A model study of residual oil distribution jointly using crosswell and borehole-surface electric potential methods

Although high resolution can be provided by electrical logging, the measured electrical log range is narrow and is limited to near the well. Borehole-surface electric potential measurements are able to detect a wide enough range but its resolution is limited, particularly for reservoirs with complex oil and water distribution or complicated structure. In this study, we attempt to accurately locate the 3-D reservoir water and oil distribution by combining borehole-surface and crosswell electric potentials. First, the distributions of oil and water in both vertical and horizontal directions are detected by the borehole-surface and erosswell electric potential methods, respectively, and then the measured crosswell potential result is used to calibrate the measured borehole-surface electric potential data to improve vertical resolution so that the residual oil distribution is determined in a lower half-space with three dimensions. The evaluation of residual oil distribution is obtained by investigation of differences between the simulation results of the reservoir with and without water flooding. The finite difference numerical simulation results prove that the spatial residual oil distribution can be effectively determined by combining the crosswell and borehole-surface electric potentials.

Probing the electric double layer structure at nitrogen-doped graphite electrodes by constant-potential molecular dynamics simulations

Electric double layer(EDL)is a critical topic in electrochemistry and largely determines the working performance of lithium batteries.However,atomic insights into the EDL structures on heteroatom-modified graphite anodes and EDL evolution with electrode potential are very lacking.Herein,a constant-potential molecular dynamics(CPMD)method is proposed to probe the EDL structure under working conditions,taking N-doped graphite electrodes and carbonate electrolytes as an example.An interface model was developed,incorporating the electrode potential and atom electronegativities.As a result,an insightful atomic scenario for the EDL structure under varied electrode potentials has been established,which unveils the important role of doping sites in regulating both the EDL structures and the following electrochemical reactions at the atomic level.Specifically,the negatively charged N atoms repel the anions and adsorb Li~+at high and low potentials,respectively.Such preferential adsorption suggests that Ndoped graphite can promote Li~+desolvation and regulate the location of Li~+deposition.This CPMD method not only unveils the mysterious function of N-doping from the viewpoint of EDL at the atomic level but also applies to probe the interfacial structure on other complicated electrodes.

Failure evolution and disaster prediction of rock under uniaxial compression based on non-extensive statistical analysis of electric potential

Rock failure can cause serious geological disasters,and the non-extensive statistical features of electric potential(EP)are expected to provide valuable information for disaster prediction.In this paper,the uniaxial compression experiments with EP monitoring were carried out on fine sandstone,marble and granite samples under four displacement rates.The Tsallis entropy q value of EPs is used to analyze the selforganization evolution of rock failure.Then the influence of displacement rate and rock type on q value are explored by mineral structure and fracture modes.A self-organized critical prediction method with q value is proposed.The results show that the probability density function(PDF)of EPs follows the q-Gaussian distribution.The displacement rate is positively correlated with q value.With the displacement rate increasing,the fracture mode changes,the damage degree intensifies,and the microcrack network becomes denser.The influence of rock type on q value is related to the burst intensity of energy release and the crack fracture mode.The q value of EPs can be used as an effective prediction index for rock failure like b value of acoustic emission(AE).The results provide useful reference and method for the monitoring and early warning of geological disasters.

Electrical stimulation modulates injury potentials in rats after spinal cord injury

An injury potential is the direct current potential difference between the site of spinal cord injury and the healthy nerves. Its initial amplitude is a significant indicator of the severity of spinal cord injury, and many cations, such as sodium and calcium, account for the major portion of injury potentials. This injury potential, as wel as injury current, can be modulated by direct current field stimulation;however, the appropriate parameters of the electrical field are hard to define. In this paper, injury potential is used as a parameter to adjust the intensity of electrical stimulation. Injury potential could be modulated to slightly above 0 mV （as the anode-centered group） by placing the anodes at the site of the injured spinal cord and the cathodes at the rostral and caudal sections, or around-70 mV, which is resting membrane potential （as the cathode-centered group） by reversing the polarity of electrodes in the anode-centered group. In addition, rats receiving no electrical stimulation were used as the control group. Results showed that the absolute value of the injury potentials acquired after 30 minutes of electrical stimulation was higher than the control group rats and much lower than the initial absolute value, whether the anodes or the cathodes were placed at the site of injury. This phenomenon il ustrates that by changing the polarity of the electrical field, electrical stimulation can effectively modulate the injury potentials in rats after spinal cord injury. This is also beneficial for the spontaneous repair of the cel membrane and the reduction of cation influx.

