Comprehensive analysis of endoplasmic reticulum stress related signature in head and neck squamous carcinoma.

Head and neck squamous carcinoma (HNSC) is a prevalent malignant disease, with the majority of patients being diagnosed at an advanced stage. Endoplasmic reticulum stress (ERS) is considered to be a process that promotes tumorigenesis and impacts the tumor microenvironment (TME) in various cancers. The study aims to investigate the predictive value of ERS in HNSC and explore the correlation between ERS-related genes and TME. A series of bioinformatics analyses were carried out based on mRNA and scRNA-seq data from the TCGA and GEO databases. We conducted RT-qPCR and western blot to validate the signature, and performed cell functional experiments to investigate the in vitro biological functions of the gene. We identified 63 ERS-related genes that were associated with outcome and stage in HNSC. A three-gene signature (ATF6, TRIB3, and UBXN6) was developed, which presents predictive value in the prognosis and immunotherapy response of HNSC patients. The high-risk group exhibited a worse prognosis but may benefit from immunotherapy. Furthermore, there was a significant correlation between the signature and immune infiltration. In the high-risk group, fibroblasts were more active in intercellular communication, and more T cells were observed at the end of the sequential phase. The genes in the ERS-related signature were overexpressed in HNSC cells, and the knockdown of TRIB3 significantly inhibited cell proliferation and migration. This study established a novel ERS-related signature that has potential implications for HNSC therapy and the understanding of TME.

Tailoring Water-Gas Ratios to Saturation Distribution for Improved Oil Recovery in Low-Permeability Reservoirs.

Water-gas alternation technology (WAG) is considered to be one of the methods that can effectively improve the effect of the CO2 flooding in heterogeneous reservoirs. The proportion of WAG and the timing of WAG adjustment are key factors affecting the oil displacement effect. This article analyzes the influence of adjusting the WAG ratio on the oil recovery effect of heterogeneous rock cores at different gas flooding stages based on gas flooding experiments. Second, the influence of WAG ratio changes on the recovery rate of displacement experiments under different saturation distributions was studied through numerical simulation. Finally, the oilfield model currently in production was used to optimize the WAG ratio adjustment of the reservoir recovery as a constraint condition. Moreover, the correlation between the fluid distribution of the reservoir and the timing of WAG adjustment was verified. The displacement experiment shows that adjusting the WAG ratio has a significant impact on the displacement effect of crude oil under the same heterogeneous conditions. After adjusting the WAG ratio from 1:2 to 2:1 at 0.5 HCPV and 1 HCPV, the final RF showed significant changes. There is an optimal timing for adjusting the WAG ratio under the same heterogeneity. If the WAG ratio is increased earlier, it will lead to a decrease in the CO2 injection volume and reduce the effectiveness of CO2 flooding. If the WAG ratio is increased later, it will lead to the formation of gas channeling channels and affect the effect of adjusting the WAG ratio on flooding.

Mathematical Model for Oil Recovery Prediction of Polymer Microsphere Conformance Control Based on the Stream Tube Method.

Oil recovery is an essential parameter for reservoir development performance evaluation, but there is no specific research on the theoretical oil recovery prediction model of polymer microspheres (PMs)' conformance control. This research aims to establish an oil recovery prediction model that depends on the definition of oil recovery based on stream tube theory. PMs' enhanced oil recovery mechanism is to plug the pore throat to expand the swept area. The assumption that the stream tube between injection and production wells is trapezoidal is proposed. Based on this premise, the area sweep efficiency equation suitable for the rhombus inverse nine-spot well pattern is established based on the stream tube theory. The vertical sweep efficiency equation is optimized by introducing the equivalent mobility ratio. Additionally, the model's adaptability and validity are studied. The analysis results show that oil recovery decreases with increasing injection rate, injection concentration, and PMs size but increases with the increasing injection period. The theoretical oil recovery is 1.37%, and the actual oil recovery of the field application is 1.22%, with an error of 0.15%. This model has good consistency with the actual physical process of the field application. The oil recovery prediction model can provide oil recovery and optimize PMs' conformance control injection scheme. This study fills the gap in the mathematical model for oil recovery prediction of PMs' conformance control.

Research on a Fractal Dimension Calculation Method for a Nano-Polymer Microspheres Dispersed System.

Polymer microspheres (PMs) are a kind of self-similar volume expansion particle, and their fractal dimension varies with hydration swelling. However, there is no unique fractal dimension calculation method for their characteristics. A new model is established in this paper, which is particular to calculate the fractal dimension of PMs. We carried out swelling hydration experiments and scanning electron microscope (SEM) experiments to verify the new model. The new model and the box-counting model were used to calculate the fractal dimensions of PMs based on the hydration experiment results. Then, a comparison of the calculation results of the two methods was used to verify the validity of the model. Finally, according to the new model calculation results, the fractal dimension characteristics of PMs were analyzed. The research results indicate that the new model successfully correlates the cumulative probability of the PMs dispersed system with the fractal dimension and makes fractal dimension calculation of PMs more accurate and convenient. Based on the experiment results, the new model was used to calculate the fractal dimension of PMs and the box-counting model, and its findings were all 2.638 at initial state hydration and 2.739 and 2.741 at hydration time as of day 1. This result verifies the correctness of the new model. According to the hydration swelling experiments and the new model calculation results, the fractal dimension is linear correlated to the average particle size of PMs and the standard deviation average particle size. This means the fractal dimension of PMs represents the space occupancy ability and space occupancy effectiveness.

