scholarly journals Pore Scale Numerical Modelling of Geological Carbon Storage Through Mineral Trapping Using True Pore Geometries

2022 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ryan L. Payton ◽  
Yizhuo Sun ◽  
Domenico Chiarella ◽  
Andrew Kingdon
Keyword(s):  
Carbon Storage ◽  
Preferential Flow ◽  
Pore Network ◽  
Diffusion Reaction ◽  
Pore Geometry ◽  
List Type ◽  
Pore Scale ◽  
Geometry Model ◽  
Mineral Trapping ◽  
The Impact

Abstract Mineral trapping (MT)is the most secure method of sequestering carbon for geologically significant periods of time. The processes behind MT fundamentally occur at the pore scale, therefore understanding which factors control MT at this scale is crucial. We present a finite elements advection–diffusion–reaction numerical model which uses true pore geometry model domains generated from $$\upmu$$ μ CT imaging. Using this model, we investigate the impact of pore geometry features such as branching, tortuosity and throat radii on the distribution and occurrence of carbonate precipitation in different pore networks over 2000 year simulated periods. We find evidence that a greater tortuosity, greater degree of branching of a pore network and narrower pore throats are detrimental to MT and contribute to the risk of clogging and reduction of connected porosity. We suggest that a tortuosity of less than 2 is critical in promoting greater precipitation per unit volume and should be considered alongside porosity and permeability when assessing reservoirs for geological carbon storage (GCS). We also show that the dominant influence on precipitated mass is the Damköhler number, or reaction rate, rather than the availability of reactive minerals, suggesting that this should be the focus when engineering effective subsurface carbon storage reservoirs for long term security. Article Highlights The rate of reaction has a stronger influence on mineral precipitation than the amount of available reactant. In a fully connected pore network preferential flow pathways still form which results in uneven precipitate distribution. A pore network tortuosity of <2 is recommended to facilitate greater carbon mineralisation.

The impact of porosity on organic matter cycling in a two-dimensional porous medium 

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Hanbang Zou ◽  
Pelle Ohlsson ◽  
Edith Hammer
Keyword(s):  
Porous Medium ◽  
Organic Matter ◽  
Carbon Sequestration ◽  
Soil Carbon ◽  
Pore Network ◽  
Pore Scale ◽  
Decomposition Of Organic Matter ◽  
Organic Matter Cycling ◽  
The Impact

&lt;p&gt;Carbon sequestration has been a popular research topic in recent years as the rapid elevation of carbon emission has significantly impacted our climate. Apart from carbon capture and storage in e.g. oil reservoirs, soil carbon sequestration offers a long term and safe solution for the environment and human beings. The net soil carbon budget is determined by the balance between terrestrial ecosystem sink and sources of respiration to atmospheric carbon dioxide. Carbon can be long term stored as organic matters in the soil whereas it can be released from the decomposition of organic matter. The complex pore networks in the soil are believed to be able to &quot;protect&quot; microbial-derived organic matter from decomposition. Therefore, it is important to understand how soil structure impacts organic matter cycling at the pore scale. However, there are limited experimental studies on understanding the mechanism of physical stabilization of organic matter. Hence, my project plan is to create a heterogeneous microfluidic porous microenvironment to mimic the complex soil pore network which allows us to investigate the ability of organisms to access spaces starting from an initial ecophysiological precondition to changes of spatial accessibility mediated by interactions with the microbial community.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;Microfluidics is a powerful tool that enables studies of fundamental physics, rapid measurements and real-time visualisation in a complex spatial microstructure that can be designed and controlled. Many complex processes can now be visualized enabled by the development of microfluidics and photolithography, such as microbial dynamics in pore-scale soil systems and pore network modification mimicking different soil environments &amp;#8211; earlier considered impossible to achieve experimentally. The microfluidic channel used in this project contains a random distribution of cylindrical pillars of different sizes so as to mimic the variations found in real soil. The randomness in the design creates various spatial availability for microbes (preferential flow paths with dead-end or continuous flow) as an invasion of liquids proceeds into the pore with the lowest capillary entry pressure. In order to study the impact of different porosity in isolation of varying heterogeneity of the porous medium, different pore size chips that use the same randomly generated pore network is created. Those chips have the same location of the pillars, but the relative size of each pillar is scaled. The experiments will be carried out using sterile cultures of fluorescent bacteria, fungi and protists, synthetic communities of combinations of these, or a whole soil community inoculum. We will quantify the consumption of organic matter from the different areas via fluorescent substrates, and the bio-/necromass produced. We hypothesise that lower porosity will reduce the net decomposition of organic matter as the narrower pore throat limits the access, and that net decomposition rate at the main preferential path will be higher than inside branches&lt;/p&gt;