Structural Surface Crack Monitoring Method Based on Electrical Potential Technique and Modern Surface Technology

Crack monitoring plays a great role in modern structural health monitoring, however, most of the conventional crack inspections have disadvantages in terms of the accuracy, expense, reliability, durability and level of instrumentation required. Thus, development of a simple and reliable crack inspection technique that allows continuous monitoring has been desired. In this paper, electrical potential technique and modern surface technology are employed together to develop a new structural surface crack monitoring method. A special crack monitoring coating sensor based on electrical potential technique was deposited on the hot spot of the structure by modern surface technology. The sensor consists of three layers： the isolated layer, the sensing layer and the protective layer. The isolated layer is prepared by anodic oxidation technology, the sensing layer is made of ion plated copper, and the protective layer is made of silicone. The thickness of each layer is at micrometer magnitude. The electrical conductivity of the sensor is very stable, and the fatigue performance of the specimen with or without coating sensor is nearly unchanged. The crack monitoring experiment result shows that there are two sudden rises of the coating sensor electrical potential values, corresponding to different stages of the crack initiation and propagation. Since the width of the surface coating sensor is only 0.5 mm, this crack monitoring sensor can detect the propagation of cracks less than 0.5 mm long. The method proposed takes the simplicity of electrical potential technique and can monitor surface crack of nearly all kinds of structures precisely. The results of this paper may form the basis of a new crack monitoring system.

Three-dimensional inversion of borehole-surface electrical data based on quasi-analytical approximation

3D inversion of borehole-surface electrical data for complex geo-electrical models is still a challenging problem in geophysical exploration. We have developed a program for 3D inversion to borehole-surface electrical data based on the quasi-analytical approximation （QA） and re-weighted regularized conjugate gradient method （RRCG） algorithms using Visual Fortran 6.5. Application of the QA approximation to forward modeling and Frechet derivative computations speeds up the calculation dramatically. The trial calculation for synthetic data of theoretical model showed that the program is fast and highly precise.

Study on the oscillating phenomena of electrical potential across a liquid membrane

The electrical oscillations across a liquid membrane in water/oil/water system was studied with octanol as oil phase by introducing two opposite charged surfactants in oil and aqueous phase, respectively. The sustained and rhythmic oscillation was observed. To a certain extent, the features of the oscillation （e.g. induction time, frequency, life time and orientation of the pulse pikes） strongly depend on the property of surfactant, dissolved in octanol. The mechanism may be explained by the formation and destruction of dual-ion surfactant membrane accompanying with emulsification at the interface and considering the coupling effect of diffusion and associated reaction in the vicinity of the interface.

Clinical application of electrically evoked compound action potentials

ECAPs are the summary of multiple neurons’ spikes which could be recorded by a bidirectional stimulation-recording system via the cochlear implant,with the artifact elimination paradigms of forward-masking subtraction paradigm or alternating polarity paradigm.Three kinds of FDA approved cochlear implants support ECAP testing.This article is to summarize the clinical application of ECAP lest.ECAP test after insertion of electrode during implant operation has been widely used during cochlear implant surgery.In recent years.ECAP thresholds are also used to estimate the T levels and C levels helping programming.However,correlation between ECAP thresholds and psychophysical thresholds is affected by many factors.So far,ECAPs cannot yet be a good indicator of post-operative hearing and speech performance.

Investigation of fractured rock aquifer in South China using electrical resistivity tomography and self-potential methods

Assessment of fractured rock aquifers in many parts of the world is complicated given their strong heterogeneity. Delineation of the subsurface geological formation in the weathered terrain is essential for groundwater exploration. To achieve this goal, 2D electrical resistivity tomography(ERT) and self-potential(SP) in combination with joint profile method(JPM) and boreholes have been carried out to delineate the subsurface geological units, detect the fracture/fault zones in hard rock, monitor the groundwater flow, and estimate the groundwater reserves contained within the weathered terrain at a complex heterogeneous site of Huangbu, South Guangdong of China. The integration of resistivity images with the borehole lithology along three profiles delineates three subsurface distinct layers namely topsoil cover, weathered and unweathered layers. The incorporation of ERT and SP with JPM reveal five fractures/faults, i.e., F_1, F_2, F_3, F_4 and F_5. 2D ERT models interpret the less resistive anomalies as the fractures/faults zones, and high resistive anomalies as the fresh bedrock. The inversion program based on the smoothness-constraint is used on the resistivity field data to get more realistic three layered model. SP measurements are obtained along the same electrical profiles which provide the negative anomalies clearly indicating the groundwater preferential flow pathways along the fracture/fault zones. Hydraulic parameters namely hydraulic conductivity and transmissivity were determined to estimate the groundwater resources contained within the fractures/faults. The integrated results suggest that the fractures/faults zones are most appropriate places of drilling for groundwater exploration in the investigated area. Geophysical methods coupled with the upfront borehole data provides better understanding about the conceptual model of the subsurface geological formations. The current investigation demonstrates the importance of the integrated geophysical methods as a complementary approach for groundwater assessment in the hard rock weathered areas.

