Bridgmanite Deformation in the Earth’s Mid-Mantle is Likely Responsible for Seismically Defined Discontinuities, According to Study

    The main mineralogical phase in the Earth’s lower mantle is in the form of bridgmanite, which is intrinsically anisotropic and generates seismic anisotropy in actively deforming regions, including subduction zones. Structures observed at mid-mantle depths have unclear origins. According to a recent paper published in Nature Communications, a new model of these discontinuities is emerging:

“By coupling thermo-mechanical subduction models with pressure-dependent fabric calculations, we show that gradual slip transitions in bridgmanite with depth can manifest anisotropic discontinuities near 1000 km, which can deepen depending on the extent of accumulated deformation.”

“These results suggest that mid-mantle reflectors near subduction zones may be strain-induced, providing an additional mechanism that links mantle flow, mineral physics, and seismic observations.”

     Seismic anisotropy from crystallographic preferred orientation (CPO) of intrinsically anisotropic mantle minerals has long been recognized. This also occurs through deformation deep in the mantle. Slabs of rock subducting deep into the mantle are thought to be the source of the deformation and the anisotropic discontinuities.

     The figure below shows an anisotropic discontinuity due to the bridgmanite phase around a subducting slab. The anisotropy is due to the deformation resulting from the subducting slab. The yellow represents isotropic parts of the mantle.

 

References:

 

Mid-mantle discontinuities beneath subduction zones linked to depth-dependent deformation of bridgmanite. John Keith Magali, Sébastien Merkel, Angelo Pisconti, Jeffrey Gay, James Wookey & Christine Thomas. Nature Communications volume 17, Article number: 10494 (October 5, 2026). Mid-mantle discontinuities beneath subduction zones linked to depth-dependent deformation of bridgmanite | Nature Communications

Indian Institute of Technology Madras is Testing a Titanium Coating That Can Break Down Air Pollutants

     According to India Today, the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Madras is testing a titanium coating in the laboratory that breaks down air pollutants. In testing so far, it has broken down 30-70% of gaseous pollutants, with glass surfaces performing best. The coating does not break down particulate matter, which is the main pollutant of concern, only gaseous pollutants, but it has the ability to significantly improve overall air quality and lower the air quality index (AQI) number.

     Delhi’s air pollution is the worst in the fall and winter. Burning crop residues in late fall is a huge air quality problem.

“…the capital's Air Quality Index (AQI) stays above 300 on most days, climbing up to 800 and even higher on some days.”

     Temperature inversions often make the problem worse, concentrating pollutants lower to the ground where humans breathe.

“Somnath Chanda Roy of the IIT Madras' department of physics, who is working on the smog project, said the coating is a photocatalyst: when titanium dioxide absorbs light, it drives reactions on its surface that break down pollutant molecules coming into contact with it.”

“Applied to roads, building walls and glass facades, it would turn surfaces a city already has into ones that treat the air around them.”

     The gaseous pollutants that the titanium coating addresses include carbon monoxide, carbon dioxide, organic compounds such as aldehydes and alcohols, and nitric and nitrous oxides.

     Three surfaces that have been chosen to be coated are road tar, building paint, and glass. Many of the city’s office buildings are glazed with glass surfaces. As noted, it works best on these glass surfaces. The experiments include varying the catalyst thickness and pollutant concentrations.

     In the winter, the gaseous pollutants mix with particulates and make up a significant share of pollutants. The titanium coating technology does have limitations. One previous study showed that it works better in the lab than in real-world settings, cutting only a small amount of NOx pollutants.

"The technology can only be a complement to existing pollution controls and ideally lab tests should be followed by field tests," said an epidemiologist at the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS), New Delhi who studies pollution's health related impact.

“Meanwhile, Roy said a preliminary report had gone to the Delhi government in August, and testing continues. Officials will review the data first, after which a comprehensive report will lay out what works and what does not, Roy said.

  

 

References:

 

Delhi air crisis: Can IIT Madras' new surface coating offer a breath of relief?  India Today Health Desk. October 23, 2026. Delhi air crisis: Can IIT Madras' new surface coating offer a breath of relief?