Analyzing the Dynamics of Mineral Dissolution during Acid Fracturing by Pore-Scale Modeling of Acid-Rock Interaction

SPE Journal ◽  
2021 ◽  
pp. 1-14
Author(s):  
Jiahui You ◽  
Kyung Jae Lee
Keyword(s):  
Numerical Model ◽  
Multiphase Flow ◽  
Scale Model ◽  
Pore Scale ◽  
Acid Rock ◽  
Rock Interaction ◽  
Acid Fracturing ◽  
Geometry Model ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Pore Scale Model

Summary Hydrochloric acid (HCl) is commonly used in acid fracturing. Given that the interaction between acid and rock affects multiphase flow behaviors, it is important to thoroughly understand the relevant phenomena. The Darcy-Brinkman-Stokes (DBS) method is most effective in describing the matrix-fracture system among the proposed models. This study aims to analyze the impact of acid-rock interaction on multiphase flow behavior by developing a pore-scale numerical model applying the DBS method. The new pore-scale model is developed based on OpenFOAM, an open-source platform for the prototyping of diverse flow mechanisms. The developed simulation model describes the fully coupled mass balance equation and the chemical reaction of carbonate acidizing in an advection-diffusion regime. The volume of fluid (VOF) method is used to track the liquid- and gas-phase interface on fixed Eulerian grids. Here, the penalization method is applied to describe the wettability condition on immersed boundaries. The equations of saturation, concentration, and diffusion are solved successively, and the momentum equation is solved by pressure implicit with splitting of operators method. The simulation results of the developed numerical model have been validated with experimental results. Various injection velocities and the second Damkohler numbers have been examined to investigate their impacts on the CO2 bubble generation, evolving porosity, and rock surface area. We categorized the evolving carbon dioxide (CO2) distribution into three patterns in terms of the Damkohler number and the Péclet number. We also simulated a geometry model with multiple grains and a Darcy-scale model using the input parameters found from the pore-scale simulations. The newly developed pore-scale model provides the fundamental knowledge of physical and chemical phenomena of acid-rock interaction and their impact on acid transport. The modeling results describing mineral acidization will help us implement a practical fracturing project.

scholarly journals Carbon Dynamics in the Northeastern Qinghai–Tibetan Plateau from 1990 to 2030 Using Landsat Land Use/Cover Change Data

2020 ◽  
Vol 12 (3) ◽  
pp. 528 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jingye Li ◽  
Jian Gong ◽  
Jean-Michel Guldmann ◽  
Shicheng Li ◽  
Jie Zhu
Keyword(s):  
Land Use ◽  
Tibetan Plateau ◽  
Carbon Storage ◽  
Sharp Decrease ◽  
Total Carbon ◽  
Qinghai Lake ◽  
Lake Basin ◽  
Ecosystem Carbon ◽  
Trade Offs ◽  
The Impact

Land use/cover change (LUCC) has an important impact on the terrestrial carbon cycle. The spatial distribution of regional carbon reserves can provide the scientific basis for the management of ecosystem carbon storage and the formulation of ecological and environmental policies. This paper proposes a method combining the CA-based FLUS model and the Integrated Valuation of Ecosystem Services and Trade-offs (InVEST) model to assess the temporal and spatial changes in ecosystem carbon storage due to land-use changes over 1990–2015 in the Qinghai Lake Basin (QLB). Furthermore, future ecosystem carbon storage is simulated and evaluated over 2020–2030 under three scenarios of natural growth (NG), cropland protection (CP), and ecological protection (EP). The long-term spatial variations in carbon storage in the QLB are discussed. The results show that: (1) Carbon storage in the QLB decreased at first (1990–2000) and increased later (2000–2010), with total carbon storage increasing by 1.60 Tg C (Teragram: a unit of mass equal to 1012 g). From 2010 to 2015, carbon storage displayed a downward trend, with a sharp decrease in wetlands and croplands as the main cause; (2) Under the NG scenario, carbon reserves decrease by 0.69 Tg C over 2020–2030. These reserves increase significantly by 6.77 Tg C and 7.54 Tg C under the CP and EP scenarios, respectively, thus promoting the benign development of the regional ecological environment. This study improves our understanding on the impact of land-use change on carbon storage for the QLB in the northeastern Qinghai–Tibetan Plateau (QTP).

