Coreflooding Studies to Investigate the Potential of Carbonated Water Injection as an Injection Strategy for Improved Oil Recovery and CO<Subscript>2</Subscript> Storage

Carbonated water injection (CWI) is a CO₂-augmented water injection strategy that leads to increased oil recovery with added advantage of safe storage of CO₂ in oil reservoirs. In CWI, CO₂ is used efficiently (compared to conventional CO₂ injection) and hence it is particularly attractive for reservoirs with limited access to large quantities of CO₂, e.g. offshore reservoirs or reservoirs far from large sources of CO₂. We present the results of a series of CWI coreflood experiments using water-wet and mixed-wet Clashach sandstone cores and a reservoir core with light oil (n-decane), refined viscous oil and a stock-tank crude oil. The experiments were carried out to assess the performance of CWI and to quantify the level of additional oil recovery and CO₂ storage under various experimental conditions. We show that the ultimate oil recovery by CWI is higher than the conventional water flooding in both secondary and tertiary recovery methods. Oil swelling as a result of CO₂ diffusion into the oil and the subsequent oil viscosity reduction and coalescence of the isolated oil ganglia are amongst the main mechanisms of oil recovery by CWI that were observed through the visualisation experiments in high-pressure glass micromodels. There was also evidence of a change in the rock wettability that could also influence the oil recovery. The coreflood test results also reveal that the CWI performance is influenced by oil viscosity, core wettability and the brine salinity. Higher oil recovery was obtained with the mixed-wet core than the water-wet core, with light oil than with the viscous oil and low salinity carbonated brine than high-salinity carbonated brine. At the end of the flooding period, an encouraging amount of the injected CO₂ was stored in the brine and the remaining oil in the form of stable dissolved CO₂. The experimental results clearly demonstrate the potential of CWI for improving oil recovery as compared with the conventional water flooding (secondary recovery) or as a water-based EOR (enhanced oil recovery) method for watered out reservoirs.     

Enhanced physical and chemical adsorption of carbon dioxide using bimetallic copper–magnesium oxide/carbon nanocomposite

Mixed Cu and Mg oxides on nitrogen-rich activated carbon (AC) from Nypha fruticans biomass were characterized and their CO₂ adsorption performance was measured. Highly dispersed CuO and MgO nanoparticles on AC was obtained using an ultrasonic-assisted impregnation method. The optimum adsorbent is 5%CuO–25%MgO/AC having good surface properties of high surface area, pores volume and low particles agglomeration. The higher content of MgO of 5%CuO–25%MgO/AC adsorbent contributes to less metal carbide formation which increases their porosity, surface area and surface basicity. XPS analysis showed some amount of nitrogen content on the surface of the adsorbent which increased their surface basicity towards selective CO₂ adsorption. The presence of moisture accelerated the CO₂ chemisorption to form a hydroxyl layer on the surfaces. The 5%CuO–25%MgO/AC adsorbent successfully adsorbed CO₂ via physisorption and chemisorption of 14.8 and 36.2 wt%, respectively. It was significantly higher than fresh AC with better selectivity to CO₂.     

Extraction of molybdenum(VI) from hydrochloric acid solution by N,N’-carbonyl difatty amides

Hydrofluoric acid has been used as a stripping agent for molybdenum(VI) using a mixture of N,N’-carbonyl difatty amides (CDFAs) synthesized from palm oil as a extractant. The CDFAs was characterized by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy and ¹H nuclear magnetic resonance technique. In the extraction step, the effects of parameters, such as type of diluent, hydrochloric acid, metal concentration, and temperature, have been studied. The effects of various stripping agents on stripping efficiency have also been investigated. This work presents the development of a low-cost and environmentally friendly extractant to recover molybdenum.     

