Optimizing in-situ CO2 mineralisation: geomechanics and scalability in dunite and serpentinite rocks - Examples from Australia and New Zealand

The collective drive towards achieving net-zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050 has spurred interest in engineering solutions for carbon capture and storage worldwide. One such approach involves the permanent storage of CO2 in earth-abundant Ca-, Fe-, and Mg-bearing silicate rocks and minerals as carbonates via the process of CO2 mineralisation. This necessitates a thorough understanding of carbonate conversion under geologically relevant conditions. Nevertheless, research on CO2 injection for mineralisation via naturally fractured host rocks or induced fractures, with a research emphasis on rock mechanics and stimulated reservoir volumes (SRV) within geoengineering CO2 storage, is continuously expanding. This research addresses critical challenges related to identifying favourable geographic locations for CO2 mineralisation. It specifically focuses on the abundant availability of Mg, Ca, and Fe cations for exothermic CO2 reactions and their impact on fracture conductivity during in-situ mineralisation. A comprehensive analysis of 26 dunite and serpentinite samples from diverse locations in Australia and New Zealand, including 10 from a cored drilled hole, was conducted. Quantification of divalent cation (Mg, Ca, Fe) content and cation release capacity using XRF and XRD revealed higher cation percentages in dunite samples (approximately 30 %) compared to serpentinite samples (approximately 26 %). Additionally, the study estimated the stimulated rock mass-to-CO2 sequestered ratio, [Formula: see text] , with dunite samples averaging approximately 2.20 [Formula: see text] values and serpentinite samples averaging approximately 2.53. Geomechanical testing enabled the prediction of fracture propagation pressures during aqueous CO2 injection for in-situ mineralisation and the estimation of fracture geometries, emphasizing the role of rock stiffness in determining fracture width (averaging 6.0 mm). Furthermore, the research estimated the rock volume exposed to CO2-laden fluid during injection, particularly focusing on the GHQ-3 sample, which theoretically amounted to approximately 600 kg of rock capable of sequestering around 300 kg of CO2 for a 10 m3 fluid volume with a CO2 concentration of 1molkg-1. The study established a relationship between injected volume and CO2 uptake, suggesting the potential for significant CO2 sequestration scalability by employing horizontal wells and fracturing additional zones, thereby creating and intersecting multiple transverse fractures along a single target zone.

Carbonic anhydrase II deficiency

Carbonic anhydrase II deficiency (OMIM # 259730), initially called "osteopetrosis with renal tubular acidosis and cerebral calcification syndrome", reveals an important role for the enzyme carbonic anhydrase II (CA II) in osteoclast and renal tubule function. Discovered in 1972 and subsequently given various names, CA II deficiency now describes >100 affected individuals encountered predominantly from the Middle East and Mediterranean region. In 1983, CA II deficiency emerged as the first osteopetrosis (OPT) understood metabolically, and in 1991 the first understood molecularly. CA II deficiency is the paradigm OPT featuring failure of osteoclasts to resorb bone due to inability to acidify their pericellular milieu. The disorder presents late in infancy or early in childhood with fracturing, developmental delay, weakness, short stature, and/or cranial nerve compression and palsy. Mental retardation is common. The skeletal findings may improve by adult life, and CA II deficiency can be associated with a normal life-span. Therefore, it has been considered an "intermediate" type of OPT. In CA II deficiency, OPT is uniquely accompanied by renal tubular acidosis (RTA) of proximal, distal, or combined type featuring hyperchloremic metabolic acidosis, rarely with hypokalemia and paralysis. Cerebral calcification uniquely appears in early childhood. The etiology is bi-allelic loss-of-function mutations of CA2 that encodes CA II. Prenatal diagnosis requires mutational analysis of CA2. Although this enzymopathy reveals how CA II is important for the skeleton and kidney tubule, the pathogenesis of the mental subnormality and cerebral calcification is less well understood. Several mouse models of CA II deficiency have shown growth hormone deficiency, yet currently there is no standard pharmacologic therapy for patients. Treatment of the systemic acidosis is often begun when growth is complete. Although CA II deficiency is an "osteoclast-rich" OPT, and therefore transplantation of healthy osteoclasts can improve the skeletal disease, the RTA and central nervous system difficulties persist.

