Abstract
Synchrotron radiation provides the necessary spatial and temporal resolution for non-invasive operando studies of dynamic processes under complex environmental conditions. Here a new environmental cell for simultaneous insitu dynamic X-ray imaging and measuring acoustic properties of geological samples is presented. The primary purpose of this cell is to study gas-hydrate formation in porous geo-materials and its influence on their acoustic properties. The cell is designed for cylindrical samples of 9 mm in diameter, confining andpore pressures up to 12 MPa, and temperatures from -20°C to room temperature. The cell is portable and can be easily assembled and operated at different X-ray sources. This cell enables a wide range of experiments studying physical/chemical processes in the Earth subsurface that change the mechanical properties of rocks (geochemical reactions, phase transitions, etc.).
Highlights
Geological subsurface processes are complicated as they are multi-scale and multi-physical in nature
The main purpose of this paper is to present an environmental cell for simultaneous synchrotron-based micro-CT imaging and measuring acoustic properties (P-wave velocity)
We have presented the first experimental cell for simultaneous measurement of acoustic properties of a sample and dynamic synchrotron-based micro-tomographic imaging
Summary
Geological subsurface processes are complicated as they are multi-scale and multi-physical in nature. Specialized laboratory setups have been used for gas-hydrate formation in rock samples and studying various physical properties (Winters et al, 2000; Schicks et al, 2011) These setups are unable to perform dynamic imaging of the sample micro-structure and attribute variations in physical properties to changes in hydrate saturation, morphology or spatial distribution. We show an example of measuring acoustic properties and in situ micro-CT imaging of a sample during the process of gas-hydrate formation. The upper acoustic sensor has a channel for pore pressure and gas supply to the sample This sample pack is placed into the X-ray transparent polyether ether ketone (PEEK) pressure vessel with inner diameter of 11 mm and total height of 20 mm. Such a diameter still enables us to measure the velocity of body P-waves and perform 3D imaging of almost the whole sample – see discussion in the following subsections
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Free) 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a call
