Permeability of coals and characteristics of desorption tests: Implications for coalbed methane production

Desorption tests, conducted before development drilling, can predict early production rates of coalbed methane wells. In this study, results from 136 desorption tests from 30 coreholes are compared to subsequent production histories of surrounding wells. Coals studied are from the Carboniferous Pottsville Formation in the Black Warrior Basin of Alabama, USA. The investigation indicates that the best predictor for gas production is ‘‘gas yield at 120 days, divided by sample depth'. This quotient has a higher correlation with actual gas production than other variables examined, including original reserves in-place. Gas content of coal generally increases with depth. However, coal permeability, and hence the recovery factor, tends to decrease with depth. Therefore, coalbed methane exploration should focus on finding the optimal balance between gas yield and depth. Commercially successful wells are characterized by coals with high gas yields at shallow depths. Desorption tests, especially of slowly-desorbing coals, should be run for a minimum of 120 days, or else should be extrapolated to that time if tests are terminated earlier.     

Kinematic Dynamos in the Kerr Metric

It is known that a sharp decrease in the angular velocity of the accretion disk around a black hole could in principle produce a kinematic axisymmetric dynamo, in contrast to the classical situation described by Cowling's antidynamo theorem. Here the effect of a nontrivial poloidal velocity of the disk is studied, showing that a strong gradient of this velocity enhances the possibilities of a working dynamo.     

阿拉善高原地下水的稳定同位素异常

1987～1995年对降水、黑河水和古日乃草原地下水作了定位观测,在巴丹吉林沙漠水文探险中采集了沙漠和戈壁地下水及湖水.降水同位素组成δD～δ18O与Craig线相同,但发现了地下水的δD～δ18D关系平行于降水线且有氘盈余为负且达-22‰的异常,其成因不明.由地表、地下水环境同位素组成,分析了黑河治理规划实施后可能对地下水资源产生的工程影响,它近期不会成为古日乃草原沙漠化进程的因素,但对额济纳绿洲的影响却不容忽视.     

General relativistic MHD simulations of black hole accretion disks and jets

Accretion disks orbiting black holes power high-energy systems such as X-ray binaries and Active Galactic Nuclei. Observations are providing increasingly detailed quantitative information about such systems. This data has been interpreted using standard toy-models that rely on simplifying assumptions such as regular flow geometry and a parameterized stress. Global numerical simulations offer a way to investigate the basic physical dynamics of accretion flows without these assumptions and, in principle, lead to a genuinely predictive theory. In recent years we have developed a fully three-dimensional general relativistic magnetohydrodynamic simulation code that evolves time-dependent inflows into Kerr black holes. Although the resulting global simulations of black hole accretion are still somewhat simplified, they have brought to light a number of interesting results. These include the formation of electro-magnetically dominated jets powered by the black hole’s rotation, and the presence of strong stresses in the plunging region of the accretion flow. The observational consequences of these features are gradually being examined. Increasing computer power and increasingly sophisticated algorithms promise a bright future for the computational approach to black hole accretion.     

Constraining Holocene sea‐surface conditions in the south‐western Black Sea using dinoflagellate cysts

This paper presents two dinoflagellate cyst records from the south‐western shelf of the Black Sea. A new site, MAR05‐13, from the Sakarya shelf is described and placed into context with site MAR02‐45, ～250 km distant on the Thracian shelf. The records provide a centennial resolution of surface water conditions in the Holocene. Analysis of the data suggests that the surface salinity of the south‐western shelf increased in a gradual and progressive manner. In the period ～11 000–9000 cal a BP the assemblages suggest surface‐water salinities between 7–13 psu. The initial arrival of euryhaline species, ～8100 cal a BP, is linked to the reconnection of the Black Sea and Marmara Sea. The suggested surface water changes related to the reconnection took approximately 1000 years. Following this initial change in assemblages, a further increase in the number of euryhaline species is noted between 5000 and 4000 cal a BP. This is linked to the establishment of more saline surface‐water conditions, close to present‐day values. The record for MAR05‐13 highlights the complexity of the changes in cyst assemblages during the mid‐Holocene. Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Emerging coral diseases: a temperature‐driven process?

