The Green Computing Observatory: a data curation approach for green IT

International audienceThe Green Computing Observatory (GCO) is a collaborative effort to provide the scientific community with a comprehensive set of traces of energy consumption of a production cluster. These traces include the detailed monitoring of the hardware and software, as well as global site information such as the overall consumption and overall cooling. The acquired data is transformed into an XML format built from a specifically designed ontology and published through the Grid Observatory website

Numerical modelling of geomechanical effects during steam injection in SAGD heavy oil recovery

International audienc

Numerical coupling of geomechanics and fluid flow during steam injection in SAGD

International audienc

Production froide des huiles visqueuses. Première partie : Observations sur champ

La production froide de certains réservoirs contenant des huiles visqueuses, au Canada et au Venezuela principalement, amène à des productivités et des taux de récupération supérieurs aux prédictions calculées à l'aide des équations habituellement utilisées pour décrire les écoulements classiques. Pour expliquer ces productions anormalement élevées, un certain nombre de mécanismes ont été évoqués, principalement d'origines hydrodynamiques et géomécaniques. Les propriétés hydrodynamiques des fluides produits, partiellement dégazés durant la production : huiles moussantes, fluides à bulles, sont en effet plus favorables que celles des fluides en place. Par effet géomécanique d'érosion interne du sable, un réseau de chenaux (wormholes, piping tubes) peut se créer in situ, améliorant notablement le drainage. Cet article comprend quatre parties : les observations sur champ, l'étude en laboratoire des huiles moussantes, leur modélisation numérique, les effets géomécaniques liés à la production de sable

Balloon kyphoplasty and vertebroplasty in the management of vertebral compression fractures

Vertebral compression fractures (VCFs) are the most prevalent fractures in osteoporotic patients. The classical conservative management of these fractures is through rest, pain medication, bracing and muscle relaxants. The aim of this paper is to review prospective controlled studies comparing the efficacy and safety of minimally invasive techniques for vertebral augmentation, vertebroplasty (VP) and balloon kyphoplasty (BKP), versus non-surgical management (NSM). The Fracture Working Group of the International Osteoporosis Foundation conducted a literature search and developed a review paper on VP and BKP. The results presented for the direct management of osteoporotic VCFs focused on clinical outcomes of these three different procedures, including reduction in pain, improvement of function and mobility, vertebral height restoration and decrease in spinal curvature (kyphosis). Overall, VP and BKP are generally safe procedures that provide quicker pain relief, mobility recovery and in some cases vertebral height restoration than conventional conservative medical treatment, at least in the short term. However, the long-term benefits and safety in terms of risk of subsequent vertebral fractures have not been clearly demonstrated and further prospective randomized studies are needed with standards for reporting. Referral physicians should be aware of VP/BKP and their potential to reduce the health impairment of patients with VCFs. However, VP and BKP are not substitutes for appropriate evaluation and treatment of osteoporosis to reduce the risk of future fractures