Cortical and spinal evoked potential response to electrical stimulation in human rectum

AIM: To study a novel technique to record spinal and cortical evoked potentials (EPs) simultaneously in response to electrical stimulation in the human rectum. METHODS: Eight male and nine female healthy volunteers participated. Stimulating electrodes were attached to the rectal mucosa at 15 cm and 12 cm above the dentate line. Recording skin electrodes were positioned over vertebrae L4 through S2. The electrical stimulus was a square wave of 0.2 ms duration and the intensity of the stimulus varied between 0 and 100 mA. EP responses were recorded using a Nicolet Viking IV programmable signal conditioner.RESULTS: Simultaneous recording of cortical and spinal EPs was obtained in > 80% of the trials. The EP responses increased with the intensity of the electrical stimulation, were reproducible overtime, and were blocked by application of Lidocaine jelly at the site of stimulation. The morphology (N1/P1), mean ± SD for latency (spinal N1, 4.6 ± 0.4 ms; P1, 6.8 ± 0.5 ms; cortical N1, 136.1 ± 4.2 ms; P1, 233.6 ± 12.8 ms) and amplitude (N1/P1, spinal, 38 ± 7 μV; cortical 19 ± 3 μV) data for the EP responses were consistent with those in the published literature. Reliable and reproducible EP recordings were obtained with the attachment of the electrodes to the rectal mucosa at predetermined locations between 16 and 8 cm above the anal verge, and the distance between the attachment sites of the electrodes (the optimal distance being approximately 3.0 cm between the two electrodes). CONCLUSION: This technique can be used to assess potential abnormalities in primary afferent neural pathways innervating the rectum in several neurodegenerative and functional pain disorders.

Partial electrical potential distribution around nanospheres in metallic nanostructured films

In light of the nanostructured surface model, where half-spherical nanoparticles grow out symmetrically from a plane metallic film, the mathematical model for the partial electrical potential around nanospheres is developed when a uniform external electric field is applied. On the basis of these models, the three-dimensional spatial distribution of the partial electrical potential is obtained and given in the form of a curved surface using a numerical computation method. Our results show that the electrical potential distribution around the nanospheres exhibits an obvious geometrical symmetry. These results could serve as a reference for investigating many abnormal phenomena such as abnormal infrared effects, which are found when CO molecules are adsorbed on the surface of nanostructured transition metals.

Study on Electrical Potential by Buried Source Electrode within the Horizontally Layered Half-space Model

The paper first studies the analytical expression of electrical potential by a point current source in a uniform half-space medium,and then focuses on the distribution of electrical potential in a horizontally layered half-space model by a point current source within the surface layer or the bottom layer.Finally,the electrical potential by a source electrode in any layer of a layered half-space model is presented.

EVOLUTION OF CREEP-FATIGUE DAMAGE IN TYPE 304STAINLESS STEEL AND ITS DETECTION BY ELECTRICALPOTENTIAL METHOD

Creep-fatigue test was carried out using smooth round bar specimens of Type 304 stainless steel. Cavities and small cracks on the cross-section of the specimen were carefully observed by a scanning laser microscope. Moreover, direct current electrical potential method (DC-EPM) was applied in order to evaluate non-destructively the distribution of internal cracks. The distribution evaluated by DC-EPM agrees well with the actual one. (Edited author abstract) 9 Refs.

Molecular properties and potential energy function model of BH under external electric field

Using the density functional B3P86/cc-PV5Z method, the geometric structure of BH molecule under different external electric fields is optimized, and the bond lengths, dipole moments, vibration frequencies, and other physical properties parameters are obtained. On the basis of setting appropriate parameters, scanning single point energies are obtained by the same method and the potential energy curves under different external fields are also obtained. These results show that the physical property parameters and potential energy curves may change with external electric field, especially in the case of reverse direction electric field. The potential energy function without external electric field is fitted by Morse potential, and the fitting parameters are obtained which are in good agreement with experimental values. In order to obtain the critical dissociation electric parameter, the dipole approximation is adopted to construct a potential model fitting the corresponding potential energy curve of the external electric field. It is found that the fitted critical dissociation electric parameter is consistent with numerical calculation, so that the constructed model is reliable and accurate. These results will provide important theoretical and experimental reference for further studying the molecular spectrum, dynamics, and molecular cooling with Stark effect.

