Search

The oil and gas production complex plays a leading role in the economy of the Republic of Kazakhstan, the development of which is associated with the exploration, development and exploitation of not only new, but also mature oil and gas fields. In recent years, the country's large and well-known oil and gas fields have entered the last stage of development, which is accompanied by water cut, deterioration of collector properties and reduction of production rates. One such field is Uzen. Under these conditions it is advisable to create a unified system for interpretation of well logging data, which is based on a reliable petrophysical model of the field. The purpose of the research shown in this article is to test the developed methodology for the integrated interpretation of logging data for complex reservoir strata in the Uzen field. Complex reservoirs are defined as those with a layered texture, irregular lithology and a complex void space structure. This approach makes it possible to develop cost-effective strategies to maximise field returns while minimising production and economic risks. This paper focuses on the results of testing a new methodology for interpreting logging data in order to produce the most reliable estimation parameters. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The paper considers processes of ore formation. This concerns complex dynamic natural objects, depending on polygenic geological phenomena, mutually interacting and forming a single mineral formation environment. Development of ore-forming systems is connected not only with the natural evolution of thermodynamic parameters, but also with physical-chemical properties and composition of ore-bearing deposits, state and character of manifestation of tectonic structures, such as field strength, degree of tectonic transformation of rocks, dynamometamorphism and others. Influence of postmagmatic fluids and other factors on the process of mineral formation is also considered. Mineral formation at gold deposits is the result of the interaction of various polygenic geological processes that ultimately determine the character of mineralisation at the deposits. Experimental studies cannot fully reconstruct the conditions of ore formation. Therefore, it is necessary to apply the method of recalculation of thermodynamic constants. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The majority of the rivers in Kazakhstan can be characterized as plain and lowland type. The flow in such rivers is uneven both within the year and over the years. In order to regulate this variability, to conserve water resources as well as to provide water for domestic use the reservoirs have been built. In Kazakhstan, there are 43 large on stream and valley reservoirs on 33 rivers, half of which are on plain, lowland rivers. One of such reservoirs, Astana reservoir is studied in this paper. It is situated on the Yesil river and has a strategic importance due to its close location to the capital of the Republic of Kazakhstan. The objective of this study is to identify the characteristics of reservoir operation under the conditions of intensive water use and climate change. For the purpose of assessing the multi-year trends in the hydrological regime of the Yesil river and Astana reservoir analytical, mapping, statistical methods with the time series analysis have been applied. Analysis of the main elements of reservoir’s water balance has indicated that the main component of the gain term is surface inflow by the Yesil river. The amount of river runoff is determined by the climatic conditions in the basin and it has shown similar trends as the amount of precipitation in the hydrologic year. The main filling of the reservoir occurs during the snowmelt season and resulting high flows, in April. The main loss term of the water balance in wet years was water release downstream, whereas in dry years it was water withdrawal for household needs. It has been estimated that if the conditions of Nur-Sultan city’s rapid growth persist, the available resources of Astana reservoir will not be able to meet the demands of the population and industry. The situation is expected to get worse with the decline in reservoir’s useful volume due to sediment load processes and the influence of climate change. These factors necessitate the consideration of alternative water sources for constant water supply of the area. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Currently, the issue of pollution of the Caspian Sea, which is saturated with oil industry facilities, is highly relevant. Monitoring of such objects and phenomena that pose a potential and real threat of natural and man-made emergencies, such as emergency oil spills that entail significant environmental damage, is important for Kazakhstan. The main purpose of this paper is to evaluate the capabilities of SAR and optical images in the task of detecting oil spills, having tested them in the task of mapping zones with a high frequency of occurrence of oil spills for three years. Due to its many advantages, SAR imagery is currently the most common remote sensing tool for oil spills. However, using SAR images, it is sometimes difficult to identify man-made oil spills and false objects similar to them, which are commonly called “look-alikes” and include windless areas, organic slicks of natural origin, algal blooms, etc. The combined use of SAR and optical data improves the reliability of oil pollution detection. Using optical images to detect oil spills, we rely on the spectral characteristics of objects, and although the reflectivity varies depending on the thickness and composition of the spot, in most cases oil spills can be distinguished from similar spurious objects. The large amount of data made it possible to generalize and obtain statistically reliable results on the spatial and temporal variability of the manifestations of slick pollution of various types on satellite images of the sea surface. From April 2018 to December 2019 alone, 1303 satellite images of the sea surface from the Sentinel 1 and 2 satellites were received and analyzed. The total area of the detected oil spills in the Kazakhstan part of the Caspian Sea reached 68.4 km2. The main source of surface pollution of open areas of the Caspian Sea identified during monitoring are leaks and discharges from ships of oil-contaminated waters along the main shipping lanes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Regulatory documents of the Republic of Kazakhstan in the field of substantiating the stability of slopes of pit edges are currently at variance