Hydraulic Fracking

By: Brandon Sherk

Thesis
When performed correctly, hydraulic fracking is the
most effective method of extracting natural gas and oil
because it is environmentally safe and efficient.

How it works
First a hole is drilled straight down with water based fluids for cooling not to far
after the aquifer.
After the hole is drilled a steel casing is put down the hole then cement is pumped
down the casing and flows out the bottom of the casing and up the sides of the
casing to create a barrier between the pipe and the groundwater to protect from
contamination.
Then after the casing is put in place the well is continued to be drilled, in pa these
wells are drilled anywhere from 7000 to 10000ft to the kickoff point where the hole
is then drilled horizontal to whatever distance desired.
Then a steel casing is inserted the entire length of the well bore then again
cemented.
Drilling rig is then removed then a perforated gun is put down the well to the very
end of the well then fired putting holes in the casing and the cement and rocks.
these perforations are only inches in size and done miles underground so has no
disturbance to the surface.

How it works

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Then a mixture of mostly sand and water are sent down the well
with a mixture of chemicals ranging from 0.1 to 0.5 of the total
amount of liquid mostly for lubrication. The water is sent down
under high pressure with sand that fractures the rock to relieve the
oil or gas in the rock when the pressure is relieved the sand keeps
the pores open for continues flow of the oil or gas.
After this is done a plug is sent down to stop the flow so that the
fracturing process can be done down the horizontal pipe the whole
length which can be several miles.
Then the isolation plugs are drilled out so that production can begin
first some of the frack fluid flows out then the oil or gas.
This whole process can take anywhere from three to five months

Water used
70 to 140 billion gallons of water are used each year.
this amount of water is used by 40 to 80 cities with
population of 50,000 people.
Two to five million gallons of water requires 1400 truck
trips.

Frack Fluid

Frack fluid is comprised of 99.5% water then the rest is

added chemicals for lubrication.
Each well includes around 5000 gallons of added chemicals
Out of the frack fluid put in 15 to 50% is recovered and
either recycled or disposed of according to regulations.

Chemicals in Frack fluid

The list chemicals include
hydrochloric acid- highly corrosive acid
Chloride-type of electrolyte
Polyacrylamide-acrylic resin that is soluble in water
Ethylene Glycol- moderately toxic used in antifreeze.
Sodium/Potassium carbonate- white salt used to make soap and
glass.
Glutaraldehyde- organic compound used in medical and dental
equipment.
Guar Gum- made from guar seeds
Citric Acid- natural preservative
Isopropanol- rubbing alcohol

disposal of the fluid

Fluid Pits- lined pits made out of clay or synthetic
materials and some states have regulations on how
close it is stored near surface water.
Fluid recycling- through the use of filtration and reverse
osmosis it is possible to recycle and as technology
increases more will be able to be recycled.
Injection Wells- Currently the most effective ways of
disposing of the frack fluid which involves injecting the
fluid deep underground in porous rock either sandstone
or limestone or beneath the shallow soil layer.

Pros
The first pro is because of hydro fracking one well can cover a huge area
underground so less wells are needed to be drilled so above ground is less
affected.
Hydro fracking if done correctly is much safer to the environment then
other means of collecting natural gas or oil.
This is also a big contributor to the job market it has created 1.7 million
direct and indirect jobs.
very productive way of getting two of our major energy source in the U.S
oil and natural gas.
Farmers that were on the brink of bankruptcy now get large royalties for
drilling on there property and get them out of bankruptcy which also helps
them increase there yield which helps our food bank. Not only farmers get
royalties but other land owners so more are benefited by the drilling.

Cons
The first con is that some companies are known to use chemicals that are very
toxic to humans and the environment.
The second con is that companies not disposing of properly by putting in pits that
the frack fluid can leak out of getting into our water.
Another con is by leaving these frack fluids in pits even if it don't absorb into the
ground the chemicals can still evaporate into the air.
Another con is that a large number of water is used to frack and the water used is
now toxic because of the chemicals added.
Some companies have even been known to pump into old oil wells though this
may sound like a good idea to put the chemicals way underground in these old oil
wells these steel casing may have rusted out and the after 100 years may have
leaks that allows frack fluid into our ground water causing major problems.
Companies also are know to use old oil wells to store natural gas which can again
leak into our ground water.

 Conclusion
Marcellus shale drilling is one of the most controversial
ways of getting fossil fuels but if done right should not
be controversial if America wants to keep heating their
homes or cooking their food or drive their car. Then until
we run on renewable ways of energy this is the best
way to get the natural gas or oil with least
environmental impact that powers America and most of
the world.

sources

references
#1 EPA. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://www2.epa.gov/hydraulicfracturing
#2 Hydraulic Fracturing of Oil & Gas Wells Drilled in Shale. (n.d.). Retrieved from
http://geology.com/articles/hydraulic-fracturing/
#3 Hydraulic Fracturing: The Process. (n.d.). Retrieved from
https://fracfocus.org/hydraulic-fracturing-how-it-works/hydraulic-fracturing-process
http://www.earthmagazine.org/article/naturally-occurring-methane-found-groundwaternew-york
http://instituteforenergyresearch.org/analysis/hydraulic-fracturing-sav
ed-consumers-248-billion-last-year/
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VY34PQUiwOQ