In the last few decades there has been a surge in research focusing on coral disease. While climate change, specifically rising sea surface temperature, has been proposed as a major and growing driver of the emergence of marine diseases, to date a solid connection between disease epizootics and elevated sea surface temperature has not been established. However, a wealth of data now exists, compiled from many different perspectives, that may support such a connection. In this work we provide a comprehensive review targeting one coral disease, black band disease, that spans the infection process, pathobiology, and epizootiology, and links specific mechanisms of the disease process to increasing temperatures. This temperature‐driven pattern of infection can be expanded to include similar processes associated with other temperature‐related coral diseases. The conclusions presented here are based upon the results of many studies using a diverse suite of approaches that have been synthesized to argue that the emergence and continuing spread of black band disease is linked to warming sea surface temperatures. In summary, as global ocean temperatures increase seasonally and over decades, the environment shifts to become more favorable for the growth of potentially pathogenic microorganisms endemic to the immediate environment of the reef. The increase in the relative number of potential pathogens in the microbial community produces microenvironments conducive to the growth of other potential pathogens, leading to infection by a polymicrobial consortium. This consortium is easily perturbed by a (seasonal) temperature decrease, but remains associated with the coral host and can be reactivated with a subsequent seasonal increase in temperature, resulting in a cycle of temperature‐dependent disease emergence.     

Carbon isotopic fractionation by desorption of shale gases

Geochemical studies of shale gas and conventional reservoirs within the Triassic Yanchang Formation of Xiasiwan and Yongning Field, Ordos Basin show that methane is isotopically depleted in ¹³C as compared to δ¹³C₁ calculated by the Ro based on the relationship between δ¹³C₁ and Ro. Geochemical fractionation during the adsorption/desorption process of shale system may play a significant part in influencing δ¹³C₁ values of shale gas. Two shale core samples from confined coring of the Yanchang Formation were adopted segmented desorption experiments to examine this phenomenon. The results show that the δ¹³C₁ of desorbed gas changes little in the first few phases of the experiments at low desorption levels, but become less negative rapidly when the fraction of desorbed methane exceeds 85%. The desorption process for the last 15% fraction of the methane from the shale samples shows a wide variation in δ¹³C₁ from −49‰ to −33.9‰. Moreover, δ¹³C₁ of all desorbed methane from the shale samples is substantially depleted in ¹³C than that calculated by Ro, according to Stahl and Carey's δ¹³C₁–Ro equation for natural gas generated from sapropelic organic matter. This shows some gases with isotopically enriched in ¹³C cannot be desorbed under the temperature and pressure conditions of the desorption experiments. This observation may be the real reason for the δ¹³C₁ of shale gases and conventional reservoirs becomes more negative in Xiasiwan and Yongning Fields, Ordos Basin. The magnitude of the deviation between the δ¹³C₁ of shale gas and that calculated by Ro may be related to the adsorption capacity of shale or the proportion of absorbed gases. In this way, we may be able to evaluate the relative adsorption capacity of shale in geological conditions by δ¹³C₁ of the shale gas, or by δ¹³C₁ of conventional gas which generated by the shale with certainty. The δ¹³C₁ of conventional gas in Dingbian and Yingwang Fields have no deviation because the TOC value of the hydrocarbon source rock is relatively low.     

Pore characterization of organic-rich Lower Cambrian shales in Qiannan Depression of Guizhou Province,Southwestern China

Nine organic-rich shale samples of Lower Cambrian black shales were collected from a recently drilled well in the Qiannan Depression, Guizhou Province where they are widely distributed with shallower burial depth than in Sichuan Basin, and their geochemistry and pore characterization were investigated. The results show that the Lower Cambrian shales in Qiannan Depression are organic rich with TOC content ranging from 2.81% to 12.9%, thermally overmature with equivalent vitrinite reflectance values in the range of 2.92–3.25%, and clay contents are high and range from 32.4% to 53.2%. The samples have a total helium porosity ranging from 2.46% to 4.13% and total surface area in the range of 9.08–37.19 m²/g. The estimated porosity in organic matters (defined as the ratio of organic pores to the volume of total organic matters) based on the plot of TOC vs helium porosity is about 10% for the Lower Cambrian shales in Qiannan Depression and is far lower than that of the Lower Silurian shales (36%) in and around Sichan Basin. This indicates that either the organic pores in the Lower Cambrian shale samples have been more severely compacted than or they did not develop organic pores as abundantly as the Lower Silurian shales. Our studies also reveal that the micropore volumes determined by Dubinin–Radushkevich (DR) equation is usually overestimated and this overestimation is closely related to the non-micropore surface area of shales (i.e. the surface area of meso- and macro-pores). However, the modified BET equation can remove this overestimation and be conveniently used to evaluate the micropore volumes/surface area and the non-micropore surface areas of micropore-rich shales.     