Utilization of saffron (<Emphasis Type="Italic">Crocus sativus L.</Emphasis>) as sensitizer in dye-sensitized solar cells (DSSCs)

Photoelectrodes of dye-sensitized solar cells (DSSCs) have been prepared using nanosized titanium dioxide that have soaked in a solution of different saffron (Crocus sativus L.) spice content in ethanol. The optimized polyacrylonitrile (PAN)-based gel polymer electrolyte with 40.93 wt.% ethylene carbonate, 37.97 wt.% propylene carbonate, 4.37 wt.% tetrapropylammonium iodide, 9.86 wt.% PAN, 1.24 wt.% 1-butyl-3-methylimidazolium iodide, 4.35 wt.% lithium iodide and 1.28 wt.% iodine has been used as the electrolyte for DSSC. The electrolyte has conductivity of 2.91 mS cm^?1 at room temperature (298 K). DSSCs were also sensitized with saffron solution that has been added with 30 wt.% chenodeoxycholic acid (CDCA) co-adsorbent and designated as DSSC P4. The solar cell converts light-to-electricity at an efficiency of 0.31%. This is 29% enhancement in efficiency for the DSSC without addition of CDCA in the saffron-ethanol solution. The DSSC exhibits current density at short-circuit (J _sc ) of 1.26 mA cm^?2, voltage at open circuit (V _oc ) of 0.48 V and 51% fill factor. DSSC P4 also exhibits the highest incident photon-to-current density of more than 40% at 340 nm wavelength.     

Structural prediction of a novel chitinase from the psychrophilic Glaciozyma antarctica PI12 and an analysis of its structural properties and function

The structure of psychrophilic chitinase (CHI II) from Glaciozyma antarctica PI12 has yet to be studied in detail. Due to its low sequence identity (<30?%), the structural prediction of CHI II is a challenge. A 3D model of CHI II was built by first using a threading approach to search for a suitable template and to generate an optimum target-template alignment, followed by model building using MODELLER9v7. Analysis of the catalytic insertion domain structure in CHI II revealed an increase in the number of aromatic residues and longer loops compared to mesophilic and thermophilic chitinases. A molecular dynamics simulation was used to examine the stability of the CHI II structure at 273, 288 and 300?K. Structural analysis of the substrate-binding cleft revealed a few exposed aromatic residues. Substitutions of certain amino acids in the surface and loop regions of CHI II conferred an increased flexibility to the enzyme, allowing for an adaptation to cold temperatures. A substrate binding comparison of CHI II with the mesophilic chitinase from Coccidioides immitis, 1D2K, suggested that the psychrophilic adaptation and catalytic activity at low temperatures were achieved through a reduction in the number of salt bridges, fewer hydrogen bonds and an increase in the exposure of the hydrophobic side chains to the solvent.     

一个新的杆状病毒凋亡抑制基因的克隆及鉴定

缺失功能性ｐ３５基因的苜蓿尺蠖核形多角体病毒（ＡｃＮＰＶ）突变体（ｖΔＰ３５Ｋ／ｐｏｌ＋）感染草地夜蛾细胞（Ｓｆ９和Ｓｆ２１）［１］及海灰翅夜蛾细胞（ＳＬ２）［２］时，引起细胞凋亡，从而使病毒的感染流产．我们发现海灰翅夜蛾核形多角体病毒（ＳｌＮＰＶ）...     

Separation of oxidized and deamidated human growth hormone variants by isocratic reversed-phase high-performance liquid chromatography.

Reversed-phase high-performance liquid chromatography (RP-HPLC) was utilized for the separation of recombinant human growth hormone (hGH) variants on a C18 silica column at 55 degrees C using an isocratic mobile phase which contained 27% 1-propanol in a 25 mM potassium phosphate buffer, pH 6.5. Three of the obtained peaks were characterized by tryptic mapping and mass spectrometry; two of the peaks were found to contain oxidized hGH (dioxy Met14/Met125 and Met125 sulfoxide) while the third contained a deamidated form (Asn149-->Asp149 or Asn152-->Asp152). Compared to the European Pharmacopoeia RP-HPLC method of hGH analysis, this new method gives two additional peaks and a 50% reduction in the analysis time.     

