Characterisation and multifaceted anisotropy assessment of Corvio sandstone for geological CO2 storage studies

We present a comprehensive characterisation of the physical, mineralogical, geomechanical, geophysical, and hydrodynamic properties of Corvio sandstone. This information, together with a detailed assessment of anisotropy, is needed to establish Corvio sandstone as a useful laboratory rock‐testing standard for well‐constrained studies of thermo–hydro–mechanical–chemical coupled phenomena associated with CO₂ storage practices and for geological reservoir studies in general. More than 200 core plugs of Corvio sandstone (38.1 and 50 mm diameters, 2:1 length‐to‐diameter ratio) were used in this characterisation study, with a rock porosity of 21.7 ± 1.2%, dry density 2036 ± 32 kg m^?3, and unconfined compressive and tensile strengths of 41 ± 3.28 and 2.3 ± 0.14 MPa, respectively. Geomechanical tests show that the rock behaves elastically between ～10 and ～18 MPa under unconfined conditions with associated Young's modulus and Poisson's ratio of 11.8 ± 2.8 GPa and 0.34 ± 0.01 GPa, respectively. Permeability abruptly decreases with confining pressure up to ～10 MPa and then stabilises at ～1 mD. Ultrasonic P‐ and S‐wave velocities vary from about 2.8–3.8 km s^?1 and 1.5–2.4 km s^?1, respectively, over confining and differential pressures between 0.1 and 35 MPa, allowing derivation of associated dynamic elastic moduli. Anisotropy was investigated using oriented core plugs for electrical resistivity, elastic wave velocity and attenuation, permeability, and tracer injection tests. Corvio sandstone shows weak transverse isotropy (symmetry axis normal to bedding) of <10% for velocity and <20% for attenuation.     

北黄海盆地烃渗漏蚀变带“磁亮点”的识别研究

北黄海盆地是我国近海海域尚未取得油气勘探突破的盆地之一.在海洋环境中应用海底油气藏的烃渗漏现象寻找油气有利区具有良好应用前景,为了给该区的含油气远景评价及下一步油气勘探缩小靶区提供地球物理依据,本文利用磁法这一经济、有效的油气渗漏异常地球物理判别手段,开展了识别海底烃渗漏引发磁异常的方法研究.给出一种根据“有导师”的模式识别技术,在充分利用磁异常多种数值特征及纹理特征的基础上,提取烃渗漏蚀变带磁异常的方法.通过已知约束信息（如见油井位等）的点、线、面三种基元及其邻近数据网格点组成基类,将其提取的模式或特征向量作为待识别异常匹配或学习的模板,利用加权欧氏距离函数计算待识别异常特征向量与模板向量之间的相似性,进行模式匹配,从而识别出与模板相似程度较高的异常.应用此方法圈定了北黄海盆地的烃渗漏“磁亮点”分布,从“磁亮点”异常区与中生代地层的分布以及地球化学异常（低层大气烃类检测和海底微生物异常）的对应情况来看,表明该识别方法是识别烃渗漏弱磁异常的一种有效手段.对研究区构造特征、磁异常及地球化学异常特征的综合分析表明,位于北黄海研究区东部和北部的“磁亮点”异常区可能是北黄海盆地较好的含油气远景区.     

Nonlinearly Constrained Optimization Theory to Interpret Magnetic Anomalies Due to Vertical Faults and Thin Dikes

A new and simple method based on a nonlinearly mathematical optimization concept has been proposed in this research to interpret magnetic anomalies due to vertical faults and thin dikes. This proposed interpretative method consists of three main steps. The first step is to formulate nonlinearly constrained optimization problems to describe the geophysical problems related to the studied structures. The second step is to suggest an interior penalty function in order to convert these nonlinearly constrained optimization problems into nonlinearly unconstrained optimization ones. The third step is to solve the converted nonlinearly unconstrained optimization problems by using the famous Hooke and Jeevess algorithm in order to estimate the geophysical parameters of the studied structures such as: depth, amplitude coefficient, and index parameter. The Hooke and Jeevess algorithm is purposely chosen for being robust and also its application to magnetic data converges rapidly towards the optimal estimation of parameters. This method was first tested on theoretical models with different random noise, where a very close agreement was obtained between the assumed and evaluated parameters. The validity of this new method was also tested on practical field examples taken from Australia, India, United States, and Brazil, where available magnetic data existed and was previously analyzed by different interpretative methods. The agreement between the results obtained by our developed method and those obtained by the other geophysical methods is good. The advantages of this newly proposed method, compared with the other published interpretative methods, also have been discussed and demonstrated.     