BIB-SEM characterization of pore space morphology and distribution in postmature to overmature samples from the Haynesville and Bossier Shales

Four Haynesville Shale and four Bossier Shale samples were investigated using a combination of Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM) and Broad Ion Beam (BIB) polishing. This approach enables the microstructure and porosity to be studied down to the mesopore size (<50 nm) in representative areas at the scale of the BIB cross-sections. The samples vary in mineralogy, grain size and TOC and the maturity ranges from 2.42 to 2.58 VR_r in the Haynesville Shale to 1.79–2.26 VR_r in the Bossier Shale. This variety within the samples enabled us to study controls on the porosity distribution in these shales. Visible pores exist as intraparticle pores mainly in carbonate grains and pyrite framboids and as interparticle pores, mainly in the clay-rich matrix. Pores in organic matter show a characteristic porosity with respect to the type of organic matter, which mainly consists of mixtures of amorphous organic matter and minerals, organic laminae and discrete macerals. A clear positive trend of organic-matter porosity with maturity was found. Pore sizes are power law distributed in the range of 4.4 μm to at least 36 nm in equivalent diameter. The differences in power law exponents suggest that a more grain supported, coarse-grained matrix may prevent pores from mechanical compaction. Porosities measured in the BIB cross-sections were significantly lower in comparison to porosities obtained by Mercury Intrusion Porosimetry (MIP). This difference is mainly attributed to the different resolution achieved with BIB-SEM and MIP and type of pore network. Extrapolation of pore size distributions (PSDs) enables the BIB-SEM porosity to be estimated down to the resolution of the MIP and thus to upscale microstructural observation at the confined space of the BIB-SEM method to bulk porosity measurement. These inferred porosities are in good agreement with the MIP determined porosities, which underpins the assumption that pores segmented in BIB-SEM mosaics are representative of the MIP methodology.     

Multiple controls on the paleoenvironment of the Early Cambrian marine black shales in the Sichuan Basin,SW China: Geochemical and organic carbon isotopic evidence

In order to understand the paleoenvironment of the Early Cambrian black shale deposition in the western part of the Yangtze Block, geochemical and organic carbon isotopic studies have been performed on two wells that have drilled through the Qiongzhusi Formation in the central and southeastern parts of Sichuan Basin. It shows that the lowest part of the Qiongzhusi Formation has high TOC abundance, while the middle and upper parts display relative low TOC content. Redox-sensitive element (Mo) and trace elemental redox indices (e.g., Ni/Co, V/Cr, U/Th and V/(V + Ni)) suggest that the high-TOC layers were deposited under anoxic conditions, whereas the low-TOC layers under relatively dysoxic/oxic conditions. The relationship of the enrichment factors of Mo and U further shows a transition from suboxic low-TOC layers to euxinic high-TOC layers. On the basis of the Mo-TOC relationship, the Qiongzhusi Formation black shales were deposited in a basin under moderately restricted conditions. Organic carbon isotopes display temporal variations in the Qiongzhusi Formation, with a positive excursion of δ¹³C_org values in the lower part and a continuous positive shift in the middle and upper parts. All these geochemical and isotopic criteria indicate a paleoenvironmental change from bottom anoxic to middle and upper dysoxic/oxic conditions for the Qiongzhusi Formation black shales. The correlation of organic carbon isotopic data for the Lower Cambrian black shales in different regions of the Yangtze Block shows consistent positive excursion of δ¹³C_org values in the lower part for each section. This excursion can be ascribed to the widespread Early Cambrian transgression in the Yangtze Block, under which black shales were deposited.