 1945. Results showed that the possible tsunami may reach a maximum height of 9.6 m in the region. The distribution of tsunami wave height along various coasts is presented. We recommend the development of a tsunami warning system in the region, and emphasize the value of education as a measure to mitigate the death toll of a possible tsunami in this region.     

Spatial-temporal characteristics of epidemic spread in-out flow——Using SARS epidemic in Beijing as a case study

For better detecting the spatial-temporal change mode of individual susceptible-infected-symptomatic-treated-recovered epidemic progress and the characteristics of information/material flow in the epidemic spread network between regions,the epidemic spread mechanism of virus input and output was explored based on individuals and spatial regions.Three typical spatial information parameters including working unit/address,onset location and reporting unit were selected and SARS epidemic spread in-out flow in Beijing was defined based on the SARS epidemiological investigation data in China from 2002 to 2003 while its epidemiological characteristics were discussed.Furthermore,by the methods of spatial-temporal statistical analysis and network characteristic analysis,spatial-temporal high-risk hotspots and network structure characteristics of Beijing outer in-out flow were explored,and spatial autocorrelation/heterogeneity,spatial-temporal evolutive rules and structure characteristics of the spread network of Beijing inner in-out flow were comprehensively analyzed.The results show that(1)The outer input flow of SARS epidemic in Beijing concentrated on Shanxi and Guangdong provinces,but the outer output flow was disperse and mainly includes several north provinces such as Guangdong and Shandong.And the control measurement should focus on the early and interim progress of SARS breakout.(2)The inner output cases had significant positive autocorrelative characteristics in the whole studied region,and the high-risk population was young and middle-aged people with ages from 20 to 60 and occupations of medicine and civilian labourer.(3)The downtown districts were main high-risk hotspots of SARS epidemic in Beijing,the northwest suburban districts/counties were secondary high-risk hotspots,and northeast suburban areas were relatively safe.(4)The district/county nodes in inner spread network showed small-world characteristics and information/material flow had notable heterogeneity.The suburban Tongzhou and Changping districts were the underlying high-risk regions,and several suburban districts such as Shunyi and Huairou were the relatively low-risk safe regions as they carried out minority information/material flow.The exploration and analysis based on epidemic spread in-out flow help better detect and discover the potential spatial-temporal evolutive rules and characteristics of SARS epidemic,and provide a more effective theoretical basis for emergency/control measurements and decision-making.