A reversed phase high performance liquid chromatography method for the determination of fumonisins B1 and B2 in food and feed using monolithic column and positive confirmation by liquid chromatography/tandem mass spectrometry

The development of a reversed phase high performance liquid chromatography fluorescence method for the determination of the mycotoxins fumonisin B(1) and fumonisin B(2) by using silica-based monolithic column is described. The samples were first extracted using acetonitrile:water (50:50, v/v) and purified by using a C(18) solid phase extraction-based clean-up column. Then, pre-column derivatization for the analyte using ortho-phthaldialdehyde in the presence of 2-mercaptoethanol was carried out. The developed method involved optimization of mobile phase composition using methanol and phosphate buffer, injection volume, temperature and flow rate. The liquid chromatographic separation was performed using a reversed phase Chromolith(?) RP-18e column (100 mm × 4.6 mm) at 30 °C and eluted with a mobile phase of a mixture of methanol and phosphate buffer pH 3.35 (78:22, v/v) at a flow rate of 1.0 mL min(-1). The fumonisins separation was achieved in about 4 min, compared to approximately 20 min by using a C(18) particle-packed column. The fluorescence excitation and emission were at 335 nm and 440 nm, respectively. The limits of detections were 0.01-0.04 μg g(-1) fumonisin B(1) and fumonisin B(2), respectively. Good recoveries were found for spiked samples (0.1, 0.5, 1.5 μg g(-1) fumonisins B(1) and B(2)), ranging from 84.0 to 106.0% for fumonisin B(1) and from 81.0 to 103.0% for fumonisin B(2). Fifty-three samples were analyzed including 39 food and feeds and 14 inoculated corn and rice. Results show that 12.8% of the food and feed samples were contaminated with fumonisin B(1) (range, 0.01-0.51 μg g(-1)) and fumonisin B(2) (0.05 μg g(-1)). The total fumonisins in these samples however, do not exceed the legal limits established by the European Union of 0.8 μg g(-1). Of the 14 inoculated samples, 57.1% contained fumonisin B(1) (0.16-41.0 μg g(-1)) and fumonisin B(2) (range, 0.22-50.0 μg g(-1)). Positive confirmation of selected samples was carried out using liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry, using triple quadrupole analyzer and operated in the multiple reaction monitoring mode.     

以对二甲苯氧化为对苯二甲酸为例简要综述一级C–H键活化(英文)

The oxidation of para‐xylene to terephthalic acid has been commercialised as the AMOCO process(Co/Mn/Br) that uses a homogeneous catalyst of cobalt and manganese together with a corrosive bromide compound as a promoter. This process is conducted in acidic medium at a high tempera‐ture(175–225 °C). Concerns over environmental and safety issues have driven studies to find mild‐er oxidation reactions of para‐xylene. This review discussed past and current progress in the oxida‐tion of para‐xylene process. The discussion concentrates on the approach of green chemistry in‐cluding(1) using heterogeneous catalysts with promising high selectivity and mild reaction condi‐tion,(2) application of carbon dioxide as a co‐oxidant, and(3) application of alternative promoters. The optimisation of para‐xylene oxidation was also outlined.     

Dealuminated ZSM—5 Zeolite Catalyst for Ethylene Oligomerization to Liquid Fuels

Ethylene oligomerization using ZSM-5 zeolite was investigated to study the role of Broensted acid sites in the formation of higher hydrocarbons,The oligomeriztion of olefins,dependent on the acidity of ZSM-5 zeolite ,is an important step in the conversion of natural gas to liquied fuels,The framework Si/Al ratio reflects the number of potential acid sites and the acid strength of the ZSM-5 catalyst,ZSM-5 with the mole ratio SiO2/Al2O3 equal to 30 was dealuminated for different periods of time according to the acidic ion-exchange method to produce ZSM-5 with various Si/Al ratios,The FT-IR analysis revealed that the integrated framework aluminum band,non-framework aluminum band,and silanol groups areas of the ZSM-5 zeolites decreased after being dealuminated,The performanc of the dealuminated zeolite was tested for ethylene oligomerization.The results demonstrated that the dealumination of ZSM-5 led to higher ethylene conversion,but the gasoline selectivity was reduced compared to the performance of a ZSM-5 zeolite ,The characterization results revealed the amount of aluminum in the zeolitic framework,the crystallinity of the ZSM-5 zeolite,and the Si/Al ration affected the formation of Broensted acid sites,The number of the Broensted acid sites on the catalyst active sites is important in the olefin conversion to liquied hydrocarbons.