A Western Australian fly ash has been analyzed by various techniques in order to quantify the reactive component that can be utilized in geopolymerization. Once the reactive amorphous aluminosilicate material was determined an estimate was made on how much material was left to act as filler material. Two approaches were used, the first a combination of XRD and XRF and the second an alkaline dissolution of fly ash. XRD/XRF results show that approximately 52 wt% of the fly ash is amorphous aluminosilicate material while the dissolution experiment provided a lower value of 39 wt%. Quantitative evaluation of minerals by scanning electron microscopy results showed an increase of iron oxide concentration in the undissolved component with increase in dissolution time leading to the conclusion that the amorphous iron does not participate in the geopolymerization process.

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Enrichment of the 100 Ru isotope, resulting from the double beta ͑␤␤͒ decay of 100 Mo, has been found in old molybdenites from Australia. Using Re-Os ages determined here together with the amount of excess 100 Ru determined via isotope dilution mass spectrometry, consistent half-lives were obtained from two different molybdenite samples of varying ages (2.90 billion and 1.05 billion years old) with an average half-life of ͑2.1± 0.3͒ ϫ 10 18 years. This half-life is highly consistent with the theoretical model for a two-neutrino ␤␤ decay.

Earlier studies using moss as a biomonitor of pollution have shown that long-range transport is a major source of pollution in Norway. Until now, the origin of these pollutants has been inferred from concentration measurements of various elements in moss and the climatology at each sampling site. Lead isotopes provide an opportunity to identify the sources and to quantify the contribution of each. This preliminary study reports measurements of lead isotopes in moss from selected sites along the full extent of Norway that reveal significant spatial and temporal variations. There are significant north−south trends that differ at coastal and inland sites and differ between sampling periods (1974−1994). These variations reflect the changing contributions from the different source regions as the regulation of pollution from automobiles and industry takes effect. Identifiable sources are the U.K. and possibly France, which is noticeable at coastal sites; western Europe at the southern end; and eastern Europe and Russia influencing the inland and northernmost sites.

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Through the use of acid digestion and a modified distillation procedure the Ru contents in various terrestrial minerals have been determined via the stable isotope dilution mass spectrometry (IDMS) method, with isotopic analysis carried out via inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS) and negative thermal ionization mass spectrometry (N-TIMS). The uncertainties in the concentrations ranged from 2.1% to 6.0% (2σ) for ppb and ppm samples concentrations, which is comparable and in some cases better than previous work using NiS fire assay and ICP-MS (Shirai et al., 2003). However, uncertainties for ppt samples were in around 20%, due to low count rates during analysis.Results from three different mineral species show the effectiveness of this chemical dissolution and separation procedure for samples of varying Ru concentrations, ranging from ppm down to ppt levels, and varying geological matrices, from sulphides to silicates. Ru abundances measured showed results consistent with the siderophile nature of Ru, and reinforces the similarity in melt chemistry between Ru and Os.

Although drilling has slowed substantially from its peak in 2010, steadily improving natural gas prices coupled with the promise of demand from liquefied natural gas and gas to liquids facilities have renewed interest in the prolific Haynesville shale gas play in NW Louisiana. A consensus of opinion among operators in the field will agree that only a fraction of the Haynesville potential has been developed to date. As is the case in most shale plays, production from wells has been highly variable, leading to the use of 3D seismic reservoir characterization studies for the determination of sweet spots, well placement and completion strategies where seismic anisotropy has been proven to be an important factor in understanding the shale plays. This paper illustrates a workflow (Figure 1) integrating reservoir and geomechanical properties obtained from pre-stack seismic inversion and incorporating stress and fracture information extracted from azimuthal analysis of the seismic data. Eight wells in the area targeting the Haynesville and mid-Bossier reservoirs were used for calibration of surface seismic measurements of reservoir and geomechanical properties. A variety of seismically derived attributes are used to estimate production potential in the field. This paper shows the application of global azimuthal inversion, a technology for extracting the azimuthal anisotropy. Above all, the workflow makes quantitative use of microseismic and SEM (Scanning Electron Microscope) derived mineralogy data to validate the seismic-derived attributes. Figure 1 Integrated geoscience workflow for a shale play, incorporating numerous discipline to high-grade the survey area to identify ‘sweet spots’ and optimize drilling locations and completions.

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