David Cole

About

Dr. David Cole is a geochemist whose research spans several sub-disciplines in the geosciences and chemistry. His work addresses fundamental challenge areas including reaction mechanisms, rates, and transport processes of elements and isotopes in minerals, glasses, and melts; quantifying the spatial and temporal evolution of natural water-rock systems; and using isotopic and mineralogical proxies to reconstruct past climates. He also focuses on CO2 sequestration in geologic formations, physical and chemical processes associated with unconventional gas shale systems, the evolution of rock properties in energy-related subsurface formations, and the atomistic- and molecular-level behavior of carbon-bearing aqueous fluids in natural and engineered nanopores. Dr. Cole employs advanced electron microscopy, isotope ratio mass spectrometry, nuclear magnetic resonance, and neutron scattering tools, combined with numerical models, to quantify complex fluid-gas-matrix interactions from the nano- to the macroscale.

Research topics

• Chemistry
• Materials science
• Geology
• Chemical physics
• Mineralogy

Selected publications

• Review on Underlying Mechanisms of Low Salinity Waterflooding: Comparisons between Sandstone and Carbonate

  Energy & Fuels · 2022-02-21 · 52 citations

  articleOpen accessSenior author

  Low salinity effects (LSE) improved recovery could be obtained by reducing salinity and/or modifying the specific ions of injected brines. Low salinity waterflooding (LSW) is described as a certain low-cost and eco-friendly oil recovery technique, when referring the enhanced oil recovery (EOR) potential by laboratory observations and field pilots in recent decades. Various underlying mechanisms behind LSE were proposed, including saponification, multi-ionic exchange (MIE), electric double-layer…

  PublisherOA PDFDOI

• Supercritical CO₂ Effects on Calcite Wettability: A Molecular Perspective

  The Journal of Physical Chemistry C · 2020-07-28 · 45 citations

  articleOpen accessSenior author

  The wettability behavior of reservoir rocks plays a vital role in determining CO2 storage capacity and containment security. Several experimental studies characterized the wettability of CO2/brine/rock systems for a wide range of realistic conditions. To develop a fundamental understanding of the molecular mechanisms responsible for such observations, the results of molecular dynamics simulations, conducted at atomistic resolution, are reported here for representative systems in a wide range of…

  PublisherOA PDFDOI

• Salt Effects on the Structure and Dynamics of Interfacial Water on Calcite Probed by Equilibrium Molecular Dynamics Simulations

  The Journal of Physical Chemistry C · 2020-10-29 · 45 citations

  articleOpen accessSenior author

  It is important to understand the properties of interfacial water at mineral surfaces. Since calcite
\nis one of the most common minerals found in rocks and sedimentary deposits, and since it
\nrepresents a likely phase encountered in reservoirs dedicated to carbon sequestration, it is
\ncrucial to understand the behaviour of fluids on its surface. In this study, the impacts of sodium
\nchloride (NaCl), potassium chloride (KCl) and magnesium chloride (MgCl2) on the structure
…

  PublisherOA PDFDOI

• Cushion gas effects on clay-hydrogen-brine wettability at conditions relevant to underground gas storage

  International Journal of Hydrogen Energy · 2024-01-27 · 35 citations

  articleOpen access

  Geological storage of hydrogen, and its retrieval as needed, could play a vital role in the transition from fossil-fuel based energy to clean renewable energy production. Cushion gases, such as carbon dioxide and methane, can be used to maintain the reservoir pressure required to increase the efficiency of injection and extraction processes. Because water is ubiquitous in the subsurface, it can provide additional sealing mechanisms and affect the ability of gases to penetrate porous rocks. Becau…

  PublisherDOI

• An integrated approach for optimizing geological hydrogen storage

  Applied Energy · 2024-12-24 · 14 citations

  articleOpen access
  PublisherDOI

Recent grants

• NIH Grant R01GM061920

  NIH · $2.2M · 2011

Frequent coauthors

• Gernot Rother

  51 shared

• Lawrence M. Anovitz

  46 shared

• Alberto Striolo

  44 shared

• Siddharth Gautam

  The Ohio State University

  38 shared

• David J. Wesolowski

  Oak Ridge National Laboratory

  37 shared

• Susan A. Welch

  35 shared

• J. Sheets

  30 shared

• Arne Reykowski

  TiVo (United States)

  25 shared

Awards & honors

• Fellow of the Mineralogical Society of America (MSA)
• Fellow of the Geological Society of America (GSA)
• Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Sc…

Similar researchers at Ohio State University

• Yanlan Liuh-108
• Mark Jonesh-69
• Ji Wangh-67