Essays on Hydraulic Fracturing

2016 is a general election year. One person will be chosen as the next president of the United States, and several others will be elected to the U.S Senate, and the U.S. House of Representatives. It is the first time in the history of the United States that a woman has been nominated for the highest office in the land. Many issues have come to the forefront of this election year, and several will be considered in the coming months by all states. Texas is no exception. This paper will explain the system of the Texas legislature, the issues ...

Introduction

The issue of hydraulic fracturing, also known as “fracking” an innovation how to extract natural gas from minerals such as shale rock has become very controversial as of recently in the United States. Large sections of the United States especially in the Northeast have lots of shale rock which has caused many oil and gas companies naturally to extract the region’s resources. This over time has caused many conflicts between the oil companies, local residents as well as local, state and federal authorities. Many people question how safe of a process fracking is and what are the unknown ...

Hydraulic Fracturing has revolutionized world oil and gas market. United States have dramatically increased oil and gas production due to the new fracturing technology was introduced, and has become an exporter of natural gas and oil. The effect of the hydraulic fracturing can be viewed in two perspectives: through a classic supply and demand theory and through the current situation in the international oil market. The results can be quite different. According to the classical theory, fracturing has increased the production of oil. Increased supply inevitably leads to price decrease. Furthermore, fracturing has decreased the cost of oil extraction, ...

Describe Fracking. (2 pts). Limited to 15 words. Fracking is the shorthand for hydraulic fracturing in which the combination of horizontal drilling and advanced hydraulic fracturing are utilized. Citation: California Fracking. "Companies Using Enhanced Oil Recovery." CA Frack Facts. N.p., 2005. Web. 3 May 2016. Identify a particular city, county, or region in California where FRACKING is occurring. (2 pts). Limited to 10 words. Richmond Citation: California Fracking. "Companies Using Enhanced Oil Recovery." CA Frack Facts. N.p., 2005. Web. 3 May 2016. Identify a particular company that is Fracking in California. (3 pts). Limited to 10 words. Chevron Citation: ...

Hydraulic fracturing or fracking is a process of oil and natural gas extraction from underground rock formations such as shale, by injecting a mixture of high-pressure water with chemicals and sand through a well drilled through various layers of earth (US Environmental Protection Agency [EPA], ES-1). Wastewater generated from fracking is usually concentrated with various pollutants, and has to be treated before disposal. Further as the hole is drilled through layers of earth, there is possibility of new contaminants entering the water table due to disturbance. Also, if groundwater is tapped in excess, pollutants from the gas production well ...

Abstract

Purpose: To determine the extent to which the silica levels are above the safety levels outlined by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration in areas proximal to the natural gas development sites. Background: While studies have shown that the silica levels in the hydraulic fracturing sites are very high, there is paucity of information as to how far away from the sites the silica levels in the air are dangerously high. Methods: The study will employ a longitudinal design with the data being collected over a ten-year period. The samples will be collected in a linear direction. The samples ...

Hydraulic fracking allows for mining of crude oil in areas that other means of extraction such as typical fracking cannot work. Hydraulic fracking allows for extraction of crude oil in ranges that have for a long while been thought to be dried or did not hold any mineral value. When rural fields are declared to have minable crude oil, the economic value of such a land automatically goes up. Areas with oil mining going on attract miners, investors, transport companies and engineers among other people, hence raising the economic value of such areas (King, 2012). There are several towns ...

Literature Review on Fracking

Introduction The extraction of natural gas has been seen the much-needed reprieve in the face of increased energy demands globally. The natural gas present unexploited energy reserves that can be used to meet the energy deficits in the countries where there are natural gas deposits. Its extraction requires the use of advanced technologies. Fracking the main technology used in the exploitation of natural gas from the rocks beneath the earth’s surface where it is trapped. The biggest proportion of the new wells for the exploitation of natural gas (90%) utilizes hydraulic fracking as the technology of choice. While ...