All Lives Matter vs. Moral Progress is Illusory: Francis Fukuyama vs. John Gray on the Philosophy of Moral Progress

     In September, Jonny Thompson of Big Think interviewed two philosophers with differing views about human progress, specifically moral progress. I had come across the idea before that progress was a myth in the version put forth by modern-day Druid John Michael Greer, who argued that after fossil fuels run out (he was a big fan of peak oil theory), humans would revert to the days before they were used, presumably knocking us back into the 19^th century. It seemed like a stupid idea then and it still does now.

     Apparently, philosopher John Gray also thinks the idea of progress is an overblown myth. He said this to Thompson:

“If you go back to Greek drama or Shakespeare, or Hinduism or Buddhism, none of these assumptions are made about the future of mankind being potentially better than it’s ever been in the past. It’s a modern Western myth, and I would say it’s a kind of neo-Christian myth, because it comes about by secularizing certain Christian assumptions about sacred time, about human history being meaningful.”

     Now, I might agree that we are not automatically better off in terms of our morality, but as societies we have indeed become more compassionate in general, and we have come to tolerate less brutality and mistreatment of other humans and even of animals. To me, that is progress.

     Thompson summarizes Gray’s views on progress as follows:

1)        Progress is not the same as improvement. Progress means a cumulative advance that does not unwind over generations or centuries.

2)        In technology, we do make progress. The gains are cumulative and retained over millennia.

3)        In ethics and politics, though, gains are not cumulative — they unwind depressingly often.

Therefore: There is no such thing as progress in ethics and politics.

     Of course, I would not disagree that technological progress is the same as moral progress and also that moral progress can be less enduring and reversible. However, the data show that, in terms of full societies, the trajectory of moral progress has been steadily forward, with only occasional backslides. However, I disagree strongly with the last statement that there is no progress in ethics and politics. Simple observations like the abolition of slavery in most of the world without backsliding are clear examples. Gray stresses that moral progress is not permanent. Greer went further than Gray by suggesting that even technological progress is not permanent. While I concede that moral progress is not permanent, I would hedge my bets that backsliding will remain minimal and temporary.

     Thompson also mentions Hegel’s ideas about progress and those of Karl Marx as well:

“Marx argued that we can see a movement from something like despotism to feudalism to capitalism to socialism. Each was different from the one before, each a step better, and there was no “unwinding,” as Gray put it.”

     While Marx may have seen moral progress as always improving, his ideas of what is better than before are very wrong, in my opinion. Socialism is certainly neither the natural heir of nor an improvement over capitalism, although more equal distribution of wealth in general can be seen as an improvement. This is especially true for people in poverty. If we can get to the point where everyone has enough, even if for some it is just enough, it is a big improvement. Thompson says he agrees with Gray that moral progress is very precarious and traumatic events could easily revert us back to widespread immoral behavior. I don’t think that is the case. I think we are a bit stronger in our moral attitudes than that.

     In contrast, Francis Fukuyama argues that we are better than our ancestors, morally speaking. Thompson notes that people in the past, even in the 19^th century, once relished executions as perfectly natural and even sources of entertainment. We saw a potential backslide recently when Pete Hegseth tried to stage a public execution. The backlash against such a disgusting idea was swift and resulted in the idea being abandoned.

     Fukuyama argues that societies in the past accepted violence as necessary and in the public’s interest, and unfortunately a few today do as well (Russia, Iran, and North Korea come to mind). Those societies became desensitized to violence, which was normal. Fukuyama says that those societies saw the criminal and other outsiders as “below compassion” or somehow not deserving of it. They were not seen as moral subjects, he says.

     Fukuyama simply argues that our societal norms have changed. We no longer accept that some are not worthy of basic human compassion, even if they have done bad things. Thompson writes:

“Most people, in most of the world, think that other human beings are at least worth some moral consideration. 73% of people think human rights exist. Most of the countries in the world have abolished the death penalty. Four out of five people think that torture is wrong, no matter what. Today, it’s widely accepted that no one is valueless. And that, for Fukuyama, is progress.”

     Thompson asked Fukuyama whether we have the same moral responsibility to those further away from us. He responded that we don’t, not because those further are not deserving of it, but simply because, as a practicality, it’s psychologically implausible. We have stronger connections to the people closer to us, and we have tendencies to want to protect our loved ones more than those we don’t know.

     Fukuyama says the nation-state is a necessary institution that supports our societal moral progress. He talks about nation-states:

“They empower police forces and armies to protect the community, and those forms of power have to be territorially limited. If you have a police force that can arrest anybody anywhere in the world for a crime you deem to be a crime, you’re going to be living in a very, very chaotic world.”

