Subsurface Flow and Transport
Remediation strategies have been developed for a variety of contaminants by integrating theory, experiment and numerical simulation prior to field-scale studies. Researchers can conduct experiments at various scales, and compare experimental and numerical results to address the nation's most challenging problems in the subsurface related to contaminant transport, carbon cycling, enhanced oil recovery and carbon dioxide sequestration. See a complete list of Subsurface Flow and Transport instruments.
Resources and Techniques
- Users have access to all the tools—flow cells, simulation programs and analytical instruments from chromatographs to spectrometers—necessary for designing and conducting a subsurface flow and transport experiments.
- Designing experiments—Simulators such as STOMP (Subsurface Transport Over Multiple Phases) are used to define the boundary and initial conditions of the experiment.
- Conducting experiments—Micro- to intermediate-flow cells are used with analytical tools to generate data about how contaminants move through the soil.
- A full suite of analytical tools are available to generate data about samples.
Science Theme:
Remediation strategies have been developed for a variety of contaminants by integrating theory, experiment and numerical simulation prior to field-scale studies. Researchers can conduct experiments at various scales, and compare experimental and numerical results to address the nation's most challenging problems in the subsurface related to contaminant transport, carbon cycling, enhanced oil recovery and carbon dioxide sequestration. See a complete list of Subsurface Flow and Transport instruments.
Resources and Techniques
- Users have access to all the tools—flow cells, simulation programs and analytical instruments from chromatographs to spectrometers—necessary for designing and conducting a subsurface flow and transport experiments.
- Designing experiments—Simulators such as STOMP (Subsurface Transport Over Multiple Phases) are used to define the boundary and initial conditions of the experiment.
- Conducting experiments—Micro- to intermediate-flow cells are used with analytical tools to generate data about how contaminants move through the soil.
- A full suite of analytical tools are available to generate data about samples.
EMSL's annual call for proposals opens in early January
Pore-scale investigation of the evolution of residually-trapped CO2 droplets in the frame of geologic carbon storage
Registration now open for EMSL's annual science meeting
From inches to miles: The science of scaling the subsurface
Pushing Boundaries
JGI and EMSL announce collaborative science program's new name
“Working with EMSL” seminar slides now available
Seminar – Working with EMSL: FY 2017 call for proposals
Deadline approaching for EMSL’s Science Theme proposals
Pages
Description
Capability Details
- Intermediate-scale columns and flow cells
- Pore-scale microfluidic and imaging capabilities
- High-pressure/temperature cells for research at reservoir conditions
- Dual energy gamma radiation system
- Integrated hydraulic properties apparatus
- Relative permeability apparatus
- Analytical tools including ion, liquid and gas chromatographs, inductively coupled plasma-mass spectrometry and carbon analysis tools
Instruments
The carbon analyzer is used to analyze total carbon (TC), inorganic carbon (IC), total organic carbon (TOC), purgeable organic carbon (POC), and non...
Custodian(s): Tom Wietsma
The Agilent 4500 Series inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometer (ICP-MS) is available for all research areas requiring analysis of trace metals...
Custodian(s): Tom Wietsma
This instrument is housed in EMSL. More details about this instrument will be available soon.
Custodian(s): Tom Wietsma, Mart Oostrom
This ion chromatography capability comprises two Dionex DX-500 modular chromatography systems that can be configured to conduct fully automated...
Custodian(s): Tom Wietsma
The Agilent 1100 Series liquid chromatography system is used for all research areas that require quantitative determination of nonvolatile and...
Custodian(s): Tom Wietsma
Publications
Dissimilatory iron-reducing bacteria can utilize insoluble Fe(Mn)-oxides as a terminal electron acceptor under anaerobic conditions. For Shewanella...
Increasing concentrations of H2 with depth were observed across a geologic unconformity and associated redox transition zone in the subsurface at the...
Extensive research efforts have been invested in reducing model errors to improve the predictive ability of biogeochemical earth and environmental...
Cost-effective creation of high-permeability reservoirs inside deep crystalline bedrock is the primary challenge for the feasibility of enhanced...
MAX phases (M: early transition metal; A: elements in group 13 or 14; X: C or N), such as titanium silicon carbide (Ti3SiC2), have a unique...
Science Highlights
Posted: November 30, 2016
Researchers at the Department of Energy's Pacific Northwest National Laboratory injected carbon dioxide, or CO2, into basalt lava flows a half-mile...
Posted: June 03, 2016
Geochemists at Pacific Northwest National Laboratory used EMSL capabilities to help developed a mathematical formula to scale subsurface reaction...
Posted: September 01, 2015
The Science
Soil contains the largest amount of terrestrial carbon on the planet, so a small change in soil carbon can have a large impact on...
Posted: March 31, 2015
The Science
Pore-scale models are useful for studying relationships between fundamental processes at the scale of tens to hundreds of microns—the...
Posted: July 11, 2014
The Science
The physical and chemical processes that occur at the scale of individual soil particles dictate the way fluids flow underground over...
Instruments
Carbon storage, the process where CO2 is injected into the subsurface where it is expected to remain trapped, is a technology that has the potential...
At EMSL, a drainage experiment was conducted at 9 MPa and 40 degrees C by injecting supercritical CO2 (scCO2) into the sandstone-analogue pore...
The objective of this work is to utilize the micromodels from EMSLs Subsurface Flow and Transport Laboratory to evaluate the rate and extent of...
Leads
(509) 371-7816
Dr. Bowden manages EMSL's optical spectroscopy and diffraction, subsurface flow and transport, and microfabrication and deposition capabilities. He is responsible for the X-ray diffraction facility and assists or conducts measurement and...