Proppants

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Fracking in the U.S.
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Proppants are natural or human-made solid materials, such as sand grains or ceramic materials. They are mixed with frac fluid and used to keep (or prop open) fractures during hydraulic fracturing (also known as fracking). Natural proppants are mined, washed, and dried before they are used during fracking. Ceramic and other human-made proppants are crushed and shaped into round pellets, which are then dried and placed into a kiln. Proppants are selected for their ability to facilitate the flow of oil and natural gas through the frac fluid into a oil or gas well. ^[1][2][3]

Background

During unconventional oil and natural gas production (production that uses technology such as hydraulic fracturing to force petroleum or natural gas from the ground and up through a well), frac fluid containing mainly water and proppants is injected into subterranean rock formations at high pressure. This activity produces a fracture network that allows crude oil and natural gas inside dense rocks to flow into a well and be extracted at the surface. The proppants in the fluid are used to used to keep (or prop open) fractures. Proppants can include naturally occurring sand particles as well as human-made ceramic materials and resin-coated sand.^[2][4][5]

Proppants are chosen for the following characteristics:^[2][5]

• Size: Different proppant sizes are chosen depending on the condition of the rock formations to be fractured.
• Shape: The circular shape of a proppant allows hydrocarbons (the main component of oil and gas) to flow from a formation into a well. Proppants with angles or sharp corners cannot create enough space for oil and gas to flow out of a rock formation.
• Conductivity: Conductivity is the ability of a proppant to facilitate or allow the flow of hydrocarbons from rocks into a well.
• Crush resistance: Proppants are chosen for their ability to withstand pressure applied by a reservoir so they maintain their conductivity.
• Acid solubility: Some materials in frac fluid may be acidic; as a result, operators select proppants that do not dissolve in more acidic frac fluids.

Fracking overview

See also: Fracking

Hydraulic fracturing, also known as fracking, is a method of oil and natural gas extraction. The process involves injecting fluid into subterranean rock formations at high pressure. The high-pressure fluid produces a fracture network that allows crude oil and natural gas inside dense rocks to flow into a wellbore and be extracted at the surface. The fluid (known as frac fluid) contains between 98 percent and 99.5 percent water and sand; between 0.5 percent and 2 percent of the fluid is composed of chemical additives, which are used to stop the growth of microorganisms, prevent well casing corrosion, increase the rate at which the fluid is injected, and reduce pressure, among other things.^[6]

According to the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA), there were approximately 23,000 hydraulically fractured wells in the United States in 2000. In 2015, the United States contained approximately 300,000 hydraulically fractured wells, accounting for 67 percent of U.S. natural gas production and 51 percent of U.S. crude oil production.^[7][8][9]

See also

Footnotes

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