Analysis of Gravity Changes before and after the Akto MS6.7 Earthquake in 2016

This paper analyzes the characteristics of time sequence changes of gravity points near the epicenter, different changes of measuring lines and gravity changes of measuring areas in point-line-area manner respectively with the 5-period mobile gravity data through densified observation by the South Xinjiang Observation Network after the 2015-2016 Akto earthquake in Xinjiang. The gravity observation results before the earthquake indicate that the Wuqia-Bulungkol area near the epicenter presented the trend of gravity value increasing since 2015, but the gravity value decreased half a year before the earthquake, and witnessed a high gradient zone of gravity changes during some periods before the earthquake. The gravity observation results after the earthquake show that there is a trend of opposite changes in gravity difference on the northern and southern sides of Bulunkou, and good correspondence exists between the characteristics of gravity field changes near the epicenter before and after the earthquake and the geologic structure distribution in the area.     

汶川8．0级地震前兆异常对比研究

The contrast research results show that the number of items and stations with imminent, short and medium term precursor anomalies for the Wenchuan M_S 8. 0 earthquake is less than that of the Menglian earthquake. The number of anomalies and stations associated with the Wenchuan earthquake increased in the early stage of the short-term range,as opposed to the later period for the Menglian and Lijiang earthquakes. Most of the medium term anomalies occurred two to three years before the Wenchuan earthquake,when the number of anomaly stations and items was eleven,and a great change appeared in the observation values in about half of the stations ( items ) . However,for the Menglian earthquake,medium term anomalies happened one to two years before the earthquake, the number of abnormal stations and items reached 20,and a sharp change appeared in the observation values six months to one year before the earthquake in about 30 percent of the stations or items. In the epicenter and the nearby area,the macroscopic abnormalities started 3 years before the Wenchuan earthquake and lasted intermittently until 1 month before the earthquake. Within 2 percent of the total area of the province,the macroscopic abnormalities accounted for 30 to 50 percent of the total number of anomalies of the Province. For the Xingtai,Tangshan,Haicheng,Songpan earthquakes,the macroscopic anomalies started two to three months before,or on the very day of the earthquakes. The common feature of the precursors between the Wenchuan and other strong earthquakes is the appearance of tremendous changes in a certain number of observation values of anomalies in the mid and short terms before all these earthquakes.     

云南地区4级地震频度异常特征与强震关系研究

对云南地区18次MS≥6强震事件前中、小地震活动过程进行了分析,发现在这些地震发生前1—3年近场区2°×2°范围内4级地震频度基本上出现了显著增强现象,可以用4级地震年累计频度进行定量描述。通过全时空的扫描,确定年累计频度N≥4为异常阈值,该指标通过了置信度97.5%的R值内符检验。并用调整单元对强震附近4级地震活动增强现象给予了物理解释。     

Possible climate change/variability and human impacts,vulnerability of drought-prone regions,water resources and capacity building for Africa

