Xanthan gels were assessed to control the reductive dechlorination of hexachlorocyclohexanes (HCHs) and trichlorobenzenes (TCBs) in a strong permeability contrast and high velocity sedimentary aquifer. An alkaline degradation was selected because of the low cost of NaOH and Ca(OH)₂. The rheology of alkaline xanthan gels and their ability to deliver alkalinity homogeneously, while maintaining the latter, were studied. Whereas the xanthan gels behaved like non-Newtonian shear-thinning fluids, alkalinity and Ca(OH)₂ microparticles had detrimental effects, yet, the latter decreased with the shear-rate. Breakthrough curves for the NaOH and Ca(OH)₂ in xanthan solutions, carried out in the lowest permeability soil (9.9 μm²), demonstrated the excellent transmission of alkalinity, while moderate pressure gradients were applied. Injection velocities ranging from 1.8 to 3.8 m h⁻¹ are anticipated in the field, given the permeability range from 9.9 to 848.7 μm². Despite a permeability contrast of 8.7 in an anisotropic aquifer model, the NaOH and the Ca(OH)₂ both in xanthan gels spread only 5- and 7-times faster in the higher permeability zone, demonstrating that the delivery was enhanced. Moreover, the alkaline gels which were injected into a high permeability layer under lateral water flow, showed a persistent blocking effect and longevity (timescale of weeks), in contrast to the alkaline solution in absence of xanthan. Kinetics of alkaline dechlorination carried out on the historically contaminated soil, using the Ca(OH)₂ suspension in xanthan solution, showed that HCHs were converted in TCBs by dehydrodechlorination, whereas the latter were then degraded by reductive hydrogenolysis. Degradation kinetics were achieved within 30 h for the major and most reactive fraction of HCHs.

Nanotechnology has opened up a plethora of opportunities and has acquired extreme importance in a myriad of fields to produce enhanced materials. Their special properties make them sustainable for industrial purposes. One of the most crucial processes in the petroleum and geothermal industries is cementing. Various classes of Portland cement are used according to API classifications. The conventional Portland cement fails to perform its function at high pressure and high temperature (HPHT) conditions. Hence, various admixtures are used to improve its properties. HPHT conditions not only have a bad impact on Portland cement by affecting its rheological properties but also reduce its strength, porosity, and permeability. So, additives like nano silica are used to improve its properties. Better compressive strength, low porosity and permeability, higher yield stress, and reduced setting time are some of the major properties that improve by the use of nano silica. This paper discusses in detail the different types of cement, cementing processes, failure of Portland cement, and effect of nano silica as an admixture on the compressive strength, rheology, porosity, and permeability of the cement. Furthermore, the upcoming challenges in cementing are discussed along with future potential in this field.

The fracturing property of liquid CO₂ fracturing fluid varies greatly due to the rheology of fracturing fluid during fracturing process. The main objective of this investigation is to study the rheology property of thickened liquid CO₂ by measuring the viscosity of thickened liquid CO₂ in different physical parameters of this prepared thickener and explain the causes of rheological changes. The results show that thickener content, branching content, and molecular weight of a thickener for all could significantly improve the rheology of liquid CO₂; the consistency coefficient K increased as they rose, but the rheological index n presented a decreased trend. Meanwhile, the mesh structure is proposed as a model to explain the rheological changes, and the large wetting angle means an excellent backflow, low reservoir damage, and low adsorption property. These results herein provide a basic reference to improve the CO₂ fracturing technology and molecular design of CO₂ thickener.