with world practice in the design and operation of open-pit deposits. Modern design methods involve the creation of a three-dimensional complex geomechanical model of the field. Such a model contains information on the geological and structural composition that describes the disturbance of the solid mass by folds, tectonic faults, and jointing. It is important to accurately collect and process the data when documenting the core to ensure the quality of the data of the filled geomechanical model at the first stage. Therefore, it would be possible to use the basic methods for classifying the rock mass, as well as assessing its strength and geotechnical conditions of the field. The article describes the main parameters of the structural features of the rock mass, which must be investigated to obtain complete information about the field. Also, the following paper consider methods for studying the jointing of the rock mass and report methods for introducing the obtained data into the calculation model. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The paper considers the causes of freshwater scarcity and its worsening, and gives recommendations for the prevention, remediation and mitigation of climate change negative effects on groundwater. Wet technology sectors have been developed rapidly in the global market. Currently, there is already a clear increase in freshwater scarcity. According to the UN, over 1.2 billion people live under constant growth of freshwater scarcity, and FAO predicts that the number of those living in water scarcity conditions will exceed 4 billion people [1] by the middle of the third decade of the XXI century. As far as is known, G. Rodda, as early as 1997, offered an ascending global water consumption curve (under 3 possible scenarios) and a descending curve of economically available water resources. Already existing factors of negative anthropogenic impact on water sources (pollution, depletion due to unacceptably high water intake, draining of raised bogs with the inevitable depletion of small rivers fed by raised bogs, deforestation watershed, etc.) were taken into account [2]. The analysis shows that the curves of water consumption and available resources intersect in 2035–2045 (depending on the scenario). It is projected that, considering the water consumption level over the past 10 years, which has grown 10 times, the amount of available resources is decreasing more rapidly than during the period taken as the basis for extrapolation. Thus, with appropriate adjustments, the intersection is anticipated in 2025-2030. In recent decades, freshwater scarcity has been increasing in regions where it did not exist before and is aggravating everywhere. The obvious reason is the increased water consumption by the growing population and economy. However, if the issue was limited only to this reason, only relative indicators of water availability (not necessarily real consumption) would deteriorate: amount of water resources per capita and per unit of output. However, fresh water of satisfactory quality is shrinking, not only in relative but also in absolute terms. This fact is often underestimated, and sometimes goes unnoticed. Nevertheless, it allows understanding the essence of the water scarcity widening process and determining the basic principles of strategy which will allow the developing mankind to solve a problem. To analyse it, it is necessary to start with the natural science aspect, and then move to the economic and political aspects. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The paper considers the structural and tectonic position of the mineralisation in the case of the Achisai ore district. Formation of lead and zinc ores at the Achisai deposit was conditioned by regeneration of stratified ore clusters as a result of tectonic or tectonicmagmatic activation. Therefore, the structural-tectonic control of mineralisation of the Achisai type is one of the cardinal ones, along with the lithologic-stratigraphic one. The lead and zinc mineralisation is confined to side parts of synclines, in place of their interface with shrunken anticlinal folds of Famennian deposits. Strong dislocations are typical for the thicknesses underlying the mineralisation. Tectonic breccias are underlying the ore-hosting subsuites. The area of the Achisai deposit is characterized by formation overthrust, which developed between the Devonian and Carboniferous strata. In the ore Achisai and Zhamanktai ore fields, the processes of forcing, layer-by-layer and crosscutting litho-clastic flow of Frasnian and Famennian rocks, expressed in the formation of disharmonious and crest folds, inter-formation breakdowns, diapirs and other forcing structures, are widely manifested. In Karatau, wide development of northeast zones of high tectonic activity has been detected. A simple approach to identify the transverse zones is proposed using the lead geochemical field. Regional prognostic and search criteria of karst mineralisation have been defined, which allow revealing objects within the whole analyzed territory and thus allow defining in smallscale researches potentially perspective areas on account of minimal amount of initial data (structural-tectonic, lithologic-facial, etc.). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the world practice, lead-zinc karst deposits occupy one of the leading positions in terms of reserves and rich ore mining. In terms of metal content, they excel all other commercial-genetic types. Karst deposits are a new commercial-genetic type for Kazakhstan. One of the promising regions for discovery of the karst deposits is the Great Karatau, known for such objects (Achisai, Karasai, Kantegi, Araltau and oth.). The area of the Achisai ore cluster is composed of thick carbonate strata of limestones and dolomites of various ages, with water-resistant horizons of marls, siltstones, and mudstones. Lead-zinc mineralization is confined exclusively to limestones and dolomites, relatively chemically pure, with a small amount of impurities of terrigenous material. The paper considers the local search attributes of lead and zinc karst mineralisation: lead and zinc sulphide mineralisation, mineralised karst, limonized rocks with mineralisation, lithological and chemical composition of rocks, metasomatic changes, geophysical and geochemical search criteria, atmo-chemical criteria, geomorphological features, tectonic breccias, and calcite veins. The above criteria can be used for large-scale forecasting and prospecting, and will allow identifying the most favourable sites to localise the mineralisation. The