     Thompson further explains Fukuyama’s position:

“In other words, we need jurisdiction. We need a workable political boundary we can defend and within which we can enforce the laws that society wants. To create a universal law or universal responsibility undermines the most functional unit of operation we have: the nation-state.”

     Of course, if we could somehow develop a world government acceptable to the vast majority, which is highly unlikely, that universal law and responsibility could work in theory.

     Thompson finishes with the following:

“But maybe Fukuyama is right to argue that moral progress is possible. The move from “some people matter” to “all people matter” is an important one. And even if that move goes up and down, forward and backward, it’s still a noticeable trend toward progress. Few people you speak to will say other humans don’t matter. Few people will write diaries about abusing other people.”

     Here, I am clearly in the Fukuyama camp. Fukuyama acknowledges Gray’s idea that moral progress is not more or less permanent like technological progress is, but also shows that moral progress is not only possible but has demonstrably occurred as the data show. There are fewer wars, less crime, fewer people left to die in disasters, fewer executions, less slavery, etc., on a more or less continual trajectory. Although all those horrible things still occur, they have diminished steadily.

     There is a practice in Buddhism known as Ton Len where one wishes, along with visualization, for all beings to be happy and free from suffering, beginning with those one is close to and extending further out to those one is not close to, and eventually to one’s enemies and those who may be dangerous to society. One might compare it distantly to Christian ideals to love one’s neighbor or enemy. Thus, in some of our religious and spiritual practices we extend compassion to (in the Buddhist version) ‘all sentient beings throughout space without exception.’ In other words: All Lives Matter.  

     

 

 

References:

 

Francis Fukuyama on why we’re better than our ancestors: Everyone matters. If you believe that, it’s a good sign. Jonny Thomson. Big Think. September 30, 2026. Francis Fukuyama on why we're better than our ancestors - Big Think

John Gray on why "progress" in politics is an illusion: In technology, we make cumulative advances that withstand time. Not so in politics and ethics, argues philosopher John Gray. Jonny Thomson and Big Think. Big Think. September 11, 2026. History shows that human progress is a myth

 

Angola’s Refinery Buildout, Fuel Subsidies, High Fuel Prices, and Economy Diversification

    This post is based on reporting by Intellinews. Significantly higher international fuel prices, complements of (depends on who you ask) Iran and Russia (I say), have led to estimates of a doubling of the cost of fuel subsidies in Angola to $4.16 billion in 2026. Angola imports over 80% of its refined fuels. It is a major producer of crude oil, producing about 1.05 MM barrels per day. They report that Angola’s newest refinery to come online has produced mainly naphtha and fuel oil for export rather than diesel. Output of diesel was only 14% of total output.

“Angola’s efforts to expand domestic refining have yet to substantially reduce its import dependence. The new Cabinda refinery exported about 86% of the refined products covered by its disclosed early sales data, mainly naphtha and heavy fuel oil, while supplying relatively little diesel domestically, as IntelliNews reported in September.”

     The next phase of the Cabinda refinery development is expected to add hydrocracking capacity and increase production of diesel and jet fuel. The Cabinda refinery is 90% owned by London-based emerging-markets investment group Gemcorp and 10% by state oil company Sonangol. It currently has the capacity to process 30,000 barrels of crude per day but is only processing about half of that. In future phases, it is expected to process 60,000 barrels per day.

     Another refinery under construction is the larger Lobito refinery. It is working on financing from China and Europe, with Sonangol taking some, and the nearby country of Botswana was in talks in March to take a stake of about 30% in the project. It is expected to be completed in July 2027 for phase one operations. It is expected to process 200,000 barrels per day. Plans for an associated petrochemical complex to produce fertilizer for domestic needs are in the works as well.

     As a major oil exporter, Angola is benefiting from higher oil prices, but its fuel subsidies are growing as well since it imports so much of its refined fuels.

     As in many places, once fuel subsidies are commonplace, people tend to fight to keep them.

“Angola began gradually withdrawing fuel subsidies in 2023, when a petrol price rise triggered deadly protests, and further increases remain politically sensitive. Unrest that followed a one-third rise in the diesel price to AOA400 per litre in July 2025 left 22 people dead, 197 injured and 1,214 arrested, according to the presidency.”

