Publications

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We investigated the ability of Pseudomonas stutzeri strain DCP-Ps1 to drive CaCO₃ biomineralization in a microfluidic flowcell (i.e., micromodel) that simulates subsurface porous media. Results indicate that CaCO₃ precipitation occurs during NO₃^– reduction with a maximum saturation index (SI_calcite) of ~1.56, but not when NO₃^– was removed, inactive biomass remained, and pH and alkalinity were adjusted to SI_calcite ~ 1.56. CaCO₃ precipitation was promoted by metabolically active cultures of strain DCP-Ps1, which at similar values of SIcalcite, have a more negative surface charge than inactive strain DCP-Ps1. A two-stage NO₃^– reduction (NO₃^– → NO₂^– → N₂) pore-scale reactive transport model was used to evaluate denitrification kinetics, which was observed in the micromodel as upper (NO₃^– reduction) and lower (NO₂^– reduction) horizontal zones of biomass growth with CaCO₃ precipitation exclusively in the lower zone. Our model results are consistent with two biomass growth regions and indicate that precipitation occurred in the lower zone because the largest increase in pH and alkalinity is associated with NO₂^– reduction. CaCO₃ precipitates typically occupied the entire vertical depth of pores and impacted porosity, permeability, and flow. This study provides a framework for incorporating microbial activity in biogeochemistry models, which often base biomineralization only on SI (caused by biotic or abiotic reactions) and, thereby, underpredict the extent of this complex process. Furthermore, these results have wide-ranging implications for understanding reactive transport in relevance to groundwater remediation, CO₂ sequestration, and enhanced oil recovery.

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Understanding the effect of changing stress conditions on multiphase flow in porous media is of fundamental importance for many subsurface activities including enhanced oil recovery, water drawdown from aquifers, soil confinement, and geologic carbon storage. Geomechanical properties of complex porous systems are dynamically linked to flow conditions, but their feedback relationship is often oversimplified due to the difficulty of representing pore-scale stress deformation and multiphase flow characteristics in high fidelity. In this work, we performed pore-scale experiments of single- and multiphase flow through bead packs at different confining pressure conditions to elucidate compaction-dependent characteristics of granular packs and their impact on fluid flow. A series of drainage and imbibition cycles were conducted on a water-wet, soda-lime glass bead pack under varying confining stress conditions. Simultaneously, X-ray micro-CT was used to visualize and quantify the degree of deformation and fluid distribution corresponding with each stress condition and injection cycle. Micro-CT images were segmented using a gradient-based method to identify fluids (e.g., oil and water), and solid phase redistribution throughout the different experimental stages. Changes in porosity, tortuosity, and specific surface area were quantified as a function of applied confining pressure. Results demonstrate varying degrees of sensitivity of these properties to confining pressure, which suggests that caution must be taken when considering scalability of these properties for practical modeling purposes. Changes in capillary number with confining pressure are attributed to the increase in pore velocity as a result of pore contraction. Furthermore, this increase in pore velocity was found to have a marginal impact on average phase trapping at different confining pressures.

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Multiscale characteristics of anisotropic, heterogeneous pore structure and compositional (e.g., kerogen, clay, cement, etc) distribution profoundly influence the hydro, mechanical, and chemical response of shale materials during stimulation and production. In this work the impact of these lithologic heterogeneities on physical, chemical, and mechanical properties is investigated over a micron to core scale of shale samples for Cretaceous Mancos Shale. Principal macroscopic lithofacies at a decimeter scale are petrographically examined. Thin sections (∼2-3cm) impregnated with fluorochromes are examined using laser scanning confocal microscopy and optical microscopy with different filters to characterize micro-facies (i.e., texture patterns) and using electron microprobe to identify the mineralogical distribution. Advanced multiscale image analysis for texture classification will be used to identify key features of samples which will be further analyzed using dual focused ion beam-scanning electron microscopy, aberration corrected-scanning TEM and energy dispersive X-ray spectrometry for nano-pore and organic-pore structures and mineralogies at nano scale. This characterization will be examined against experimental data including acoustic emission and nano-indentation measurements of elastic properties using focused ion-beam milled pillars. Finally, multiscale 3-D image stacks will be segmented to rigorously test the scale of a representative elementary volume based on multiple measures from image analysis and pore-scale simulations.

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