scholarly journals Using Satellite Data for CBRN (Chemical, Biological, Radiological, and Nuclear) Threat Detection, Monitoring, and Modelling

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Gary Sutlieff ◽  
Lucy Berthoud ◽  
Mark Stinchcombe
Keyword(s):  
Satellite Data ◽  
Meteorological Data ◽  
Atmospheric Composition ◽  
Chemical Detection ◽  
List Type ◽  
Data Types ◽  
Wide Range ◽  
Future Technologies ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Near Future

Abstract CBRN (Chemical, Biological, Radiological, and Nuclear) threats are becoming more prevalent, as more entities gain access to modern weapons and industrial technologies and chemicals. This has produced a need for improvements to modelling, detection, and monitoring of these events. While there are currently no dedicated satellites for CBRN purposes, there are a wide range of possibilities for satellite data to contribute to this field, from atmospheric composition and chemical detection to cloud cover, land mapping, and surface property measurements. This study looks at currently available satellite data, including meteorological data such as wind and cloud profiles, surface properties like temperature and humidity, chemical detection, and sounding. Results of this survey revealed several gaps in the available data, particularly concerning biological and radiological detection. The results also suggest that publicly available satellite data largely does not meet the requirements of spatial resolution, coverage, and latency that CBRN detection requires, outside of providing terrain use and building height data for constructing models. Lastly, the study evaluates upcoming instruments, platforms, and satellite technologies to gauge the impact these developments will have in the near future. Improvements in spatial and temporal resolution as well as latency are already becoming possible, and new instruments will fill in the gaps in detection by imaging a wider range of chemicals and other agents and by collecting new data types. This study shows that with developments coming within the next decade, satellites should begin to provide valuable augmentations to CBRN event detection and monitoring. Article Highlights There is a wide range of existing satellite data in fields that are of interest to CBRN detection and monitoring. The data is mostly of insufficient quality (resolution or latency) for the demanding requirements of CBRN modelling for incident control. Future technologies and platforms will improve resolution and latency, making satellite data more viable in the CBRN management field

scholarly journals Does agricultural intensification cause tipping points in ecosystem services?

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Stephen C. L. Watson ◽  
Adrian C. Newton ◽  
Lucy E. Ridding ◽  
Paul M. Evans ◽  
Steven Brand ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Ecosystem Services ◽  
Agricultural Intensification ◽  
Spatial Dynamics ◽  
Policy Option ◽  
List Type ◽  
Tipping Points ◽  
Software Models ◽  
Non Linear ◽  
Study Interval ◽  
The Impact

Abstract Context Agricultural intensification is being widely pursued as a policy option to improve food security and human development. Yet, there is a need to understand the impact of agricultural intensification on the provision of multiple ecosystem services, and to evaluate the possible occurrence of tipping points. Objectives To quantify and assess the long-term spatial dynamics of ecosystem service (ES) provision in a landscape undergoing agricultural intensification at four time points 1930, 1950, 1980 and 2015. Determine if thresholds or tipping points in ES provision may have occurred and if there are any detectable impacts on economic development and employment. Methods We used the InVEST suite of software models together with a time series of historical land cover maps and an Input–Output model to evaluate these dynamics over an 85-year period in the county of Dorset, southern England. Results Results indicated that trends in ES were often non-linear, highlighting the potential for abrupt changes in ES provision to occur in response to slight changes in underlying drivers. Despite the fluctuations in provision of different ES, overall economic activity increased almost linearly during the study interval, in line with the increase in agricultural productivity. Conclusions Such non-linear thresholds in ES will need to be avoided in the future by approaches aiming to deliver sustainable agricultural intensification. A number of positive feedback mechanisms are identified that suggest these thresholds could be considered as tipping points. However, further research into these feedbacks is required to fully determine the occurrence of tipping points in agricultural systems.