Ionic Distribution, Electrostatic Potential and Zeta Potential at Electrochemical Interfaces

Density functional theory is applied to predicting the structures and electrostatic potentials of planar electrochemical surfaces within the framework of the restricted primitive model where small ions are represented by charged hard spheres of equal diameter and the solvent is assumed to be a continuous dielectric medium. The hard-sphere contribution to the excess Helmholtz energy functional is evaluated using the modified fundamentalmeasure theory and the electrostatic contribution is obtained from the quadratic functional Taylor expansion using the second-order direct correlation function from the mean-spherical approximation. Numerical results for the ionic density profiles and the mean electrostatic potentials near a planar surface of various charge densities are in excellent agreement with molecular simulations. In contrast to the modified Gouy-Chapman theory, the present density functional theory correctly predicts the second layer formation and charge inversion of charged surfaces as observed in simulations and in experiments. The theory has also been tested with the zeta potentials of positively charged polystyrene particles in aqueous solutions of KBr. Good agreement is achieved between the calculated and experimental results.

Electric stimulation at sciatic nerve evokes long-term potentiation of cornu dorsale medullae spinalis field potential in rats at various developmental phases

BACKGROUND： Long-term potentiation of cornu dorsale medullae spinalis field potential in adult rats has already been reported; however, there is lack of correlated researches on naenonate, infant and adult rats which have different responses to pain conduction information.OBJECTIVE： To observe the various effects of electric stimulation at sciatic nerve on long-term potentiation of evoked field potential at superficial layer of cornu dorsale medullae spinalis of rats at various developmental phases and analyze manifestations of pain conduction information at superficial layers （ Ⅰ - Ⅱ）of cornu dorsale medullae spinalis in immature rats.DESIGN： Grouping controlled study.SETTING： Department of Physiology, Medical College of Wuhan University.MATERIALS： The experiment was carried out in the Laboratory of Physiology （provincial laboratory）,Medical College of Wuhan University from March 2006 to May 2007. A total of 27 healthy male Sprague-Dawley （SD） rats, 17- 90 days old, SPF grade, weighing 41 -200 g, were provided by Experimental Animal Center, Medical College of Wuhan University.METHODS： Based on their birthdays, rats were divided into naenonate group （17 - 20 days old, weighing 41-52 g, n =10）, infant group （35 - 50 days old, weighing 87 - 125 g, n =10） and adult group （60 - 90 days old, weighing 180 -200 g, n =7）. Left sciatic nerve was separated and stimulated with single square wave （15 V, 0.5 ms）. Meanwhile, evoked field potential was recorded at superficial layers of lateral T13 - L1 cornu dorsale medullae spinalis and then stimulated with high-frequent and high-intensive tetanizing current （30 -40 V, 0.5 ms, 100 Hz, 1s per bundle, 10s in bundle interval） four times. After the operation, onset of long-term potentiation was observed; meanwhile, amplitude changes and latency of field potential were analyzed.MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES： Amplitude and latency changes of field potential at superficial layers of cornu dorsale medullae spinalis of rats in the three groups.RESULTS： A total of 27 accepted rats were involved in the final analysis. ① Amplitude changes： Electric stimulation at sciatic nerve with high-frequent and high-intensive tetanizing current could induce evoked field potential at superficial layers （Ⅰ-Ⅱ ） of cornu dorsale medullae spinalis in the three groups.Long-term potentiation in the naenonate group manifested that amplitude of A-kind never fiber was raised and there was significant difference （P〈0.05）. In addition, average amplitude was increased and there was obviously significant difference （P〈0.01）. Long-term potentiation in the infant group manifested that amplitude of C-kind never fiber was raised and there was significant difference （P〈0.01）; while, long-term potentiation in the adult group manifested that amplitude of C-kind never fiber was raised and there was significant difference （P〈0.01）. Otherwise, latencies in the three groups were all shortened. ② Latency changes： Average latency of A-kind nerve fiber in the naenonate group was shortened and there was significant difference （P〈0.01）; in addition, evoked potential of C-kind nerve fiber was low and latency was immovable. There was no significant difference before and after high-frequent and high-intensive electric stimulation （P〉0.05）. Average latency of C-kind nerve fiber in the infant group was shortened and there was significant difference （P〈0.01）; in addition, evoked potential of A-kind nerve fiber was stable and latency was immovable. There was no significant difference before and after high-frequent and high-intensive electric stimulation （P〉0.05）. Average latency of C-kind nerve fiber in the adult group was shortened and there was significant difference （P〈0.01）; in addition, evoked potential of A-kind nerve fiber was stable and latency was immovable. There was no significant difference before and after high-frequent and high-intensive electric stimulation.CONCLUSION： Evoked field potential at superficial layer of comu dorsale medullae spinalis can be recorded through electric stimulation at sciatic nerve. Single stimulation and tetanizing electric stimulation can cause different characteristics of evoked field potential in rats at various developmental phases.Superficial layer of cornu dorsale medullae spinalis of naenonate rats is mainly caused by A-kind nerve fiber which participants in pain conduction and formation of pain sensitivity; however, that of infant and adult rats mainly depends on C-kind nerve fiber.