The world’s petroleum and oil supply are being depleted at a rapid rate, which has necessitated the need to utilize alternate sources of energy. In 2001, unconventional source of energy contributed to only 1% of the energy needs of the US (Martin, 2015). By 2035, 46% of the energy required by the US is estimated to be provided by alternate sources of energy (Adgate, Goldstein & McKenzie, 2014). Apart from being an alternate source of energy, unconventional energy source such as natural gas extracted from shale beds are one of the cleanest sources of energy (Martin, 2015). One of ...

Impacts of Petroleum Exploration, Extraction and Transport

Oil shale may be defined as those rocks that usually contain a high proportion and percentage of organic matter such as kerogen. Oil shale is mainly characterized by the low calorific value as well high ash and even mineral content. Oil usually produces energy, which serves a very crucial purpose to our planet. Energy is regarded as the lifeblood of the planet earth and its occupants, thereby, being categorized as among the essential commodities that normally powers the intentions to expand the global economy (Burnham, Stubblefield, & Campbell, 1980). In the 1950s, natural gas and oil became the primary sources of liveliness ...

Introduction

Hydraulic fracking, also referred to as hydraulic fracturing is one among the procedures that have prominently been associated with negative impacts both on the economy and the environment. While different stakeholders perceive the effects differently, we are going to focus on the effects of the extractive procedure with regard to the environment. Speaking of the environment, water, air and human health are given prominence (Capitol.Net, Inc, 2010). While the effects of hydraulic fracturing have been the topic of main political concerns in most countries across the world today, people do not fully comprehend what the procedure entails. For ...

Hydraulic fracturing is a technique mainly used for extraction of oil and gas through pumping a pressured liquid to fracture rocks (Spellman, 110). The pressurized liquid is normally a mixture of water, proppant (for instance sand), and chemicals (Tiemann and Vann, 1). Due to its efficiency, especially in low permeability areas, the technique is widely used. The primary legal issue arising out of the use of the technique is the lack of or limited regulation of the technique. For a long period, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has had no authority over hydraulic fracturing.

The lack of legal regulation means that there a little ...

Abstract

The method of Enhanced Geothermal Systems (EGS) focus on the exploitation from the heat contained in deep warm rocks associated with restricted penetrability. Although that particular extraction is just feasible when the reservoir penetrability is actually sufficient to make sure a liquid circulation in between injection as well as production water springs. Financial utilization associated with enhanced geothermal systems has to do with normal or even induced nutrient precipitation as well as associated reduction in permeability from those methods even though it might inhibit liquid flow within well casings or even in rocky fractures as well as therefore decrease heat ...

Pennsylvania act 13 is a law that was passed that would limit the area that a company or individual would embark in Hydraulic fracturing. It provides for the lack of issuance of a license to any establishment that would wish to employ Hydraulic fracturing in the environment that is close to the living environment of the citizens. This is because the process of hydraulic faulting creates spaces in the soil that cause the land to sip in elements that pollutes the water that is used by the people. This law is a revision of the oil and gas act of 1984. According to ...

Hydraulic fracturing is a stimulation process that maximizes extraction of underground natural resources such as oil, natural gas, water and geothermal energy. Hydraulic fracturing enhances subsurface fracture systems allowing natural gas and oil to move freely to the production wells located on the surface from the rock pores. The process is common in about nine out of ten gas wells in the U.S. The process uses gallons of sand, chemicals and water to rupture the rocks that hold gas, causing release of gases. This method is advancement in technology since it has the potential to lower over reliance of import ...

Introduction

It is no secret that the oil and gas industry is a multi-billion dollar business. In fact, among the largest firms in terms of revenue that has garnered the top spots of the Fortune 500 are energy companies. It is also no secret that these oil and gas companies are among the riskiest business there is in terms of environmental and health hazards. Since the extensive exploration and extraction of natural gas and oils, there have been several incidents and disasters that have resulted to massive destruction of the environment and natural resources. Among the most notable are the Exxon ...

Hydraulic fracturing, or fracking as it is commonly referred to as, can be considered as the most innovative technology in energy production in the 21st century. Fracking is the process of breaking up the shale found beneath the surface of the earth to extract natural gas supplies (Hasset & Mathur, 11). It involves the process of drilling a series of holes into the ground, which are then pumped with a fluid (mainly water) to create pressure that forces natural gas out of the cracks for extraction. In as much as hydraulic fracturing has been adopted widely as a method of extracting oil and ...