     Below, the country’s Secretary of State for Finance and the Treasury, Ottoniel dos Santos, stresses the need to keep fuel subsidy cuts gradual and to diversify its economy away from oil. Oil and gas derivatives like fertilizer, which could really help the country’s agricultural sector, are one means of diversification.

“We need to move not only with the subsidies removal, but also with the diversification of our economy,” dos Santos told Reuters. He said further price increases would remain gradual, given the risk of economic and social fallout. The government is also examining more targeted social assistance as an alternative to broad subsidies.

 

 

 

References:

 

Angola’s 2026 fuel subsidy bill could hit $4.16bn, more than twice budgeted amount. IntelliNews. October 19, 2025. Angola’s 2026 fuel subsidy bill could hit $4.16bn, more than twice budgeted amount

Angola's Cabinda refinery exports 86% of early sales as throughput ramps up. Brian Kennety. September 9, 2026. bne IntelliNews - Angola's Cabinda refinery exports 86% of early sales as throughput ramps up

Angola’s Lobito refinery 23% complete. Intellinews. January 15, 2026. bne IntelliNews - Angola’s Lobito refinery 23% complete

Poland is the Biggest Helium Producer in Europe: It is a Byproduct of Natural Gas Wells with Low Helium Concentrations

     In a recent article for GeoExPro, Mariël Reitsma explains how Poland is Europe’s biggest helium producer. The EU hopes to get 10% of its helium from member countries by 2030. She estimates that currently, 7-8% of the bloc’s helium comes as a byproduct of natural gas production in Poland. This comes from natural gas fields with low concentrations of helium, averaging about 0.4%. Constraints at the Strait of Hormuz, as well as possible damage to helium plants in Qatar, have severely constrained global helium supplies and caused prices to spike significantly. The EU used to get 40% of its helium from Qatar. Sanctions do not allow it to buy helium from Russia. Algeria and the U.S. now account for the bulk of its helium imports. She explains below why the low concentrations are produced, and the answers involve the necessity of denitrification of the natural gas, which makes helium easier to extract, and the simple need for it in the bloc.

“Poland achieves its high helium output because the country has made it mandatory for operators to evaluate the helium resources of a field if the concentration exceeds 0.2 vol.%. This has resulted in the assessment of 17 gas fields, giving a combined contingent helium volume of 24 Mm3.”

“However, 76% of Polish helium is actually produced from fields containing less than 0.2% helium. The reason is that the Polish national oil and gas company (Orlen) needs to denitrify the natural gas to raise the energy density, and having this process in place means that it is relatively straightforward to simultaneously capture helium.”

“All helium is produced from the Wielkopolska petroleum province in the west of the country. A study assessing a further 30 natural gas fields in the province has established 35 Mm3 in prospective helium resources.”

     She cites a national assessment published in 2025 that identifies helium resources and prospective areas in the country’s natural gas fields. The assessment relied on basement geology in relation to the fields. Helium is generated in basement rocks and migrates up into traps that mainly trap natural gas. The maps below show prospective areas.

     Other potential areas include Eastern Poland, where up to 10% helium has been found in aquifers, the Baltic coast of Germany, and aquifers in France, which tested at 0.33% helium, small but potentially significant.      

References:

 

Poland is the only serious helium supplier in the EU, but not because its subsurface is so special: Europe’s Critical Raw Materials Act stipulates that by 2030, 10 % of the EU’s helium consumption should be extracted by the member states themselves. An ambitious goal, given that the European Commission acknowledges that its proven reserves are only 0.2 % of the global proven volume. Mariël Reitsma. GeoExPro. September 14, 2026. Poland is the only serious helium supplier in the EU, but not because its subsurface is so special - GeoExpro

Helium deposits in Poland: exploration, discovery and resource potential in the light of the EU Critical Raw Materials Act (CRMA). Izabela Ługiewicz-Mołas and Katarzyna Rozkosz. Przegląd Geologiczny, vol. 73, no. 3, 2025. PG artykuły 03-2025.indb

French Riots Are Disappointing: Leftists and Islamists Have Brought Chaos and Destruction, Which Benefits No One