The Analytical Potential Energy Function of NH Radical Molecule in External Electric Field

The geometric structures of an Nit radical in different external electric fields are optimized by using the density functional B3P86/cc-PVSZ method, and the bond lengths, dipole moments, vibration frequencies and IR spectrum are obtained. The potential energy curves are gained by the CCSD （T） method with the same basis set. These results indicate that the physical property parameters and potential energy curves may change with the external electric field, especially in the reverse direction electric field. The potential energy function of zero field is fitted by the Morse potential, and the fitting parameters are in good accordance with the experimental data. The potential energy functions of different external electric fields are fitted adopting the constructed potential model. The fitted critical dissociation electric parameters are shown to be consistent with the numerical calculation, and the relative errors are only 0.27% and 6.61%, hence the constructed model is reliable and accurate. The present results provide an important reference for further study of the molecular spectrum, dynamics and molecular cooling with Stark effect.

Periodical streaming potential and electro-viscous effects in microchannel flow

This paper presents an analytical solution to periodical streaming potential, flow-induced electric field and velocity of periodical pressure-driven flows in twodimensional uniform microchannel based on the Poisson-Boltzmann equations for electric double layer and Navier-Stokes equation for liquid flow. Dimensional analysis indicates that electric-viscous force depends on three factors： （1） Electric-viscous number representing a ratio between maximum of electric-viscous force and pressure gradient in a steady state, （2） profile function describing the distribution profile of electro-viscous force in channel section, and （3） coupling coefficient reflecting behavior of arnplitude damping and phase offset of electro-viscous force. Analytical results indicate that flow-induced electric field and flow velocity depend on frequency Reynolds number （Re = wh^2/v）. Flow-induced electric field varies very slowly with Re when Re 〈 1, and rapidly decreases when Re 〉 1. Electro-viscous effect on flow-induced electric field and flow velocity are very significant when the rate of the channel width to the thickness of electric double layer is small.

Generation of atmospheric pressure diffuse dielectric barrier discharge based on multiple potentials in air

In order to achieve atmospheric pressure diffuse dielectric barrier discharge(DBD) in air, a helical-helical electrode structure with a floating-voltage electrode is proposed in this paper.Results from an electric field distribution simulation indicate that strong electric fields are formed where the helical-contact electrodes’ insulating layers are in contact with each other, as well as near the floating-voltage electrode, which contributes to the production of a large number of seed electrons. The electric field within the air gap is weak(<3?×?106 V m-1), which inhibits the rapid development of electron avalanches and the formation of filament discharge. The experimental result shows that a 3.0 mm width diffuse DBD is generated in air. Moreover, based on the study of the helical-helical electrode with a floating-voltage electrode, a threedimensional electrode structure is presented, and a three-dimensional diffuse discharge is generated in air by adopting this electrode structure. The plasma studied is stable and demonstrates good diffusion characteristics, and therefore has potential applications in the field of exhaust gas treatment and air purification.

Electric potential and apparent resistivity in rocks containing non-uniformly distributed cracks

In this paper, the formula of electric field distribution and ground apparent resistivity of high resistance rock medium containing low resistance crack are deduced and simulated. The result shows that interstitial parameters, such as buried depth, scale, strike, and real resistivity, etc, have influence on observation and computing result of apparent resistivity. This study provided a useful foundation for earthquake prediction using apparent resistivity method.