The rheology of digested sludge affects the flow hydrodynamics, dewaterability, and the polymer consumption in wastewater treatment plants. The rheological characteristics of digested sludge are highly dependent on changes in total solid concentration, temperature, and polymer dose. Hence, this study aims at investigating the impacts of total solid concentration, temperature, and polymer dose on the rheological characteristics and the dewaterability of digested sludge. Investigating the relationship between rheological and physicochemical characteristics of sludge can also serve as a tool to optimize essential process parameters. Different homogenized digested sludge samples were subjected to rheological measurement on rotational stress-controlled rheometer equipped with Peltier concentric cylinder system. The shear stress–shear rate and viscosity–shear rate curves were then developed before and after polymer conditioning at various temperatures and solid concentrations. Different rheological model were fitted to the shear stress–shear rate and viscosity–shear rate rheograms, and the model with the best fitting and more practical significance was selected to determine key rheological parameters. The relationship between dewaterability and digested sludge rheology was also developed. The rheological characteristics of digested sludge during polymer conditioning and flocculation process was significantly affected by temperature and solid concentration; hence, polymer dose can be reduced by operating the dewatering process at optimum temperature condition and varying the polydose as a function of the total solid concentration and viscosity of the digested sludge. The dewaterability as measured in capillary suction time (CST) improved with increasing polymer dose up to 12 kg/t DS but further increase in polymer dose resulted in the deterioration of the dewaterability due to overdosing.

Soluble phosphate is a common ingredient of fertilizer used in agriculture production all over the world. This chemical mixed with soil is transported into the water and marine environment via rainfall causing a range of environmental problems such as toxic algae bloom. Kaolin clay is a common material found in soil and is used as a model system to understand the effects of phosphate adsorption on the flocculation/dispersion of the clay slurries. In the topics, torrential downpours are common. The large water flow will easily disperse the unflocculated or weakly flocculated sediments over a wide area including river and marine environments. Phosphate adsorption was found to weaken the interparticle forces between clay platelets in the slurries. At high enough concentration, it will completely deflocculate the clay slurries, i.e. the net interparticle force is repulsive. A deflocculated slurry is characterised by a low viscosity and no yield stress. As a result, it is much easier to disperse this slurry over a wide area possible even in a small downpour. This study will present the flow and yield stress behaviour of kaolin clay slurries under the influence of adsorbed phosphate.

Sedimentation tanks are the workhorses of both water treatment plants (WTPs) and waste water treatment plants (WWTPs) and are crucial cogs in their respective treatment machinery. Therefore, it is desirable to operate them at maximum efficiency. But sedimentation tanks are usually overdesigned with a large safety factor to make up for the lack of knowledge and be safe from failures that may be of biological, physicochemical, or hydraulic origin. A new era of settling tank design began after the advent of computational fluid dynamics (CFD). Rapid development in the design and optimisation of sedimentation tanks had taken place since then. This paper aims to provide a review of the state-of-the-art in applying CFD in sedimentation tank design and analysis, focussing on the main factors that affect its hydrodynamics — density current, inlet and outlet configuration, baffle structures, wind, and a special type of settling tank called lamella settler or inclined plate settler (IPS), whose design may be the saviour for the numerous ageing settling tanks currently in existence. Although improvement in settling tank design went up by leaps and bounds in recent years with the help of CFD, researchers still have to compromise on many vital areas due to lack of computational power. However, with exciting revolutionary developments in computational technology like quantum computing that promises a monumental leap in computational power, a full-scale realistic transient simulation of settling tank incorporating sub-models for flocculation, sludge rheology, thermal, and wind all at once is hopeful in the near future.

Electrokinetic remediation of groundwater pollutants uses electrical fields to draw contaminants towards electrodes, where they are removed through diverse mechanisms. Conventional electrodes are installed in discrete positions in the soil. Here, we develop unconventional electrodes for the electrokinetic remediation of Cr(VI). Our electrodes are fluids comprised of sodium alginate and graphene particles in aqueous solution and can therefore be injected in the location of interest to facilitate their installation. The subsequent injection of CaCl₂ solutions induces gelation (as demonstrated by shear rheology), forming a conductive material (as demonstrated by voltammetry experiments). This material sorbed Cr(VI), as demonstrated in sorption experiments conducted under no-flow conditions and even without any applied electric potential. Therefore, it could be placed downstream of the pollutant to act as a barrier, controlling Cr(VI) migration and providing protection for human or ecological receptors. In a saturated model sandy aquifer, Cr(VI) was drawn towards our unconventional electrode barrier using a 12 V differential voltage, thereby decreasing its concentrations by approximately 70% in 30 min (starting from 0.35 mM Cr(VI), as demonstrated using a spectrophotometer). The net reduction of Cr(VI) concentrations in water was achieved without its extraction from the electrode proximity, because our graphene-alginate electrodes sorbed Cr(VI). Our findings provide a proof of concept of a novel remediation approach, which combines electrokinetic remediation with injectable barriers.