Research on Optimal Blocking Limits and Injection Parameter Optimization of Polymer Microsphere Conformance Control.

Polymer microsphere (PM) profile control has been attributed to improving sweep efficiency during the oil development process. The critical factors for PM conformance control are the plugging properties controlled by matching the relationship between the throat diameter and particle size and the injection parameters. A new matching relationship between the reservoir and PM based on the function of blocking rate and the ratio of throat diameter to microsphere diameter (C R) is established to choose the most appropriate PM size. The blocking rate indicates that it will get the most excellent plugging effect when C R is 0.5. The displacement experiments under different injection concentrations and other injection volumes show that the blocking rate is increased by injection concentration and finally stabilized. A similar trend is presented between the injection volume and plugging rate. The optimal injection concentration is 0.5%, and the optimal injection volume is 0.3 PV. According to the new size selection method and injection parameter optimal method, PM100 chooses to conduct field application. PM100 presents a good performance with a success rate of 37.5% and a validity period of more than 120 days, and its daily oil production rate increased 1.7 times, on average, and finally, the total oil increase is 556 t. The optimal size microsphere shows a good EOR effect, which indicates that this size selection method is reasonable.

Field Application of Nanoscale Polymer Microspheres for In-Depth Profile Control in the Ultralow Permeability Oil Reservoir.

Much research has been carried out on nanoscale polymer microspheres (PMs) in laboratories in recent years. However, there are limited reports on the practical application of nanoscale PMs in ultralow permeability reservoirs. This paper reports a field application case of nanoscale PMs for in-depth profile control in the ultralow permeability oil reservoir. In the paper, the characteristics of the reservoir and the problems faced during development are analyzed in detail. Then, the PMs with calibration diameters of 300 nm and 800 nm are researched by evaluation experiments, and are selected for in-depth profile control in the ultralow permeability oil reservoir. Finally, according to the effect of the pilot application, the performance of PMs is evaluated, and a more suitable size for the pilot test reservoir is determined. The experiment's results show that the PMs have a good capacity for swelling and plugging. For the PMs with a calibration diameter of 300 nm, the final equilibrium swelling ratio is 56.2 nm·nm-1, and the maximum resistance coefficient and the blocking rate after swelling are 3.7 and 70.31%, respectively. For the PMs with a calibration diameter of 800 nm, the final equilibrium swelling ratio is 49.4 nm·nm-1, and the maximum resistance coefficient the blocking rate after swelling are 3.5 and 71.42%, respectively. The performance evaluation results show that nanoscale PMs can be used for in-depth profile control in the ultralow permeability oil reservoir. After the application of PMs in the pilot test area, the average water cut decreased by 10.4%, the average liquid production of single well-increased by 0.9 t/d, and the average thickness of the water-absorbing layer increased by 1.77 m. Comparing the dynamic data variation of well-groups using the PMs with the calibration diameter as 800 nm and the calibration diameter as 300 nm, it indicates that, for the pilot test area, PMs with a calibration diameter of 300 nm are more suitable than PMs with a calibration diameter of 800 nm.

Microbial Mineralization of Montmorillonite in Low-Permeability Oil Reservoirs for Microbial Enhanced Oil Recovery.

Microbial mineralization (corrosion, decomposition, and weathering) has been investigated for its role in the extraction and recovery of metals from ores. Here we report our application of biomineralization for the microbial enhanced oil recovery in low-permeability oil reservoirs. It aimed to reveal the etching mechanism of the four Fe(III)-reducing microbial strains under anaerobic growth conditions on Ca-montmorillonite. The mineralogical characterization of Ca-montmorillonite was performed by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, X-ray powder diffraction, scanning electron microscopy, and energy-dispersive spectrometry. Results showed that the microbial strains could efficiently reduce Fe(III) at an optimal rate of 71%, alter the crystal lattice structure of the lamella to promote interlayer cation exchange, and efficiently inhibit Ca-montmorillonite swelling at a rate of 48.9%.IMPORTANCE Microbial mineralization is ubiquitous in the natural environment. Microbes in low-permeability reservoirs are able to facilitate alteration of the structure and phase of the Fe-poor minerals by reducing Fe(III) and inhibiting clay swelling, which is still poorly studied. This study aimed to reveal the interaction mechanism between Fe(III)-reducing bacterial strains and Ca-montmorillonite under anaerobic conditions and to investigate the extent and rates of Fe(III) reduction and phase changes with their activities. Application of Fe(III)-reducing bacteria will provide a new way to inhibit clay swelling, to elevate reservoir permeability, and to reduce pore throat resistance after water flooding for enhanced oil recovery in low-permeability reservoirs.