Introduction

For numerous decades, oil has been an important source of the commercial energy throughout the world. The oil industry has always been a vitally crucial industry due to its contribution to the global economy. For this reason, oil is in high demand at all times. Just like the other commodities, the price of oil is determined by the market forces of supply and demand. The oil price fluctuations greatly affect the national economies differently. For instance, while the net exporters of oil suffer economically when the prices decline, the economies of the net importers benefit. Consequently, as one of the ...

Hydraulic fracturing or fracking is the technology that helps to get non-conventional fossil fuels’ sources. They existed along with traditional fuel basins. But companies weren't interested in these sources until the traditional fuel stores started to dry out. “Fracking, is a drilling technique used for extracting oil or natural gas from deep underground” (Lallanilla, 2015). There are two types of technology: hydraulic fracturing and horizontal drilling. The last one appeared only in 1990s, while hydraulic fracturing was used from 1940s. Both technologies have similar processes. The first stage is drilling a vertically or angled well to the depth of 1-2 ...

An Analysis of the Formulation of California Senate Bill 4

Chapter III: Methodology Overview The purpose of this research has been to focus on the decision making and agenda setting policy concerning the regulation of hydraulic fracturing to drill for petroleum products when California Senate Bill (SB) 4 was passed. Hydraulic fracturing has been used for many years in California, but this is the first time a bill has been passed to regulate the activity. The bill was passed in the assembly first and then moved to the senate where it was passed in the form of SB 4. The factors and actors that worked together to ...

Report Critique Discussion

The group presentation on the topic of anaerobic digestion specifically provides a good source of information especially for those who might have no knowledge at all of the issue being presented in the discussion. The diagrams they used were really helpful in making a visual distinction on the more technical aspects of the report. These diagrams and tables provide good data that helps out the audience to know more about the matter being discussed and become more involved in understanding it thoroughly. The chronological arrangement of the different parts of the discussion helps a lot in organizing the process of discussing the ...

An Analysis of the Formulation of California Senate Bill 4

Chapter 1 The purpose of this research is to analyze the process creating, SB 4, the legislation on hydraulic fracking as an opportunity to understand how and why the fracking issue gained enough momentum to reach the level of legislative decision. Policies that reach the decision-making level on a legislative agenda have been driven to that level by internal and external factors of the government (Kingdon, 1995). The factors and actors that worked together to put ‘fracking’ on the agenda of the California Assembly and Senate are interesting because of the wide range of opinions held by the proponents ...

An Analysis of the Formulation of California Senate Bill 4

Chapter IV: Findings Introduction The research had the ambitious goal of identifying the political process that took for the passing of SB 4. The subject was especially interesting because hydraulic fracturing (fracking) has taken place in California for several decades. In this chapter, data collected about the drilling style in California was presented with an effort to include the variety of data available from viewpoints of different stakeholders and their support or lack of support for the duration of the legislative process. Fracking is a national as well as a state political issue. Both external and internal factors impacted ...

[Class Title]

Introduction It is believed that Ronald Reagan, the 40th president of the United States, is strongly influenced by the notion of free enterprise. In fact, his economic policies (popularly known as ‘Reaganomics’) are aimed towards giving American industries greater freedom through deregulation. Regan may have been influenced by the economic theories of Milton Friedman whose view regarding industrialization and its impact is rather liberated. Friedman ultimately believes that the social responsibility of businesses is to increase their profits. In the same way, Reagan’s relaxed environmental policies is, in one way or another, a reflection of his ...

[Class Title]

Introduction Despite the call for increased environmental awareness, most people remain unaffected by environmental concerns. Although it is an accepted fact that the environment is everyone’s concern, most individuals and organizations take their social responsibility to nature for granted. Most environmental programs are not taken seriously. For instance, most people knew that throwing litter could adversely affect the environment yet evidence show that this awareness is of no effect or is taken for granted. Cigarette butts, for example, still constitute the largest percentage of street litter, which according to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), is ...