Transported desert dust particles (TDDP) are soil particles suspended in the air. Being spread all over the globe by the winds, TDDP affect animals, including humans, plants and other organisms not only in the areas of their emission. In humans, TDDP are responsible for diseases of the respiratory (e.g. asthma) and circulatory (e.g. heart failure) systems and they also act directly on the epithelium and its mucus layer after deposition in the mouth and respiratory system. The aim of the study was to determine the influence of TDDP on the rheology of mucus and saliva, and thus on their functioning. The artificial mucus and saliva, as well as Arizona TDDP, were used in experiments. The rheological properties of TDDP were determined with the use of an oscillatory rheometer, at various temperatures and in the presence of different amount of TDDP. Moreover, the diffusion time of the marker (rhodamine B) throughout mucus with desert dust particles was examined. The obtained results demonstrate that the presence of TDDP in the saliva and mucus model increases their apparent viscosity. The concentration of particles is positively correlated with the increase of viscosity. However, it has not been demonstrated that the presence of TDDP in mucus significantly influenced the diffusion of a fluorescent marker throughout the mucus. The presence of TDDP in the saliva and mucus may interfere with their moisturising function, and cause difficulties in swallowing by increasing the viscosity of mucus and saliva. Moreover, increased viscosity of mucus may cause problems with its ability to pass to the upper respiratory tracts, which may lead to a general discomfort or local inflammation.

Diesel exhaust particles (DEPs) from diesel engines produce adverse alterations in cells of the airways by activating intracellular signaling pathways and apoptotic gene overexpression, and also by influencing metabolism and cytoskeleton changes. This study used human bronchial epithelium cells (BEAS-2B) in culture and evaluates their exposure to DEPs (15ug/mL for 1 and 2 h) in order to determine changes to cell rheology (viscoelasticity) and gene expression of the enzymes involved in oxidative stress, apoptosis, and cytotoxicity. BEAS-2B cells exposed to DEPs were found to have a significant loss in stiffness, membrane stability, and mitochondrial activity. The genes involved in apoptosis [B cell lymphoma 2 (BCL-2 and caspase-3)] presented inversely proportional expressions (p = 0.05, p = 0.01, respectively), low expression of the genes involved in antioxidant responses [SOD1 (superoxide dismutase 1); SOD2 (superoxide dismutase 2), and GPx (glutathione peroxidase) (p = 0.01)], along with an increase in cytochrome P450, family 1, subfamily A, polypeptide 1 (CYP1A1) (p = 0.01). These results suggest that alterations in cell rheology and cytotoxicity could be associated with oxidative stress and imbalance between pro- and anti-apoptotic genes.

The thickening performance of CO₂ fracturing fluid was poor because of the low apparent viscosity. In this paper, the thickening performance of a modified silicone on liquid CO₂ is measured, and a rheology was investigated according to the consistency coefficient K and rheological index n. Meanwhile, a reservoir model was established to evaluate the fracturing property. Results showed that the modified silicone contributes to improve the apparent viscosity of liquid CO₂ and decrease the rheology of liquid CO₂. With the thickener content or pressure increase, the apparent viscosity of liquid CO₂ increases, and the rheological index n decreased obviously. A reduced apparent viscosity is shown as the flow rate or temperature rises, but the rheology increased gradually. The fracturing simulation herein shows that thickened CO₂ fracturing fluid could improve obviously the fracture property. This modified thickener possesses the potential as a thickener and could be a reliable alternative to the thickener in CO₂ fracturing technology, and the large contact angle improved the backflow property of this CO₂ thickener from rock surfaces. The development of CO₂ fracturing technology provides basic data for the improvement of greenhouse effect and clean mining of energy.