Osteopetrosis: Discovery and early history of "marble bone disease"

Discovery in 1904 of the disorder initially called "marble bones", then in 1926 more appropriately referred to as "osteopetrosis", is attributed to Heinrich E. Albers-Schönberg (1865-1921), the first radiologist. He used the new technique of Röntgenography to report in a young man the radiographic hallmarks of this osteopathy. Clinical descriptions of lethal forms of osteopetrosis had apparently been published earlier by others. Here, I review the discovery and early understanding of osteopetrosis. Characterization of this disorder commencing at the beginning of the past century would support the aphorism of Sir William Osler (1849-1919): "Clinics Are Laboratories; Laboratories Of The Highest Order". As featured in this special issue of Bone, the osteopetroses would prove remarkably informative about the formation and function of the cells responsible for skeletal resorption.

Dust formation in French fries

In this study we report on the analysis of dust formation, a quality problem arising in the industrial processing of par-fried, frozen french fries. This dust constitutes fractured pieces broken off the crust during finish frying. We claim that this dust problem has many similarities with flaking arising during the final-baking of par-baked french baguettes, i.e. the two problems are governed by the same physical principles. Inspired by the hypotheses behind flaking, we have made an experimental design, where we have perturbed the operating conditions of an industrial processing line of french fries. The measured dust during finish frying is correlated with the physical properties of the crust, measured in the different unit operations of the industrial processing line, and the operating conditions. We have shown that dust is non-linearly correlated to 1) the moisture content of the crust as influenced by drying and par-frying, and 2) the freezing rate in the industrial tunnel freezer. Remarkably, the amount of dust decrease with the increase of frozen storage time, which we have explained via viscoelastic relaxation of locked-in stress - mediated by moisture migrating from core to crust. This decay is shown to be independent of pretreatments, which only determines its starting value. With the given relations industry can in principle control the dust problem, but these measures have to be weighed against their effects on other objectives of the industry.

Characterization of microbial communities and functions in shale gas wastewaters and sludge: Implications for pretreatment

As hydraulic fracturing (HF) practices keep expanding in China, a comparative understanding of biological characteristics of flowback and produced waters (FPW) and sludge in impoundments for FPW reserve will help propose appropriate treatment strategies. Therefore, in this study, the microbial communities and functions in impoundments that collected wastewaters from dozens of wells were characterized. The results showed that microbial richness and diversity were significantly increased in sludge compared with those in FPW. The vast majority of microorganisms found in FPW and sludge are organic degraders, providing the possibility of using these indigenous microorganisms to biodegrade organic compounds. Our laboratory findings first show that wastewater pretreatment using these microorganisms was effective, and organic compounds in FPW from different shale formations were removed by 35-68% within 72 h in a wide temperature range (8 - 30 ℃). Meanwhile, highly toxic compounds such as phthalate esters (PAEs), polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), and petroleum hydrocarbons were effectively eliminated in reactors. The main microorganisms, key functional genes, and putative pathways for alkanes, PAHs, and PAEs degradation were also identified.

The effects of hydraulic/pneumatic fracturing-enhanced remediation (FRAC-IN) at a site contaminated by chlorinated ethenes: A case study

A low-permeability locality with heterogeneous geology contaminated primarily by tetrachloroethene (PCE) present partially in the free phase in the unsaturated zone was treated on a pilot scale via direct push pneumatic fracturing combined with the hydraulic delivery of a remediation suspension consisting of milled iron, sulphidated nanosized zerovalent iron and sand in guar gum solution. Afterwards, a whey solution was injected into the fractures as a carbon source for bacteria. The unsaturated and saturated zones were treated. Long-term monitoring of the groundwater revealed that the abiotic reduction of PCE and trichloroethene was the dominant remediation processes for several months after the injections. A complex microbial consortium was developed that was capable of effective, long-term chlorinated ethenes (ClE) dechlorination. The consortium consisted mainly of Dehalococcoides but also of other anaerobic bacterial strains capable of partial dechlorination of ClE, including the sulphate-reducing bacteria; Geobacter and Desulfitobacterium. The average chlorine number in the groundwater decreased from 3.65 to 1.38 within 2.5 years after the injections, while the average ClE concentration increased from 13.5 to 31.5 mgL^-1 because of the substantial acceleration of the ClE mass-transfer to the groundwater caused by the treatment. The remediation processes remained fully active for 2.5 years.