whole set of direct and indirect signs should be used in forecasting and prospecting works. Each of them, taken separately, cannot serve as a reliable and unambiguous search criterion of karst mineralisation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The paper provides comparative characteristics geodynamic situations and of related intrusive series. Discussed are cases of alternation of such granitoids in time, their connection in space and relation to collisional processes. I-granites form extended gabbro-diorite-granodiorite-sodium and potassium-sodium granite series with gradual increase of the role of silica and potassium in the final products. Differences in the petrochemical composition of pre- and late collision of I-granites are conditioned by the subcrustal situations of their origin. S-granites are characterized by a more silica-rich composition, shorter differentiation range, higher potassium content, lower iron and calcium contents, and lithophilic geochemical specialization. Their variations are conditioned by the composition of the crustal protolith. Studying both of them is important for prognostic and exploratory purposes. Cases of vertical intrusive sequence of the Dzungar Alatau, Northern Tien-Shan and West Balkhash region showed the role of collisional intra-crustal chambers, not connected with the mantle, during the main stages of their development. Formation of I-granites alternating with the collisional ones is associated with periodic inflow of increasingly more alkaline mantle melts to the crustal level together with the background of deepening of magma generation centers. Respectively, the chalcophilic metallogeny of orogenic complexes alternates with the lithophilic collisional one. Currently, the granitoids of our planet are divided by origin into oceanic (O), island-arc (M), orogenic (I), collision (S) and intraplate (A). The first two types are found in a small volume in the composition of ophiolite and gabbro-diabase associations. Orogenic granitoids are more widespread. Orogenic granitoids form chains of batholiths - marginal continental volcanoplutonic and plutonic belts. The differences in the petrochemical composition of I-granites are primarily due to the depth of nucleation of their melts. S-granites include a series of formations: tonalite-granodiorite, granodiorite-granite, granite, leucogranite, diorite-granodiorite, granosyenite. These formations were studied in detail by the team of geologists VSEGEI. For S granites, the limits of fluctuations of the Fe3 ratio were determined: Fetot = 0.15-0.25 and Al2O3 / CaO + Na2O + K2O = 1.0-1.25., The content of small and radiogenic elements. Recently, in three regions (Northern Tien Shan, Dzhungarskiy Alatau and Western Balkhash), we have identified the conditions for the formation of collision and orogenic intrusive complexes of Kazakhstan. With these works, the Kurdish-Chatyrkul, Zaili, Kungei, Altynemel, Topar, and Muzbel complexes are assigned to the I-granites of the gabbro-diorite-granodioite suprasubduction type. Saryzhas and Baskan complexes represent granodiorite-granite collision formation. The Useksky and Kaspansky, Ketmensky and South Dzungarian belong to the Late Collisional diorite-granodiorite formation, the Zheltau, Kalbin and Lepsinsky are representatives of the granite formation of the main stage of the collision. Leukogranitic subcollisional formation belongs to the Chimbulak, Achiktash, Maykul, Sarybulak and Talgar complexes. Their mineral and petrochemical variations are due to the composition of the crustal protolith. Using the studied vertical intrusive rows as an example, we show the role of collision intracrustal foci that are not associated with the mantle during the main stages of their development. The formation of I-granites, often alternating with collision S-granites, is associated with the periodic entry of basaltic melts or their differentiates to the crustal level. The study of collisional and orogenic granitoid complexes is important in a prognostic-search relationship. Super-subduction series are associated with pyritepolymetallic ore objects; copper-porphyry and gold-polymetallic objects are known with collisional manifestations of tonalite-granodiorite and diorite-granodiorite formations. The granite formation is known as rare-metal bearing, while its batholiths occurring in terrigenous deposits have tin-tungsten specialization, while the synchronous massifs in graywackes are molybdenum-bearing. Leucogranite intrusions of the Talgar complex type are accompanied by rare-earth manifestations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The last century is characterized by rapid development of cities, agglomerations and urban areas. Urban space needs to serve a variety of human needs: housing, working, social interaction, leisure, and mobility of persons and goods. Human beings also need nature within their living areas; green spots for recreation and relaxation. Trees, parks and other greenery helps provide healthy living conditions by cleaning the air of pollutants, absorbing noise, and regulating humidity. Beyond this direct anthropocentric (human-centred) perspective, conservation of natural habitats is necessary for maintaining the functioning of ecosystems of all life on earth. Spatial planning of urban territory is the basis where are created buildings, street location, park system and others. Kazakhstan’s major cities were built in 20’th century during Soviet period. Capacity of the territory, streets, buildings were expected for 1960-ies. Accordingly, nowadays urban area is not ready to fulfil the modern needs of citizens. The aim of this paper is to provide information on transportation system of Almaty city in Kazakhstan, the environment condition, impact of transportation on ecology and to disseminate experiences in dealing with relationships between land-use structures and transport, and to discuss strategies to support the realization of more sustainable urban transport by land-use planning. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The paper presents the results of the study of the formation and accumulation of heptyl in wild plants from soil, contaminated by rocket fuel, at the sites of emergency falling of «Proton-M» launch vehicles in Central Kazakhstan. It has been experimentally proved that certain concentrations of heptyl in gray-brown sandy soils are not phytotoxic for Agropyron pectiniformee (1-5 mg/kg) and Artemisia dracunculus L. (1-25 mg/kg), however it can cause anatomical morphological changes of roots and leaves. The revealed signs increase with an increase in the dose of contamination of the soil by heptyl above 25 mg/kg. The obtained experimental data are intended for further development of environmental standards for chemical contamination of plants by rocket fuel components. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The dehumification of soils in the North Kazakhstan region is one of the most pressing problems due to the inadequate control of the cultivation technology of agricultural crops with the intensive occurrence of soil erosion. This paper considers the processes of dehumification of humus by the main types of soils in the North Kazakhstan region. The results of the research have demonstrated that humus in soil types has been decreased in 30 years from 1.78% to 30.2% since 1978 to 2018. The content of humus in 9 types of soils of 14 districts range from 1.83% to 11.5%. The mechanical composition of soils is divided as loamy-soils and heavy-loamy, medium-loamy and friable sub-sand, and sandy loam. The processes of dehumification of gumus are directly related to the soil types, mechanical composition and vegetation of steppe zone, and technology of cultivation of agricultural crops in agriculture. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

From 1994 to the present, records of deformations of the Earth’s crust, which are measured by a laser displacement meter, called “deformograph”, are regularly recorded. This meter records changes in the distance between the mirrors fixed on the rock inside the mountain gallery in two directions: North-South and West-East. Such observations are carried out in the Gorny Altai region, in Kazakhstan and near Lake Baikal. One of the long-acting deformographs is installed in the gallery of the Talaya seismic station in the Baikal Rift Zone (BRZ). Records of deformations (deformograms) are analyzed to study the processes in the Earth's crust and to identify the forerunner of earthquakes. The work was done on systematization of digital records of the deformation process for the period from 1994 till now. A digital catalog has been compiled giving a general idea of the material available for processing. Records are analyzed in detail. The analisys of the signal is very important for the choice of the noise filtering method and other decisions for the accurasy increasing and informative significansy of the collected data. This paper reports the most interesting results of this analysis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The purpose of the investigation is to study environmental problems in the territory of South Kazakhstan and the state of drinking groundwater. In this paper, we consider environmental problems on the territory of 4 regions of Kazakhstan (South Kazakhstan, Zhambyl, Almaty, Kyzylorda), in particular, the city of Taraz, Shymkent and Almaty, through which the Great Silk Road passed. All these cities belong to the most ecologically polluted cities of the Republic of Kazakhstan. In the South Kazakhstan region (SKR), 3 geographical areas are conventionally distinguished from the point of view of environmental interests: 1. The territory of the ecological pre-crisis state is an increased content of radionuclides in objects of the natural environment, and, above all, in groundwater. 2. The territory of a powerful technogenic impact. In the town of Kentau there are areas of high soil contamination with heavy metals. In the city of Shymkent the main source of concerns is the soils affected by lead, zinc and arsenic in concentrations 10 times higher than the MPC. This affects large spaces and, in particular, the territories allotted for growing vegetable crops. 3. The rest of the region is under moderate anthropogenic impact. SKR is one of the six environmentally unfriendly regions of Kazakhstan, and the city of Shymkent is among the three cities most polluted by motor vehicle emissions, which emissions account for more than 70% of the total gross emissions. The level of air pollution is high, the atmospheric pollution index (API) = 10.6. The increase in emissions of pollutants into the atmosphere is mainly associated with the development of construction, an increase in the number of vehicles, poor quality of motor fuel, non-compliance with environmental standards, unresolved issues of production and consumption waste disposal. In the increase in emissions of pollutants into the atmosphere, the main share was made by manufacturing enterprises; their share in total emissions was 76.9%, enterprises producing and distributing electricity, gas and water - 8.3%, other industries - 14.8 The largest air pollutants are concentrated in the city of Shymkent, where a large number of mobile and stationary sources of emissions of harmful substances are functioning: from motor transport, emissions of which (on average 98 thousand tons per year) led to an increase in the maximum permissible concentrations for lead and formaldehyde [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

At present paper the results of chemical and radiochemical analysis of the environmental samples collected from the Shu river valley, are shown. The samples were collected along the Shu river from Tokmak town to Shu town during the field expedition, conducted in October, 2008, and in July, 2009. The main ions and uranium decay radionuclides in water increase up to maximum concentration in Tasotkel reservoir. The biogenic elements analysis showed their typical concentration for arid zone. The water contaminations with compounds of phosphorus, silicon, ammonium and nitrate ions are also shown. The activity of uranium isotopes is lower than the values corresponding to the "The norms of radiation safety" series [1]. The uranium concentration values are changing from 7.9 to 39.2 µg l-1 (Tasotkel reservoir) along the Shu river. This is in 2.5 times higher than the WHO level (15 µg l-1) [2]. The concentrations of uranium decay radionuclides are lower than the normative levels, corresponded by "The norms of radiation safety" series. The calculated value of effective doses, received from drinking water are near limited levels. The uranium isotopes is the main dose source. For chemical characterization of soils and sediments RFA and for mineral composition of soils and sediments the RPA respectively were done. The main mineral determined by above methods is quartz, spars, mica, tiff and peach. The levels of uranium and thorium determined in the soil samples are high. The increased levels of uranium and thorium are the result of regional specialization of the ores, containing the radioactive elements. The concentrations of determined isotopes in soils are higher than the concentrations in the sediments owing to the presence of organogenic component in them. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Gemstones inspired people since the very beginnings of humankind due to their esthetic nature and as a symbol of lasting value and social superiority. Precious and decorative stones from the East Kazakhstan Region are known in this area of Central Asia since the early prehistory. The most precious among the Kazakhstan gemstones - emeralds - were processed by the factories in the Urals in the 16th-19th Centuries. Among other well-known non-metallic minerals there are sapphires, topazes and tourmalines, mostly occurring in the NE part of the territory. Local agates and chalcedony are largely represented by hand-made articles. There are also varieties of high-quality quartz and many other kinds of decorative stones, including the famous Altai jasper. The traditional position of local gemstones has changed with their modern application in science and technology. On contrary, demands for the local natural stones and their use for jewelry and artistic goods/souvenirs has dropped sharply due to the increasing introduction of synthetic stones to the World markets and their mass-scale and cheap production. Yet, the traditionally most precious gemstones have been stable in the people's value ranking, also as a form of a financial investment. Comparing to other countries, the East Kazakhstan precious stone deposits are still poorly known and only locally exploited. The national industrial application of the Kazakhstan hardest minerals is multi-facetted. Diamonds are widely used for cutting and polishing of other hard materials; rubies and sapphires are largely synthetic and applied in high-precision medical and other technical instruments. Quartz from the Altai region is employed in high-tech implements in radioindustry, optics, etc. Finally, varieties of agates and chalcedonies are used in production of detail parts of electronic precision balances and other measurement tools. Yet, for a genuine art and jewelry, the precious stones still remain as the basic, irreplaceable and eternal material in which achievements of human inspiration are permanently retained. In spite of the immense mineral riches, the East Kazakhstan gemstones industry is still largely limited to small-scale and almost exclusively locally operating mining activities. The major natural potential of precious non-metallic minerals justifies new prospection activities for the gemstone-hosting mineral ore deposits that are currently carried out, promising a revival of the once flourishing Central Asian gemstone trade and economy. The paper provides a short overview of (semi-) precious and decorative non-metallic minerals of the East Kazakhstan provenance and their future exploration in terms of their predictive depositional ore distribution and industrial applications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Easily dispersible clay layers are meet in some oil and gas fields of Kazakhstan. Such clays of near wellbore zone swell and cause tight hole and cavings under the influence of watermud filtrate while drilling. These problems result considerable loss of time and increase of drilling operations costs. An effective method to prevent clay swelling is the use of drilling fluids. Their structure, among other components, includes inhibitors, which reducenear wellbore zoneclay dispersibility, and stabilizers, that prevent coagulation of thedrilling fluid under the action of the inhibitor carried by those drilling fluids. Aim of the work - to find optimal drilling fluid composition for drilling conditions in Kazakhstani oil and gas fields, according to criteria of effective prevention of clay swelling at minimum costs. The paper contains results of laboratory and industrial research in quantitative and qualitative effects of reagents on the operating parameters of the drilling fluids. The methods, which can reduce drilling fluid costs significantly by using less expensive reagents, have also found their justification in this article. Thus, a significant step forward was done in solving the problem of drilling shale rocks. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Great Altai is a large complex transboundary geosystem linking border areas of four states - Russia, Kazakhstan, China and Mongolia. Along with such indices as life quality and the level of economic development, ecological risk is an important factor of sustainable development of the territory as well. The paper gives the analysis of an environmental risk structure presented as a set and a ratio of individual components or their series. It is characterized by strong spatial variability and multivariant nature. For Great Altai, basic types of territories were established based on two options of the structure. In option A, the quality problems of natural geosystems' change caused by anthropogenic factors (e.g. pollution, depletion and degradation) were selected as the components of the structure, whereas in option B it is the series «duration of anthropogenic and natural impact (permanent and pulsed) - natural or man-made object». The discussed options reflect a great heterogeneity in the Great Altai territory and allow to consider thoroughly the issues of the transboundary geosystem for solving the problems of inter-state and inter-regional management in the field of environmental policy of border states [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper considers the technology of efficient planning of targeted survey of longitudinal objects from the spaceship UK-DMC2 taking into account basic requirements to the orders of satellite operator. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The papers describes of the technologies of mosaics construction on the geospatial satellite-based images to minimize image differences in the output mosaic of territory of Kazakhstan on the example of Landsat, Resourcesat-1 and UK-DMC2 data. