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on March 20, 2025
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Published on March 20, 2025– Updated on March 20, 2025
An experimental platform to study fluid-rock interactions
Supported by CY Initiative's Emergence program, the NEPII project has led to the creation of a unique experimental platform dedicated to studying clay minerals and their transformations under pressure and temperature. A key focus for research on natural resources and the energy transition.
CY Initiative : Could you introduce yourself and tell us more about your career and your main research themes?
Franck Bourdelle : I studied at the University of Poitiers, where I obtained a bachelor's and a master's degree in geology, specialising in the study of clay minerals. I then did an internship at IFPEN, where I went on to do a PhD, co-directed with ENS Paris. After that, I worked for two years as a contract teacher-researcher at CY Cergy Paris University, before doing a post-doc in Nancy at the University of Lorraine. I was then lucky enough to join the University of Lille as a lecturer. Finally, I've been a professor at CY Cergy Paris University for three years now.
Franck Bourdelle : I studied at the University of Poitiers, where I obtained a bachelor's and a master's degree in geology, specialising in the study of clay minerals. I then did an internship at IFPEN, where I went on to do a PhD, co-directed with ENS Paris. After that, I worked for two years as a contract teacher-researcher at CY Cergy Paris University, before doing a post-doc in Nancy at the University of Lorraine. I was then lucky enough to join the University of Lille as a lecturer. Finally, I've been a professor at CY Cergy Paris University for three years now.
CY Initiative : You won the CY Initiative's 2023 call for proposals. What does this project involve, and what is its objective?
Franck Bourdelle : The NEPII (New Experimental Platform for Investigating fluid-rock Interaction) project involves using an experimental approach to study the transformation and dissolution of clay minerals when they are subjected to external pressure and temperature constraints. Thanks to the Emergence programme, I was able to develop a study and experimental protocol in rock geochemistry that had never been used before at CY Cergy Paris Université in this form. We laid the foundations for this experimental platform at the GEC in 2024, with all the equipment needed to produce our first results, and we will continue to set it up in 2025 as part of the Paris Earth Sciences Institute (UMR7193), which the GEC joined on 1 January.
The aim is to gain a better understanding of how these minerals react to imposed pressure and temperature conditions, but also, conversely, to estimate the temperatures and pressures to which these rocks have been subjected over the course of their history. This work is crucial for several reasons: firstly, it provides us with valuable information for understanding the Earth system and its history (particularly the superficial part of the Earth's crust); secondly, it has implications for resource exploration at a time when energy and ecological transitions are becoming major objectives, And finally, it is essential for understanding the evolution of anthropised systems, such as the slag heaps from coal mines in the Nord Pas-de-Calais region, or the storage of radioactive waste underground (500 m deep, in the eastern Paris Basin), which will emit heat (90°C) and may affect the properties of clays.
CY Initiative : How did this project come about?
Franck Bourdelle : The roll-out is taking place in several stages. After receiving funding from the Emergence programme, I first had to find premises and we had to make some space in the laboratory. We then had to carry out the essential work of bringing the premises up to safety standards, as we are conducting experiments under pressure that can release gases. Only then could the most interesting part of the project begin, with the installation of the platform itself. First, I repatriated some of the platform equipment I had developed in Lille as part of my previous research, thanks to an agreement signed between the University of Lille and CY Cergy Paris University. I then updated and added to it. For example, we have new reactors that enable us to recreate all temperature conditions up to 350°C. In addition, we have measurement tools so that we can monitor the parameters throughout the experiment. We have reactors with valves that allow us to extract fluid or gas on a regular basis, and/or fitted with specific pH probes. We had to find probes that could withstand very high temperatures, which proved tricky. We plan to complete this experimental set-up with a variety of equipment to carry out tests on different types of clay minerals and their interactions with fluids.
CY Initiative : Why did you apply for this call for projects?
Franck Bourdelle : For this project to reach its full potential, we needed financial and logistical support that was fast and perfectly sized. This call for projects provides financial resources that are neither too little nor too much, enables us to obtain a response within 6 months, and encourages interdisciplinary collaboration, which is essential for enriching our approach. The CY Initiative funding was crucial in this respect, enabling us to carry out the NEPII project on a scale that I couldn't have envisaged otherwise. It has enabled us to create a genuine research ecosystem that benefits us all.
