Subsurface sequestration of carbon dioxide — an overview from an Alberta (Canada) perspective

To stabilize the atmospheric concentration of greenhouse gases (GHG), a huge reduction of carbon dioxide (CO₂) emissions is required. Although some people believe that this necessitates a considerable reduction in the use of fossil fuels or fuel switching, other options are available that allow the use of fossil fuels and reduce atmospheric emissions of CO₂. Sequestration of CO₂ from fossil fuel combustion in the subsurface could prevent the CO₂ from reaching the surface for millions of years. Geological sequestration of CO₂ in deep aquifers or in depleted oil and gas reservoirs is a mature technology. Despite the huge quantities of CO₂ that can be sequestered in this way, this approach does not provide any economic benefit. This paper discusses a third option, which consists of injecting CO₂ in deep coal seams to sequester the carbon and enhance the recovery of coalbed methane (CBM). Waste CO₂ from CBM-fueled power plants could be injected into CBM reservoirs to produce more methane (CH₄) for the power plant. The 2:1 coal-sorption selectivity for CO₂ over CH₄ supports the feasibility of operating fossil-fueled power plants without atmospheric CO₂ emissions. Other CO₂ sequestration technologies, such as ocean disposal and biofixation, are briefly discussed and the suitability of these approaches is evaluated for use in Alberta, Canada.     

1992年大气甲烷增长速率异常 下降的模拟研究

应用初步建立的全球二维大气化学模式,模拟了甲烷、一氧化碳和OH自由基自工业革命以来的长期变化,对1992年大气中甲烷增长速率突然下降这一异常现象的可能原因如平流层O3下降,皮纳图博火山引起对流层温度下降、甲烷排放源减少等逐一进行了定量研究。研究还发现一氧化碳排放源的减少是另一重要影响因子,并进行了验证。结果表明,1992年甲烷增长速率急剧下降的主要原因来自甲烷和一氧化碳排放源的减少。     

Origin and evolution of the calcic and magnesian skarns hosting the El Valle-Boinás copper–gold deposit, Asturias (Spain)

The El Valle-Boinás copper–gold deposit is located in the southern part of the Rio Narcea Gold Belt 65 km west of Oviedo (NW Spain), within the Cantabrian Zone (Iberian Hercynian Massif). The deposit is related to the Boinás stock, which ranges from quartz-monzonite to monzogranite and intruded (303 Ma) the carbonated Láncara Formation (early Cambrian) and the siliciclastic Oville Formation (middle-late Cambrian).A copper–gold skarn was developed along the contact between the igneous rock and the carbonated sedimentary rocks. The skarn distribution and mineralogy reflects both structural and lithologic controls. Two types of skarn exists: a calcic skarn mainly developed in the upper calcic member of the Láncara Formation, and a magnesian skarn developed in the lower dolomitic and organic-rich member. The former mainly consists of garnet, pyroxene and wollastonite. Retrograde alteration consists of K-feldspar, epidote, quartz, calcite, magnetite, ferroactinolite, titanite, apatite, chlorite and sulfides. Magnesian skarn mainly consists of diopside with interbedded forsterite zones. Pyroxene skarn is mainly altered to tremolite, with minor phlogopite and serpentine. Olivine skarn is pervasively altered to serpentine and magnetite, and is commonly accompanied by high sulfide and gold concentrations. This altered skarn results in a very dark rock, referred to as “black skarn”, which has great importance in gold reserves. Sulfide mineralization mainly consists of chalcopyrite, bornite, arsenopyrite, pyrrhotite and pyrite, while wittichenite, sphalerite, digenite, bismuthinite, native bismuth and electrum occur as accessory minerals.After extensive erosion, reactivation of the northeast-trending fracture zone provided conduits for the subsequent emplacement of porphyritic dikes (285±4 Ma) and diabasic dikes (255±5 Ma). Alteration, characterized by sericitization, silicification, carbonatization and hypogene oxidation took place, as did sulfide mineralization (pyrite, arsenopyrite, sphalerite, chalcopyrite, galena, bournonite, and Fe–Pb–Sb sulfosalts). Veins with quartz, carbonate, adularia and sulfide minerals crosscut all previous lithologies. Jasper and jasperoid breccias developed at the upper parts of the deposits.The fluid inclusion and stable isotope studies suggest a predominantly magmatic prograde-skarn fluid characterized by high-salinity (26–28 wt.% KCl and 32–36 wt.% NaCl) and high temperature, above 580°C. This fluid evolved into two immiscible fluids: a CO₂- and/or CH₄-rich, high-salinity aqueous fluid. Temperatures for the first retrograde-stage are between 350 and 425°C. A second stage is related to a more diluted aqueous fluid (3–6.2 wt.% NaCl eq.) and temperatures from 280 to 325°C. The fluid inclusion study performed on quartz from low-temperature mineralization indicates a very low salinity (0.2–6.2 wt.% NaCl eq.), low-temperature aqueous fluid (from 150 to 250°C), and trapping pressure conditions less than 0.2 kbar. In addition, the stable isotope study suggests that an influx of metamorphic waters derived from the country rocks produced these lower temperature fluids. The last control for the Au mineralization is the Alpine tectonism, which developed fault breccias (cataclasites to, locally, protomylonites) and gold remobilization from previous mineralization.     