Recent advances in cellulose and its derivatives for oilfield applications

The purpose of this review is to summarize and discuss the recent developments in exploring cellulose and its derivatives in the applications of oilfield chemicals for petroleum drilling and exploiting. We begin with a brief introduction of cellulose and its common water-soluble derivatives, such as the carboxymethyl cellulose, hydroxyethyl cellulose, hydroxypropyl cellulose, hydroxypropyl methylcellulose, and amphoteric cellulose. Afterwards, the applications of cellulose derivatives in different petroleum exploitation processes, such as drilling, cementing, and fracturing, are set out in detail. Finally, the application perspectives and challenges of cellulose derivatives for oilfield applications are presented. This work demonstrates that cellulose derivatives have wide application prospects in oilfield industry in the future.

Early-onset Paget's disease of bone in a Mexican family caused by a novel tandem duplication (77dup27) in TNFRSF11A that encodes RANK

Four heterozygous in-frame tandem duplications of different lengths in TNFRSF11A, the gene that encodes receptor activator of nuclear factor κB (RANK), constitutively activate RANK and lead to high turnover skeletal disease. Each duplication elongates the signal peptide of RANK. The 18-base pair (bp) duplication at position 84 (84dup18) causes familial expansile osteolysis (FEO), the 15-bp duplication at position 84 (84dup15) causes expansile skeletal hyperphosphatasia (ESH), the 12-bp duplication at position 90 (90dup12) causes panostotic expansile bone disease (PEBD), and the 27-bp duplication causes early-onset Paget's disease of bone (PDB2). The severity of the associated skeletal disease seems inversely related to the duplication's length. Additional 15- and 18-bp duplications of TNFRSF11A fit this pattern. Herein, we delineate the skeletal disease of a middle-aged man of Mexican descent who we found to harbor a novel 27-bp tandem duplication at position 77 (77dup27) of TNFRSF11A. His disorder shares features, particularly hand involvement, with the single Japanese (75dup27) and Chinese (78dup27) kindreds with PDB2 (PDB2_Jpn and PDB2_Chn, respectively). However, his distinct hearing loss developed later in adulthood compared to the other 27-bp families. He reported no morbidities during childhood, but in his late 20s developed unexplained tooth loss, low-trauma fractures, post-operative hypercalcemia, and painless enlargement of his fingers. Biochemical studies showed elevated serum alkaline phosphatase (ALP), bone-specific ALP, C-telopeptide, and osteocalcin consistent with rapid bone remodeling. Radiologic imaging revealed remarkably lucent bones with vertebral compression fractures, calvarial lucencies, and thinned long bone cortices. DXA showed extremely low bone mineral density. His disorder genetically and phenotypically fits best with PDB2 and can be called PDB2_Mex.

A new deformation simulation algorithm for elastic-plastic objects based on splat primitives

To achieve high computational efficiency and realistic visual effects, a new simulation algorithm for soft tissue deformation, which is based on a shape-matching scheme using splat primitives, is presented for interactive real-time applications, such as surgery simulation and video games. The most important novelty of the proposed approach lies in the fact that surface splats instead of points are employed in the computation of the deformation and fracturing of an elastic-plastic object. By controlling the sampling density and automatically adjusting the size of the circular splats, the surface of the simulated object can be seamlessly covered with a much small number of splats than points. Splats are then divided into clusters using the K-Means clustering algorithm. As a result, the elastic-plastic deformation of these clusters can be simulated using a shape-matching strategy, allowing more degrees of freedom (DOFs) in the simulation. Experimental results demonstrate that the proposed algorithm enormously reduces memory space and greatly improves computational efficiency (approximately twice in simulating plastic deformations compared with classical shape-matching methods), making it more suitable for interactive and real-time applications.

The Scanning Cryomacroscope - A Device Prototype for the Study of Cryopreservation

A new cryomacroscope prototype-a visualization device for the in situ analysis of cryopreserved biological samples-is presented in the current study. In order to visualize samples larger than the field of view of the optical setup, a scanning mechanism is integrated into the system, which represents a key improvement over previous cryomacroscope prototypes. Another key feature of the new design is in its compatibility with available top-loading controlled-rate cooling chambers, which eliminates the need for a dedicated cooling mechanism. The objective for the current development is to create means to generate a single digital movie of an experimental investigation, with all relevant data overlaid. The visualization capabilities of the scanning cryomacroscope are demonstrated in the current study on the cryoprotective agent dimethyl sulfoxide and the cryoprotective cocktail DP6. Demonstrated effects include glass formation, various regimes of crystallization, thermal contraction, and fracture formation.