ABSTRACT

This review article discusses the climate, water resources and historical droughts of Africa, drought indices, vulnerability, impact of global warming and land use for drought-prone regions in West, southern and the Greater Horn of Africa, which have suffered recurrent severe droughts in the past. Recent studies detected warming and drying trends in Africa since the mid 20th century. Based on the Fourth Assessment Report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change and the Coupled Model Intercomparison Project Phase 5 (CMIP5), both northern and southern Africa are projected to experience drying, such as decreasing precipitation, runoff and soil moisture in the 21st century and could become more vulnerable to the impact of droughts. The daily maximum temperature is projected to increase by up to 8°C (RCP8.5 of CMIP5), precipitation indices such as total wet day precipitation (PRCPTOT) and heavy precipitation days (R10 mm) could decrease, while warm spell duration (WSDI) and consecutive dry days (CDD) could increase. Uncertainties of the above long-term projections, teleconnections to climate anomalies such as ENSO and the Madden-Julian Oscillation, which could also affect the water resources of Africa, and capacity building in terms of physical infrastructure and non-structural solutions are also discussed. Given that traditional climate and hydrological data observed in Africa are generally limited, satellite data should also be exploited to fill the data gap for Africa in the future.

Editor D. Koutsoyiannis; Associate editor N. Ilich     

基于重力地质法的南中国海海底地形反演

根据重力地质法（GGM）,利用南中国海海域内63179个船测控制点水深将测高自由空间重力异常划分为长波参考场和短波残差场,并反演出了该海域112°E—119°E,12°N—20°N范围的1’×1’海底地形模型,该过程中使用的海水和海底洋壳密度差异常数1.32 g·cm-3通过实测水深估计得到.利用反演得到的GGM模型对剩余的10529个检核点船测水深插值计算后与实测水深进行比较,其较差结果的均值为-1.64 m,标准差为76.95 m,相对精度为4.06%.此外,根据船测点数量、分布和海底地形的不同,选择了三个海域进行统计,结果表明：在船测控制点分布均匀的海域,GGM模型精度优于ETOPO1模型,在控制点过于分散的海域其精度会有所下降,但好于船测水深的直接格网化结果.为进一步探究检核点的较差结果中出现较大数值的成因,本文对精度较差的点位进行了单独分析,选择了两条船测航迹剖面进行了研究,并分析了检核点的水深较差、相对精度与水深和重力异常的关系,结果表明：GGM模型精度受水深和重力异常的相关性影响较小,受海底地形复杂程度影响较大,地形坡度变化平缓海域的预测精度明显高于海山地区.最后,综合GGM模型和ETOPO1模型优势,利用所有船测水深作为控制,生成了综合的海底地形模型.     

2011~2020年勘查地球化学数据处理研究进展

我国建立了包含海量数据的高质量的勘查地球化学数据库,为矿产勘查、环境评价和地质调查等提供了重要的数据支撑。如何高效处理勘查地球化学数据,并从中发掘和识别深层次信息一直是勘查地球化学学科研究的热点和前沿领域。本文在系统调研国内外学者过去十年发表的论著基础上,对勘查地球化学数据处理方法进行分析与对比,从勘查地球化学数据库建设、地球化学异常识别及其不确定性评价等方面概述了我国近十年来在该领域取得的主要研究进展,包括:(1)分形与多重分形模型由于考虑了地球化学空间模式的复杂性和尺度不变性,在全球范围内得到极大的发展和推广,我国学者引领了基于分形与多重分形的勘查地球化学数据处理;(2)机器学习和大数据思维开始在该领域启蒙,并迅速得到关注,正在成为研究热点和前沿领域,我国学者率先开展基于机器学习算法的勘查地球化学大数据挖掘研究;(3)我国学者需要进一步加强勘查地球化学数据缺失值处理以及成分数据闭合效应研究。今后该领域应进一步加强对弱缓地球化学异常识别、异常不确定性评价以及异常识别与其形成机理相结合等方面的研究。     

北祁连西段熬油沟及卡洼沟一带Au、Pt、Pd异常特征及找矿方向

北祁连西段作为甘肃一个重要的多金属成矿带，随着地质找矿工作不断地加强，日渐重要。根据熬油沟及卡洼沟一带水系沉积物、岩屑和岩石剖面测量结果，对Au、Pt、Pd和Pb、Zn等成矿元素的分布特征和组合关系进行了分析，总结了该处成矿地质背景和地球化学异常特征，指出了找矿方向。