128 Development of an M1-polarized, non-viral chimeric antigen receptor macrophage (CAR-M) platform for cancer immunotherapy

2020 ◽  
Vol 8 (Suppl 3) ◽  
pp. A141-A141
Author(s):  
Yumi Ohtani ◽  
Kayleigh Ross ◽  
Aditya Dandekar ◽  
Rashid Gabbasov ◽  
Michael Klichinsky
Keyword(s):  
Cancer Immunotherapy ◽  
Chimeric Antigen Receptor ◽  
Scale Up ◽  
Antigen Receptor ◽  
Innate Immune ◽  
List Type ◽  
M1 Phenotype ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Anti Tumor Activity ◽  
Immunosuppressive Factors

BackgroundWe have previously developed CAR-M as a novel cell therapy approach for the treatment of solid tumors.1 CAR-M have the potential to overcome key challenges that cell therapies face in the solid tumor setting – tumor infiltration, immunosuppression, lymphocyte exclusion – and can induce epitope spreading to overcome target antigen heterogeneity. While macrophages transduced with the adenoviral vector Ad5f35 (Ad CAR-M) traffic to tumors, provide robust anti-tumor activity, and recruit and activate T cells, we sought to identify a robust non-viral method of macrophage engineering in order to reduce the cost of goods, manufacturing complexity, and potential immunogenicity associated with viral vectors.MethodsAs innate immune cells, macrophages detect exogenous nucleic acids and respond with inflammatory and apoptotic programs. Thus, we sought to identify a means of mRNA delivery that avoids recognition by innate immune sensors. We screened a broad panel of mRNA encoding an anti-HER2 CAR comprising multiplexed 5’Cap and base modifications using an optimized and scalable electroporation approach and evaluated the impact of interferon-β priming on CAR-M phenotype and function.ResultsWe identified the optimal multiplexed mRNA modifications that led to maximal macrophage viability, transfection efficiency, intensity of CAR expression, and duration of expression. Non-viral HER2 CAR-M phagocytosed and killed human HER2+ tumor cells. Unlike Ad CAR-M, mRNA CAR-M were not skewed toward an M1 state by mRNA electroporation. Priming non-viral CAR-M with IFN-β induced a durable M1 phenotype, as shown by stable upregulation of numerous M1 markers and pathways. IFN-β priming significantly enhanced the anti-tumor activity of CAR but not control macrophages. IFN-β primed mRNA CAR-M were resistant to M2 conversion, maintaining an M1 phenotype despite challenge with various immunosuppressive factors, and converted bystander M2 macrophages toward M1. Interestingly, priming mRNA CAR-M with IFN-β significantly enhanced the persistence of CAR expression, overcoming the known issue of rapid mRNA turnover. RNA-seq analysis revealed that IFN-β priming affected pathways involved in increasing translation and decreasing RNA degradation in human macrophages.ConclusionsWe have established a novel, optimized non-viral CAR-M platform based on chemically modified mRNA and IFN-β priming. IFN-β priming induced a durable M1 phenotype, improved CAR expression, improved CAR persistence, led to enhanced anti-tumor function, and rendered resistance to immunosuppressive factors. This novel platform is amenable to scale-up, GMP manufacturing, and represents an advance in the development of CAR-M.ReferenceKlichinsky M, Ruella M, Shestova O, et al. Human chimeric antigen receptor macrophages for cancer immunotherapy. Nat Biotechnol 2020;38(8):947–953.

scholarly journals Research on the impact of ship traffic flow on the restricted channel segment of the middle Yangtze River based on traffic wave theory

2021 ◽  
Vol 3 (8) ◽  
Author(s):  
Ting Liu ◽  
Gabriel Lodewijks
Keyword(s):  
Traffic Flow ◽  
Flow Rate ◽  
Flow Simulation ◽  
Wave Theory ◽  
Flow Density ◽  
List Type ◽  
Ship Traffic ◽  
Traffic Wave ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Channel Segment

Abstract Abstract On the basis of the influence of dry season on ship traffic flow, the gathering and dissipating process of ship traffic flow was researched with Greenshields linear flow—density relationship model, the intrinsic relationship between the ship traffic congestion state and traffic wave in the unclosed restricted channel segment was emphatically explored when the ship traffic flow in a tributary channel inflows, and the influence law of multiple traffic waves on the ship traffic flow characteristics in unclosed restricted segment is revealed. On this basis, the expressions of traffic wave speed and direction, dissipation time of queued ships and the number of ships affected were provided, and combined with Monte Carlo method, the ship traffic flow simulation model in the restricted channel segment was built. The simulation results show that in closed restricted channel segment the dissipation time of ships queued is mainly related to the ship traffic flow rate of segments A and C, and the total number of ships affected to the ship traffic flow rate of segment A. And in unclosed restricted channel segment, the dissipation time and the total number of ships affected are also determined by the meeting time of the traffic waves in addition to the ship traffic flow rate of segments. The research results can provide the theoretical support for further studying the ship traffic flow in unclosed restricted channel segment with multiple tributaries Article Highlights The inflow of tributaries' ship traffic flows has an obvious impact on the traffic conditions in the unenclosed restricted channel segment. The interaction and influence between multiple ship traffic waves and the mechanism of generating new traffic waves are explained. The expression of both dissipation time of queued ships and the total number of ships affected in the closed and unclosed restricted channel segment are given.