Effect of Saline Sludge on Anaerobic Digestion of Kitchen Waste for Methane Generation: Modeling and Fertilizer Recovery

A comparative study of methane recovery by co-digesting kitchen waste and saline sewage sludge is performed to evaluate its feasibility for waste minimization. The experiment is performed at 37 °C having a mixing speed of 100 rpm and pH of 6.49–7.5 in anaerobic mixed batch reactors. The higher salinity level of the saline sewage sludge reduces the degradation rate of kitchen waste causing an enhancement in soluble chemical oxygen demand by 133% compared with 280% when co-digesting with the non-saline sample. The inhibitory behavior is in line with the low volatile solid elimination efficiency of 31% of saline against 55% of non-saline sludge. The Gompertz modeling, based on the outcomes, fits the cumulative methane generation trends quite well, with a strong correlation coefficient (>0.994). Besides, use of the non-saline sludge results in three times more methane production than the saline sample digestion. Sludge recovery is 0.07 m³ sludge m⁻³ wastewater, and water recovery is 0.84 m³ m⁻³ wastewater. The liquid produced from the fermentation of the slurry can be used for irrigation as well as fertilization. Kitchen waste co-digestion with both sludge samples has been proven to be a practical method for exploiting the extra digestion capacity of wastewater treatment plants currently in operation, but it is more practical for non-saline sludge.     

中国8大湖泊冬季水-气界面甲烷通量初步研究

采用静态箱-气相色谱法对中国不同地区的8个湖泊(洞庭湖、鄱阳湖、巢湖、南四湖、洪泽湖、抚仙湖、洱海、滇池)冬季水体水-气界面甲烷(CH4)通量进行了24 h连续观测,对中国湖泊冬季CH4的总释放量进行了估算.结果表明:鄱阳湖、巢湖、南四湖、洪泽湖和滇池24 h内各时段均为大气CH4的源,其通量分别为0.818、0.021、0.034、0.019、0.163mg/(m2·h);洞庭湖、抚仙湖和洱海部分时段为大气CH4的汇,但从24 h平均通量来看,仍为大气CH4的源,通量分别为0.199、0.012、0.044mg/(m2·h).冬季湖泊水体CH4通量空间差异较小,其大小主要受风速的影响,与水温、箱内温度和DOC没有明显的相关关系.中国湖泊冬季(90 d)CH4总释放量大约为3.22±2.75×107 kg,约为1990年中国稻田CH4总释放量的2.8‰.     

天然气水合物资源潜力评价

作为一种新型能源的天然气水合物越来越引起人们的重视。研究表明,在永冻区水合物主要存在于地下130～2000m,海洋中的水合物主要存在于海底以下100～1100m,水合物矿层的厚度可从几厘米到30m左右。目前海相和极地永冻区水合物资源量估计约为20000万亿m^3。近些年来,很多国家包括日本、印度和美国投入大量的资金进行水合物资源的研究。虽然在有些基础性问题的研究上,如对已证实的含水合物地层中水合物聚集的资源量的估算等方面存在差异,但这些研究项目的开展可以帮助我们了解水合物储层的属性、开采体系的设计以及更为重要的开采成本及经济效益等关键性问题。     

用地球物理测井资料预测煤层气含量——基于斜率关联度—随机森林方法的工作案例

煤层气含量是煤层勘探开发研究的重点参数之一,由于煤层气含量受多因素影响,能有效预测其含量至关重要.本文将斜率关联度法与随机森林算法相结合,以地球物理测井资料为基础进行煤层气含量预测.首先利用改进的斜率关联度法,计算得到对煤层气含量敏感的测井曲线,再利用交叉验证法探究合适的随机森林决策树个数,并结合选出的超参数利用随机森...     

Characteristics of major and trace elements in surface sediments of the Makran Accretionary Prism,Pakistan and their implications for natural gas hydrates

To accurately identify the natural gas hydrates (NGH) in the sea area of the Makran Accretionary Prism, Pakistan, this paper presents the testing and analysis of major and trace elements in sediment samples taken from two stations (S₂ and S₃) in the area by the China Geological Survey. As shown by testing results, all major elements are slightly different in content between the two stations except SiO₂ and CaO. This also applies to the trace elements that include Sr and Ba primarily and Cr, Ni and Zn secondarily. It can be concluded in this study that the tectonic setting of the Makran Accretionary Prism is dominated by oceanic island arc and that provenance of the Makran Accretionary Prism is dominated by felsic igneous provenance, which is at the initial weathering stage and mainly consists of granodiorite. Besides terrigenous detritus, there are sediments possibly originating from Makran-Bela Ophiolite from the northwestern part and Murray Ridge igneous rocks from the southeastern part. The V/Cr, Ni/Co, and V/(V+Ni) ratios indicate that sediments of the two stations are in an oxidation-suboxidation environment. However, the authors infer that the sedimentary environment of the sediments 3.0 m below the seafloor tends to be gradually transformed into a reduction environment by comparison with the Qiongdongnan Basin in the South China Sea where NGH has been discovered. The sediments in the Makran Accretionary Prism are rich in organic matter, with total organic carbon (TOC) content greater than 1%. According to comprehensive research, the organic matter in the sediments mainly originates from marine algae and has high TOC content, which is favorable for the formation of NGH.