     It has been observed that the French protests initially involved students protesting school conditions such as dilapidated buildings, no air conditioning, crowded classrooms, and poor domestic economic conditions. However, it did not take long for it to become riots instigated by far-left political groups, migrants not fully integrated, Islamists, socialists and communists, anarchists, and even radical environmentalists, all of whom are adept at intense protesting. I have read some of the reactions from the political left about the riots. Some say it’s just the intense French tradition of protest: “The French will be the French,” as it's somehow in their blood to destroy things to make a point. California Rep. Ro Khanna called it an inspiring youth movement. Inspiring? More like the opposite, disheartening. Apparently, in Marseille, in the south of France, rioters targeted Jewish-owned shops and spared Muslim-owned shops. According to Steven Burg in the Washington Examiner:

“The French journalist Paul Amar, speaking on a national news channel, described what happened in Marseille with a clarity that ought to stop every reader in their tracks. "They came prepared," he said. The rioters arrived carrying the addresses of town halls along with the addresses of Jewish shop owners, according to Amar, and on one street in Marseille, every business owned by a Jew was set on fire while the shops run by Muslims on that same street were left untouched. A synagogue in Paris has been vandalized.”

     Khanna was one of a few Congresspeople who went to the West Bank without coordinating with Israeli authorities to drum up publicity about settler violence, which is certainly a legitimate concern. However, the destruction is on a smaller scale, and while there is racism and potential ethnic cleansing happening, the biggest problem is probably the IDF’s seeming complicity in some actions by not intervening and not punishing perpetrators enough. Hopefully that will change. The country needs to clamp down on settler violence. It has been noted that the IDF’s proactive attitude in the West Bank has effectively addressed violence on the Palestinian side, which has dropped in recent months, likely due to intimidation from the IDF in confronting it. The average Israeli sees the problem as overblown, but perhaps they should not see it that way because it makes those far-right racist citizens make the country look bad and give an opening for anti-Zionists to claim apartheid. Burg writes:

“When a sitting congressman flies halfway around the world to manufacture outrage against Jews while simultaneously cheering on the mobs torching Jewish shops in France, he reveals a set of priorities that is deeply and dangerously warped.”

I made the following spreadsheet to compare the French riot damages to the West Bank damages. It is crude but shows that the scale is much bigger in France.

     I have heard activist Naomi Klein’s reaction to the riots. She says that the heat from climate change is making schools unbearable for students. She does not mention the simple solution: air conditioning. France is a country that gets hot. Our buildings in America are generally all air-conditioned. It is not the heat from climate change that has killed European citizens but the lack of air conditioning and the irrational view against it. Other far-leftists are calling it the necessary globalization of the intifada against the powers in control.

     Migrants are heavily involved, as evidenced by the Algerian and Moroccan flag displays, but Palestinian flags are also very prominent. I don't think there is a huge Palestinian presence in France, but support for the Palestinian cause is huge, especially among the left. Some are saying the bad behavior of the far left will help far-right politician Marine Le Pen win elections in the spring.

"It's like we had a war," a 78-year-old resident in central Paris, Mehmet Ozeden, said amid burnt street barricades.

The capital experienced "a level of violence that we have never, I believe, seen before", Paris Deputy Mayor Lamia El Aaraje said.

     It should be noted that Paris is ruled by Macron’s center-left (by European standards, which would be fairly far left by American standards) government, which also includes far-left members and socialists. It makes me wonder what will happen if Le Pen wins.

     It was estimated that between 550,000 and 800,000 people participated in the protests. However, an estimated 5 million people participated in the 2025 No Kings protests in the U.S., with no significant violence or arrests reported. Thus, we are reminded that protests can be large and peaceful.

     Many schools were damaged in the protests early on, which makes one wonder about the logic of further damaging schools to protest damaged schools.  

     Some leftists blamed the government for failing to rein in the protests, but France has thousands of full-time riot police. A new effective riot tactic has been the burning of e-bikes, which produce large and toxic lithium-ion battery fires. ACAB, meaning “All Cops are Bastards,” is an anarchist slogan which is very popular in France. Thus, we have leftists blaming police for failing to keep the peace while at the same time calling them bastards and saying they are too heavy-handed. More twisted logic.

    Greta Thunberg, the climate darling who often dons Palestinian clothing and joins Hamas-funded flotillas, joined the protest. That cements the climate element as being part of the coalition, as it were. She inexplicably blamed the riots on police brutality:

"French students are out continuously facing extreme police brutality just for asking for their basic rights. And now it’s time for us to step up because they cannot carry this alone," Thunberg said. "They are showing the world, leading by example, what it looks like when young people are stepping up when the system at large is neglecting them systematically."