scholarly journals Antibiotics at birth and later antibiotic courses: effects on gut microbiota

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sofia Ainonen ◽  
Mysore V Tejesvi ◽  
Md. Rayhan Mahmud ◽  
Niko Paalanne ◽  
Tytti Pokka ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Gut Microbiota ◽  
Control Group ◽  
List Type ◽  
Antibiotic Exposure ◽  
Microbiota Composition ◽  
Long Term Effects ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Antibiotic Courses ◽  
Gut Microbiota Composition

Abstract Background Intrapartum antibiotic prophylaxis (IAP) is widely used, but the evidence of the long-term effects on the gut microbiota and subsequent health of children is limited. Here, we compared the impacts of perinatal antibiotic exposure and later courses of antibiotic courses on gut microbiota. Methods This was a prospective, controlled cohort study among 100 vaginally delivered infants with different perinatal antibiotic exposures: control (27), IAP (27), postnatal antibiotics (24), and IAP and postnatal antibiotics (22). At 1 year of age, we performed next-generation sequencing of the bacterial 16S ribosomal RNA gene of fecal samples. Results Exposure to the perinatal antibiotics had a clear impact on the gut microbiota. The abundance of the Bacteroidetes phylum was significantly higher in the control group, whereas the relative abundance of Escherichia coli was significantly lower in the control group. The impact of the perinatal antibiotics on the gut microbiota composition was greater than exposure to later courses of antibiotics (28% of participants). Conclusions Perinatal antibiotic exposure had a marked impact on the gut microbiota at the age of 1 year. The timing of the antibiotic exposure appears to be the critical factor for the changes observed in the gut microbiota. Impact Infants are commonly exposed to IAP and postnatal antibiotics, and later to courses of antibiotics during the first year of life. Perinatal antibiotics have been associated with an altered gut microbiota during the first months of life, whereas the evidence regarding the long-term impact is more limited. Perinatal antibiotic exposure had a marked impact on the infant’s gut microbiota at 1 year of age. Impact of the perinatal antibiotics on the gut microbiota composition was greater than that of the later courses of antibiotics at the age of 1 year.

scholarly journals Anomalous Laterally Stressed Kinetically Trapped DNA Surface Conformations

2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Valery V. Prokhorov ◽  
Nikolay A. Barinov ◽  
Kirill A. Prusakov ◽  
Evgeniy V. Dubrovin ◽  
Maxim D. Frank-Kamenetskii ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Electrostatic Interaction ◽  
Mechanical Response ◽  
Persistence Length ◽  
Strong Impact ◽  
List Type ◽  
Surface Charges ◽  
Monomolecular Films ◽  
Chain Approximation ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Positively Charged

Highlights DNA kinking is inevitable for the highly anisotropic 1D–1D electrostatic interaction with the one-dimensionally periodically charged surface. The double helical structure of the DNA kinetically trapped on positively charged monomolecular films comprising the lamellar templates is strongly laterally stressed and extremely perturbed at the nanometer scale. The DNA kinetic trapping is not a smooth 3D—> 2D conformational flattening but is a complex nonlinear in-plane mechanical response (bending, tensile and unzipping) driven by the physics beyond the scope of the applicability of the linear worm-like chain approximation. Abstract Up to now, the DNA molecule adsorbed on a surface was believed to always preserve its native structure. This belief implies a negligible contribution of lateral surface forces during and after DNA adsorption although their impact has never been elucidated. High-resolution atomic force microscopy was used to observe that stiff DNA molecules kinetically trapped on monomolecular films comprising one-dimensional periodically charged lamellar templates as a single layer or as a sublayer are oversaturated by sharp discontinuous kinks and can also be locally melted and supercoiled. We argue that kink/anti-kink pairs are induced by an overcritical lateral bending stress (> 30 pNnm) inevitable for the highly anisotropic 1D-1D electrostatic interaction of DNA and underlying rows of positive surface charges. In addition, the unexpected kink-inducing mechanical instability in the shape of the template-directed DNA confined between the positively charged lamellar sides is observed indicating the strong impact of helicity. The previously reported anomalously low values of the persistence length of the surface-adsorbed DNA are explained by the impact of the surface-induced low-scale bending. The sites of the local melting and supercoiling are convincingly introduced as other lateral stress-induced structural DNA anomalies by establishing a link with DNA high-force mechanics. The results open up the study in the completely unexplored area of the principally anomalous kinetically trapped DNA surface conformations in which the DNA local mechanical response to the surface-induced spatially modulated lateral electrostatic stress is essentially nonlinear. The underlying rich and complex in-plane nonlinear physics acts at the nanoscale beyond the scope of applicability of the worm-like chain approximation.