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The wealth of the bowels of Kazakhstan has not yet been exhausted, there are promising areas that are currently insufficiently studied, especially at depth. The reason for the insufficient knowledge of geological structures in depth is the lack of a theoretical basis for geological research and justification for the forecast of prospect for minerals. In this regard, geology faces the question of creating a scientific approach for predicting new prospect areas, especially at depth. Our analysis shows that the principles of plume tectonics can serve as such a theoretical scientific basis for predicting promising areas and setting up prospecting work on them. To identify new prospecting areas in promising areas, we used materials from Earth remote sensing of the in combination with field geological and geophysical work. To verify the geophysical anomalies, mapping and exploration wells were drilled, which confirmed the prospects of the anomalies for further geological research. Practical testing of the reliability of the proposed theoretical base was carried out on a new promising area and the presence of porphyry copper mineralization was established, which could not be detected by traditional methods of geological research used in Kazakhstan. Research work, which revealed new porphyry copper occurrences, was carried out on a promising area within the Eastern Balkhash region. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Air pollution in Almaty is one of the major problems of a large and growing city. Poor air quality has a direct negative impact on human health. In general, air pollution consists of particulate matter, BTEX, phenol and its derivatives, and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons. PAHs are characterized by their high bioaccumulation capacity, carcinogenic and mutagenic properties. The main source of PAHs in the air is transport (more than 80%). The accumulation of PAHs in air of Almaty is due to poor air circulation because of temperature inversions caused by the location of the city in close proximity to the mountains. It is very important to use powerful analytical tools and techniques when determining a complex mixture of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons in ambient air. Gas chromatography coupled with mass spectrometry is one of the most reliable and accurate methods of analysis nowadays. As a result, a method for the determination of PAHs by GC/MS in the air of Almaty, taking into account climatic characteristics of the city, was optimized, recommendations for further monitoring of ambient air in the city to control the content of PAHs were given, and also a quantitative determination of these hazardous air pollutants was carried out. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The purpose of this paper is to describe a new method of leaching refractory ore with complex leaching solution consists of various chemical substances on the basis of liquid culture heterotrophic bacteria Pseudomonas aureofaciens. The usage of this complex solution was resulted in considerable noble metals solution increase with a little time of leaching. Experiments were planed with the method of mathematic planning. Quantum-chemical counts have shown stability of metal complexes Mvb been created in this solution system. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The purpose of this report is to show possible ways to improve the information access for societies in developing countries possessing significant mineral reserves and mining industries, which considerably affect the welfare of national economies and population. The research methodology is based on the provisions of official regulatory documents, methods for processing and analyzing statistical data related to the subject of the research, demonstration of the results characterizing the state and dynamics of the investigated system as well as scientific generalizations of the results obtained during the research. Its main conclusions contain recommendations aimed at increasing the information content, visualization and persuasiveness of data characterizing the operation of the basic industries in countries with economies dependent on mineral resources. Kazakhstan is such a country, which is among the top ten countries in the world that have various mineral reserves and a highly developed mining industry. The results of operation of the oil and gas, mining, metallurgical and energy complexes and the outlooks for their operations are of great interest to the most active part of the population, affect the moods and personal plans of people and processes in society. Moreover, the completeness, reliability and visualization of information characterizing the activities of basic sectors of economy are of great importance. The report contains the results of a structural-dynamic analysis of impact of these sectors on the state and development trends of the economy of Kazakhstan during the years 2010-2019. The source of information was the state statistics posted on the open source website of the Committee on Statistics of the Ministry of Economic Development of the Republic of Kazakhstan. The analysis of these data made it possible to identify and demonstrate the main trends in the development of basic sectors, which society should be able to access, understand and be aware of. The high stability of the existing economic structure of Kazakhstan served as the basis for the assumption that it would possibly remain such at least in the near future. However, due to the global crisis and a sharp change in the situation, this assumption should be reviewed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The chemical composition of 122 samples of snow cover(collected during 2018-2020) was measured for the representative points of the Almaty agglomeration(AA). Mean values of acidity show the absence of large-scale processes of acidification of snowfall over the study area. The analysis of the temporal variations of these parameters indicates their relative stability. The high values of suspended solids are characteristic of the mountainous territory, the Almaty city, including in the area of large highways.The concentration of organic substances (by permanganate oxidizability) varied over a wide range from 3.90 to 12.6 mgO/dm³. Their greatest values are recorded in the core of the agglomeration and the smallest were in the mountainous part.The average salinity of snow cover is 111 mg/dm³ and it has a sodium bicarbonate composition throughout the agglomeration. The low salinity of the snow cover was observed in the southwestern part of the agglomeration, as well as most of the Almaty city,while the flat territory is characterized by higher salinity values.The maps of the determined indicators (using ARCGIS) provided an opportunity to assess the distribution of the chemical composition of the snow cover over the Almaty agglomeration and to identify foci of their high levels for the entire research period. It is important to monitor pollution of the snow cover annually, especially in urban areas, as pollutants enter the landscape with its melting. This study can be used to develop strategic planning and policies to control air pollution. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Rapid development of residential housing in Kazakhstan entails an increase in the consumption of thermal energy and, accordingly, carbon dioxide emissions into the atmosphere. According to the Department of Statistics, only in 2019, 41,415 individual and 1,746 multi-apartment residential buildings became operational in the country of the total living area of 13,133.8 thousand square meters. Providing that all built houses comply with energy efficiency requirements of Kazakhstan, the introduction of new housing has increased the consumption of thermal energy by about 1,557 gigawatt-hours. If all these buildings were heated by natural gas, annually emissions into the environment would be about 380 thousand tons of CO2, fuel oil - 500, electricity − 650 thousand tons. Especially difficult situation is in the Almaty region, there is intensive and rapidly developing construction, which leads to pollution of the region by emissions of thermal energy production. In order to analyse the possibilities of reducing heating energy consumption and CO2 emissions, statistical data on the construction of residential buildings in the Almaty region over the past years were collected. The efficiency of conversion of different types of energy into the thermal energy production was evaluated in calculation of CO2 emission. Using reference single-apartment and multi-apartment buildings 4 sets of measures to reduce the thermal energy consumption in buildings were modelled by reducing heat loss through the building envelope and using different more efficient heating and ventilation systems. Carbon dioxide emissions were calculated due to the annual increase in housing area regarding different buildings energy efficiency options and used primary energy sources. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

With the development of space and information technology, emergency monitoring using satellite data is gaining tremendous relevance. If we take into account the area of the Republic of Kazakhstan (2.7 million km2 ), there is an urgent need to create a unified space monitoring system for the most priority natural and man-made disasters. This article discusses the space monitoring system, its composition and functional diagram of the basic elements of the system and remote access services to the resources and results of the space monitoring system. The composition of the information support of the system, its formats and sources, the frequency of updates are described. The basic structure of the geoportal, namely the subsystem for collecting satellite and ground data, a database, processing and expert interpretation, integration and dissemination of monitoring data, is briefly explained. The whole cycle of space monitoring work is described for each priority area, from obtaining raw data to uploading emergency monitoring data to the geoportal in Kazakhstan, including operational data from space monitoring of forest and steppe fires, GPS monitoring of intense movements of the earth's crust, space monitoring of floods, space monitoring oil pollution of the Caspian Sea. Given the short explanation of the geoportal interface. The created system is the only source of operational information to alert not only authorities in emergency response, but also ordinary citizens of the country. In addition, one of the unique capabilities of the system is not only the receipt of the above information, but also the provision of users with various tools that allow them to conduct their own analysis and generate reports using graphs and charts based on monitoring results. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The global development of science and technology encourages many countries to use their own modern coordinate systems, determined on the basis of satellite measurements. At the same time, the modern system should be characterized by its openness and unity for the entire territory of the country. One of the main problems arising in the creation and operation of its own high-precision positioning satellite systems in the Republic of Kazakhstan are the lack of domestic satellite equipment, specialized software and test methods for the software and hardware complex. A unique opportunity appeared in the development and testing of the software and technical complex of the high-precision satellite positioning system at the Kacharsky pit with funding of the Science Committee of the Ministry of Education and Science of the Republic of Kazakhstan through grants for scientific and technical projects for 2018– 2020 and co-financing of the private partner JSC «SSGPO». The work is carried out by the Institute of Mining named after D.A. Kunayev together with the Institute of Space Technique and Technology. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Groundwater in the territory of Kazakhstan is present in very diverse hydrogeological conditions and is subject to powerful human impact. First of all, it is manifested in groundwater pollution. Basic sources of groundwater pollution are gaseous, liquid and solid substances and production wastes of mining and gas and oil producing complexes industrial enterprises, agricultural facilities, cities and large population centers, large dumps of production, domestic and radioactive wastes etc. They cause habitat degradation and cause harm to population health, which remains the most acute environmental problem of today. Oil fields of Kazakhstan are situated in Aktobe, Atyrau, West-Kazakhstan, Kyzylorda and Mangistauregions. They are situated in desert zone which is subdivided into subzones of northern and typical deserts with brown and grey-brown desert soil. Based on monitoring results, sites of groundwater pollution with oil-products are related to the territories of oil fields, pumping stations on oil pipelines, gas transmission stations on gas-main pipelines, territories of crude oil and oil-products storages. Pollution can also be observed beyond the territories of oil production. In the process of hydrocarbon material development, natural hydrogeological conditions are violated under the impacts of anthropogenic factors, including violation of groundwater deposits conditions as the result of oil fields production activities. It should be noted that infiltration pollution directly through surface deposits is possible not only for ground aquifer, but also for head water due to its low natural protection in natural conditions of Kazakhstan. When oil-products ingress soil, pollutants can distribute along its