     A Fox News analysis identified 54 groups taking part in the protest, including communist parties, revolutionary socialist groups, labor unions, environmental activists, Muslim student advocates, Palestinian-solidarity organizations and international media outlets. Neville Roy Singham, a communist and protest donor who lives in China, runs a network that calls the protests Anti-Macron protests. If so, why were the 2025 anti-Trump protests in the U.S. more than five times as big without any violence? Maybe because the radical groups involved were limited? I’m sure some were involved, as protesting is their thing, but protesting without violence, vandalism, and upheaval is perhaps too boring for them. Feeble attempts have been made in left media to blame Trump for the riots. While he is no doubt using the riots to his political advantage, saying that he initiated them due to the resulting higher fuel and product prices since the Iran War constrained supplies is a very weak argument.

     Jonah Goldberg, in an article in the LA Times, thinks that France’s problems can best be solved by increasing its economic growth. His words are worth quoting at length:

“In short they argued, as they have for generations, that the government should spend more on pensions and other entitlements.”

“The problem is that France can’t afford it. It’s borrowed money to pay for its lavish government sector for a very long time. It has run consecutive budget deficits — i.e., took in less than it spent — for more than half a century. In 1974, public debt was around 15% of its gross domestic product. Today it’s at 116%. Government spending now makes up 57% of the GDP and France spends three times as much on “social protection” — including pensions and family benefits — as does the United States, and more than any other country in Europe and the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development.”

“Naturally, the blame for this sorry state of affairs, according to some supporters of the protests, is on capitalism. French economist Thomas Piketty says the country’s woes are the result of the state pursuing the “capitalist logic” of not investing enough in the public sector and not taxing the wealthy quite enough. In terms of personal income taxes alone — France has massive payroll and consumption taxes as well — the top 10% of French taxpayers provide 74% of the revenue. The top 1% provide a third. France also has the highest corporate tax rates of any OECD country.”

“I’m hard-pressed to see how just a bit more taxing and spending will solve France’s problems.”

     The question is perhaps why, in a country where the wealthy are paying their fair share, as are the corporations, and the government is providing good pensions from an early retirement age, are they complaining so much about austerity and want more government funding for more social programs? The average French retirement benefit amounts to about $2,300 per month. The U.S. average SS check is $2,086. Thus, there is some reason to suggest that retirees are perhaps doing too well. There have also been complaints about military spending as the whole of Europe must reckon with a lack of it during the years when Russia was not seen as a viable threat, but now, clearly, is.

     The bottom line is perhaps that “Fucking shit up” is neither a profound nor a useful social strategy for anyone. There are no benefits. Protests should be reserved for the most serious problems in society, not inconveniences and political disagreements. Things like civil rights, real oppression, and wanting real protection against danger are when they should be used. There should not be violence. Protests about basic economic conditions should be the most peaceful. The dangers of an overcrowded classroom or a leaking school roof are real but mild. The school heat is more legitimate, but air conditioning would solve that. Of course, that makes emissions, so the climate movement would not agree to it and would rather blame fossil fuel producers.

 

References:

 

Leftist media spin furiously on French leftist rioting. Tim Graham. Creators. October 20, 2026. Leftist media spin furiously on French leftist rioting

Goldberg: Abandoning capitalism won't save France. The US should pay attention. Opinion by Jonah Goldberg. Los Angeles Times. October 20, 2026. Goldberg: Abandoning capitalism won't save France. The US should pay attention

Greta Thunberg joins Paris protests, underscoring radical three-way alliance. Preston Mizell. Fox News. October 21, 2026. Greta Thunberg joins Paris protests, underscoring radical three-way alliance

Ro Khanna thinks torching Jewish businesses is an 'inspiring' youth movement. Steven Burg, Washington Examiner. October 20, 2026. Ro Khanna thinks torching Jewish businesses is an 'inspiring' youth movement

Emmanuel Macron denounces 'unbridled' violence in France as thousands arrested. ABC News. October 18, 2026. Emmanuel Macron denounces 'unbridled' violence in France as thousands arrested - ABC News