scholarly journals Cyber operational risk scenarios for insurance companies

2019 ◽  
Vol 24 ◽  
Author(s):  
R. Egan ◽  
S. Cartagena ◽  
R. Mohamed ◽  
V. Gosrani ◽  
J. Grewal ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Cyber Security ◽  
Operational Risk ◽  
Social Engineering ◽  
Insurance Companies ◽  
List Type ◽  
Operational Risks ◽  
Life Insurer ◽  
Cyber Risk ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Over Time

AbstractCyber Operational Risk: Cyber risk is routinely cited as one of the most important sources of operational risks facing organisations today, in various publications and surveys. Further, in recent years, cyber risk has entered the public conscience through highly publicised events involving affected UK organisations such as TalkTalk, Morrisons and the NHS. Regulators and legislators are increasing their focus on this topic, with General Data Protection Regulation (“GDPR”) a notable example of this. Risk actuaries and other risk management professionals at insurance companies therefore need to have a robust assessment of the potential losses stemming from cyber risk that their organisations may face. They should be able to do this as part of an overall risk management framework and be able to demonstrate this to stakeholders such as regulators and shareholders. Given that cyber risks are still very much new territory for insurers and there is no commonly accepted practice, this paper describes a proposed framework in which to perform such an assessment. As part of this, we leverage two existing frameworks – the Chief Risk Officer (“CRO”) Forum cyber incident taxonomy, and the National Institute of Standards and Technology (“NIST”) framework – to describe the taxonomy of a cyber incident, and the relevant cyber security and risk mitigation items for the incident in question, respectively.Summary of Results: Three detailed scenarios have been investigated by the working party:∙Employee leaks data at a general (non-life) insurer: Internal attack through social engineering, causing large compensation costs and regulatory fines, driving a 1 in 200 loss of £210.5m (c. 2% of annual revenue).∙Cyber extortion at a life insurer: External attack through social engineering, causing large business interruption and reputational damage, driving a 1 in 200 loss of £179.5m (c. 6% of annual revenue).∙Motor insurer telematics device hack: External attack through software vulnerabilities, causing large remediation / device replacement costs, driving a 1 in 200 loss of £70.0m (c. 18% of annual revenue).Limitations: The following sets out key limitations of the work set out in this paper:∙While the presented scenarios are deemed material at this point in time, the threat landscape moves fast and could render specific narratives and calibrations obsolete within a short-time frame.∙There is a lack of historical data to base certain scenarios on and therefore a high level of subjectivity is used to calibrate them.∙No attempt has been made to make an allowance for seasonality of renewals (a cyber event coinciding with peak renewal season could exacerbate cost impacts)∙No consideration has been given to the impact of the event on the share price of the company.∙Correlation with other risk types has not been explicitly considered.Conclusions: Cyber risk is a very real threat and should not be ignored or treated lightly in operational risk frameworks, as it has the potential to threaten the ongoing viability of an organisation. Risk managers and capital actuaries should be aware of the various sources of cyber risk and the potential impacts to ensure that the business is sufficiently prepared for such an event. When it comes to quantifying the impact of cyber risk on the operations of an insurer there are significant challenges. Not least that the threat landscape is ever changing and there is a lack of historical experience to base assumptions off. Given this uncertainty, this paper sets out a framework upon which readers can bring consistency to the way scenarios are developed over time. It provides a common taxonomy to ensure that key aspects of cyber risk are considered and sets out examples of how to implement the framework. It is critical that insurers endeavour to understand cyber risk better and look to refine assumptions over time as new information is received. In addition to ensuring that sufficient capital is being held for key operational risks, the investment in understanding cyber risk now will help to educate senior management and could have benefits through influencing internal cyber security capabilities.

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