Chemical evidence from laboratory experiments for biokarst development in the Ordos Basin, northwestern China

摘要

The present work is designed to simulate the dissolution of sulphate rock under various conditions of different bacterial cell numbers, temperatures and reaction times both in water-rock system and water-rock-bacteria systems by laboratory experiment. The rate of sulphate reduction were estimated using the experimental data. The results suggested that the sulphate-reducing bacteria promote the sulphate rock dissolution and increase the amount of dissolved sulphate. The dissolution of sulphate rock driven by bacterial sulphate reduction results in the formation of sulphate rock karst. The research is an insight into biokarst, which provides a new perspective for the field of petroleum geology.