Tear gas in the metro. Shopkeepers weeping. Students defending the violence: Robert Hardman in Paris. Robert Hardman, Daily Mail. October 19, 2026. Tear gas in the metro. Shopkeepers weeping. Students defending the violence: Robert Hardman in Paris

Microbially Induced Calcite Precipitation (MICP): Soil Stabilization, Erosion Control, Heavy Metal Remediation, Liquefaction Mitigation, Self-Healing Concrete, and Wellbore Sealing

     This post is essentially a summary and review of a new paper published in Frontiers in Microbiology that reviews the process and applications of microbially induced calcite precipitation (MICP). The paper is an extensive review of MICP research. MICP offers an effective alternative to the use of Portland cement for soil stabilization. The process is also known as bio-cementing. The process is described below from the paper’s abstract:

‘The process utilizes the urease activity of ureolytic bacteria, most commonly Sporosarcina pasteurii to convert soluble urea and calcium to solid calcite in the pore space of granular media, providing cementation, impermeability reduction and contaminant sequestration without excavation or heat.”

     As the graphical abstract below shows, MICP has six distinct engineering applications: 1) soil stabilization, 2) self-healing concrete, 3) erosion control, 4) liquefaction mitigation, 5) wellbore sealing, and 6) heavy metal remediation. These are all very useful to societies. As the timeline in the graphic shows, commercial product development began in 2021.

     The Graphics below show the basic chemistry of MICP.

     Factors controlling MICP treatment efficiency include concentration of urea and calcium, temperature, soil pore structure, soil grain size, the number of cycles, and treatment time.

     The graphic below shows the maturity of each application, with soil stabilization being fully mature and CO2/wellbore sealing being the least mature application.

Soil Stabilization

     Early experiments in 2006 showed that MICP increased shear strength and stiffness in triaxial specimens of treated sand. Experiments in 2012 showed that:

“…multiple cycles of dilute treatment are more homogeneous in cementation than a single cycle of high concentration; this is relevant for the design of an injection strategy.”

     The table below shows the advantages in unconfined compressive strength (UCS) conferred by MICP.

Erosion Control and Dust Suppression

     MICP clearly aids erosion control by holding the soil substrate in place when exposed to water and wind. It also clearly aids dust suppression at construction sites, which can be problematic.

“…the low-viscosity treatment solutions percolate into sandy surfaces by gravity without equipment or excavation, while the resulting calcite crust is mechanically resistant, and hydrologically transparent (compared to a cement-based surface sealer).”

     MICP has been applied to coastal sandy slopes and employed along with vegetation. However, it was found that seeding must be delayed at least a few weeks after MICP is applied due to initially high ammonium levels, which inhibit germination. These dissipate after a few weeks.

 

Self-Healing Concrete

     MICP is an effective method of providing self-healing concrete. The activated bacterial spores can seal cracks in concrete. Hydrogel beads are utilized to keep the spores viable. The graphic below illustrates the process.

Heavy Metal Immobilization

     MICP deployed as bioremediation is proven to chemically immobilize heavy metal contaminants. One lab experiment showed:

“…98.3% lead and 85.4% cadmium removal within 48 h through MICP from contaminated soil matrices. The mixture exhibited synergistic benefits including enhanced urease activity, greater metal resistance, and increased calcite precipitation making it a more effective and sustainable bioremediation strategy for soils affected by mining and industrial activities.”

     The solidification of mine tailings is another application that immobilizes heavy metal transport.

 

Liquefaction Mitigation

     Soil liquefaction due to earthquakes has been an intense field of research for biocementation. Experiments in 2011 found that:

“…the liquefaction resistance of the indigenous ureolytic community could be stimulated in place to provide measurable increases in shear wave velocity.”

     However, they do note that denitrification has advantages over MICP in liquefaction mitigation, and that it is :

“…more practically viable at the target depths (usually 2–15 m) than ureolysis-based injection because it does not have the bacterial filtration limitation.”

 

Wellbore Sealing and CO2 Sequestration

     Carbonate mineralization has long been known as a carbon sequestration method. CO2 can be held in the cement as carbon in its chemical structure. Biocementation has emerged as a viable method of sealing abandoned wellbores, some of which are difficult to seal due to their aging and failing components. It can also be used in CO storage wells. For well sealing, biogenic calcite can plug microchannels of the previously cemented wellbores and annular voids that are leakage pathways.