surface with land runoff, and can also migrate through aeration zone to groundwater. In turn, after ingression into groundwater, oil-products in free form, in the form of so-called “lenses” and in dissolved form migrate with groundwater. Groundwater polluted with oil-products represents a high hazard in case of its ingression into surface water bodies and aquifers used for water supply. In case of water saturation with oil-products, their content may considerably exceed MPCs. Hazard of pollution with oil for groundwater quality increases due to the fact that natural water has very limited capabilities of auto-purification. Water-saturated rock almost does not sorb petroleum matters from water solutions. Therefore even relatively low quantity of oil can be a source of great pollution and persist for a long time. Cleaning of environment from pollutions related to hydrocarbon raw material development is a crucial objective for the republic, which can be achieved in particular the expert system for oil-products polluted geological environment rehabilitation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article presents the results of the studies (in 2018 and 2019) of the level of accumulation of polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) – the most toxic compounds from the number of persistent organic pollutants (POPs) in the snow cover (SC) of the territory of Almaty agglomeration, area of about 940 thousand hectares. The contamination of PCB SC has been established, especially in urban areas and adjacent to large industrial hubs. In snow samples up to 29 individual PCB congeners are identified, which is an indicator of the presence of various sources of pollution of these pollutants of the region’s natural environment. In samples of snow with a wide spectrum of congener composition, strictly controlled «marker» (indicator) and highly toxic dioxin-like congeners are registered. The main sources of PCB contamination in the agglomeration area are identified. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The study of the structure and formation of shores is now modern issue, both in the assessment of their morphology and the ecological conditions of the steppe zone of Kazakhstan. The article reflects a structure of abrupt bank of Northern Kazakhstan rivers in conjunction with the soil adjacent to it. The authors believe that the intrasoil runoff has not been taken into account so far due to the presence of both soil genetic cracks and high permeability of humidified moisture to "puffy" fouling. Therefore, there should be researched water consumption on the shores with addition and accounting of individual moisture fractures that have percolated through the inter-cracked space, and the share of humidified "puffy" sweat. The consequence of this is the formation of "visors" on steep areas, as well as a noticeable deepening in the places where cracks exit to the face of the precipices. Correct perception of the structure and functioning of the soil, emerging to the river bed, will lead to definitions and accounting of quantitative indicators for the volume of moisture and salts associated with the section of the bed of landscape components. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The aim of this study is to develop the mechanical chemical process for the preparation of modified sorbents from glauconite with the addition of sodium dihydrogen phosphate (NaH2PO4), and to determine their physical, and chemical properties. Structural and morphological characteristics, physical, and chemical properties of the Sokolov-Saribay glauconites the Republic of Kazakhstan were identified. The effect of mechanical treatment on the structure and composition of glauconite and the effect of additive salt on the properties of the sorbent were studied. Glauconite and glauconitic concentrate were used as main materials. The mixture of glauconite and sodium dihydrogen phosphate with different composition (1:1, 2:1, 3:1, 4:1) were modified structurally by thermal annealing, and were mechanically activated in a planetary mill in order to obtain the sorbent. Mechanically activated products were evaluated by different methods. The differences of glauconite and modified glauconite were observed by TG and DSC. The degree of sorption for Mn2+, Cu2+, Ni2+ and Zn2+ were analyzed as solutions of MnSO4, CuSO4, NiSO4 and ZnSO4 in concentrations of 60 to 1000 mg/l and decreased from Zn2+ (α=94.9%) > Mn2+(86.2%) > Cu2+(85.6%) > Ni2+(48.9%). The practical use of the modified glauconite could be applied in development technologies for cleaning of natural water of heavy metals. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this study sequential extraction has been used to determine the solid partitioning of uranium isotopes in soil and sediment samples collected from the Shu river valley, Kazakhstan. The sequential extraction results obtained for the Kamyshanovskoe peat deposit clearly show that most of uranium (92%) is in the reversible bound fraction, obtained by treatment with NH4Ac, NH2OH.HCI and H2O2, indicating high mobilization potential of uranium in the peat. The soil from Karasu village and Tasotkel pond showed a different pattern compared to Kamyshanovskoe and considerably higher proportions were observed in the tightly bound and sparingly soluble fractions and is about 76% and 37% respectively. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Time series analysis always helps to estimate the rate and nature of changes. SAR Interferometry is capable of generating topography and to observe movement of ground deformation on oilfields. Classic ground methods of surface deformation allow to take a point's measurement and the data is interpolated over the area. The development of SAR technology allows getting areal displacement on the whole territory of the selected object. For Kazakhstan the hydrocarbon extraction is a priority direction and a large percentage of government revenue. Long and intensive hydrocarbons extraction leads to man-made impacts. One of the main geodynamic phenomenons here is the ground surface deformation. These articles summarize the results of surface subsidence on the territory of Tengiz oilfield in western Kazakhstan by using PSINSAR techniques. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Complex uranium ores of Kazakhstan are a potential raw source of gold and RRE, for example, scandium. Experimental researches on opening of ores various leaching systems are spent. It is shown, that uranium accompanying metals can be extracted in solutions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]