Applications Summary

     The table below summarizes the applications of MICP.

 

Scale-Up Challenges and Recent Advances

     The main scale-up challenge in MICP is treatment uniformity.

“…preferential flow in a heterogeneous soil produces zones of over-treatment and untreated zones that are intrinsic to any of the injection-based techniques and more pronounced in the case of MICP as the biological reaction is spatially sensitive to the density of bacteria (Whiffin et al., 2007; Mujah et al., 2017; Fu et al., 2023).”

     The graphic below shows treatment uniformity and effective depths for different injection strategies.  

     Recent advances include novel microorganisms and alternative pathways, hybrid and composite MICP techniques, additive manufacturing and 3D bioprinting, and machine learning and data-driven optimization.

     They note that self-healing concrete is a more mature technology than the geotechnical applications of MICP. This is mainly because self-healing concrete can be manufactured in a controlled environment, while treating soil substrates involves dealing with the natural heterogeneity of soils. Relative technology readiness for applications of MICP is shown below.

References:

 

Microbially induced calcite precipitation (MICP): mechanisms, engineering applications, and pathway to field-scale deployment — a comprehensive review. Tao He, Jiaxing Chen, and Xiyan Lou. Shangqiu Normal University, Shangqiu, Henan, China. Frontiers in Microbiology. Microbiological Chemistry and Geomicrobiology. Volume 17 – August, 2026. Frontiers | Microbially induced calcite precipitation (MICP): mechanisms, engineering applications, and pathway to field-scale deployment — a comprehensive review

US EV Sales Drop After Incentives Discontinued: Europe Sales Grow for Several Reasons: US Hybrid and Used EV Sales Rose

       Right before the tax credits for new and used EVs expired on September 30, 2025, in the U.S., the share of EVs bought briefly climbed to 8.5% of all vehicles. So far in 2026, that share has dropped to about 6%, about 1 in 16.5 vehicles. Meanwhile, EV sales in Europe continue to grow for several reasons. Reason #1 is that there are many more models available in Europe, including compact models that I would call optimized for city driving.

     Reason # 2 is that more lower-cost models are available in Europe, with some under US $28,000. This has been aided by competition from Chinese models. Reason #3 is that the cost of gasoline and diesel, though currently high in the U.S., has remained much higher in  Europe than in the U.S. That is a big incentive. Diesel has averaged over $9 per gallon in the EU for a few years now. Options are limited in the U.S. for compact, inexpensive EVs. Reason #4 is that several European countries continue to offer tax breaks for EVs.

2026 EV Sales: US vs. Europe

     Chinese EVs are not likely to be sold in the U.S. anytime soon, so that knocks off more options for Americans. Some have argued that cheap Chinese models are of lower quality and that could be the case.

     Auto Evolution notes that in contrast, Americans have discovered the value of hybrids and responded. They have also been buying more used EVs, taking advantage of depreciation but also risking battery degradation:

“US hybrid sales rose a whopping 23 percent through the first three quarters of 2026, accounting for 15.6 percent of the overall market.”

“Promising better fuel economy than a conventional gas car without the need to plan around charging stops is the secret here. Used electric vehicles are finding buyers as well, with sales of used electric vehicles climbing 19 percent through September 2026. Reuters also notes that depreciation can make EVs particularly attractive, though battery health is a big problem for second-hand models.”

     They also note that so far this year Tesla sales dropped by 14% but Rivian sales rose by 29%. Ford EVs dropped by 68%, and General Motors EVs dropped by 43%, taking the biggest hits.

“Simply put, the used market offers the best clue that America's appetite for electric vehicles is still there. With used sales up 19 percent, it becomes clear that American drivers are willing to go electric as long as the price makes sense.”

 

   

 

References:

 

US EV share slid to 6% after tax credits ended, while Europe hit a record 23% with cheaper models. Shannon Germaine. The Cool Down. October 19, 2026. US EV share slid to 6% after tax credits ended, while Europe hit a record 23% with cheaper models

US EV Sales Sit at 6% While Europe Hits Record 23%: Back in September 2026, electric vehicles took nearly a quarter of Europe's new car market as opposed to a rather disappointing 6% in the United States. Mircea Panai. October 14, 2026. Auto Evolution. US EV Sales Sit at 6% While Europe Hits Record 23% - autoevolution