MEM 695

Abstract The purpose of this research paper is to introduce the different types of energy resources utilized worldwide. This paper discusses the history of the different resources used, starting with the utilization of conventional fossil fuel based technologies, the emergence of nuclear power and finally, the commercialization of renewable energy resources. The main objective of this research paper is to provide an insight on how these energy sources are accessed, utilized, distributed and developed. The paper also seeks to impact of the utilization of these various energy resources on the environment, especially the effect of continued utilization of ...

The decrease in world’s petroleum and oil supply has led the nations to look for alternate sources of energy. As a result of this short-supply, unconventional gas reserves are gaining importance as alternative source of crude oil, where the unconventional gas reserves are estimated to contribute to 45% of the US gas production by the year 2035. Large-scale extraction of unconventional natural gas has resulted in the development of new and untested extraction technology such as hydraulic fracturing or hydrofracking, which is expected to develop rapidly in the next few decades near human settlements and pose a health hazard (Adgate, ...

Introduction

Biology and information technology holds many things in common. The two aspects deal with astounding complexity, organism representing biology and networks, computers representing technology. Experts have developed many innovations in the world today that focuses on solving different problems affecting the society. The following paper helps in naming and explaining how a specific scientific method helps solve the problem. The definitions of scientific and pseudoscientific bring many confusion and debates. Pseudoscience refers to the abuse of a certain claim that an individual does not like for any given reason. There exists a concrete difference between science and pseudoscience.

Strengths and limitations of scientific knowledge and the scientific method

One of the ...

Abstract

The effects of oil drilling towards the environment or any drilling of similar nature such as drilling of natural gas has been extensively discussed. Major stakeholders such as the government, the private sector and common people that are directly influenced by these drilling activities have different views towards this topic, which makes it more controversial. Some idealist stakeholders, for example, believe that oil drilling poses serious environmental threats. For the same reason, they believe that the risk outweighs the advantages and so these drilling activities must be stopped at once. On the other hand, those stakeholders that is benefiting ...

An Analysis of the Formulation of California Senate Bill

Chapter 5 Discussion SB 4 is the first California law to address the issue of hydraulic fracturing or fracking for natural gas in California. The fracking method had been used in California for several years without any regulation (Freyman, 2014, p. 59). Therefore, the research studied the possible reasons the issue became a part of public conversation, and finally reached the agenda setting level of the California legislature. And, only that, the issue became law in California. Well simulation is the term used in SB 4 to describe three types of the procedure hydraulic fracturing, acid matrix stimulation, ...

Emphatically, oil is an essential product in the entire universe. The mentioned product swanks upon human dependence coupled with the sole drive of myriad economies. Oil prices significantly impact on the country’s economic expansion. Consequently, it is vital for oil producers to consider the cost of production. The cited cost, adversely dictates innumerable populace utility on the valuable product. Worth mentioning, the current news on oil prices is out rightly encouraging. The paper endeavors to explicitly highlight on the current information regarding oil prices. Prevalently, oil prices have significantly reduced. Myriad factors have instigated the mentioned fall ...

Hydraulic Fracturing Process

Hydraulic fracturing is a process through which fluids under high pressure are injected to crack a rock so as to allow oil and gas to flow into the wellbore. Once the rock is fractured, propant such as sand is injected to prop open the fractures to avoid sealing. During the process, water is used as a carrier fluid to transport the sand into the fractured rock matrix (Cabot Oil & Gas Corporation 4). The raw materials used for this process include sand and water, which make up 99 percent of the fluid used by Cabot. The other one percent is composed of chemical ...

Mining and exploration of natural gases has increased in the recent years. This can be partly attributed to modern science and technology that has helped researchers and scientists develop new ways to conduct mining in areas that were otherwise considered inaccessible. As a result, pollution of natural resources by the mining industry has increased sharply. However, government efforts to protect its citizens from these dangerous environmental hazards have lagged behind resulting in a population that is open to dangerous diseases caused by pollution. Hydraulic fracturing is a process used widely and extensively in the mining of natural gases. First, hundreds of ...

[Class Title]

Introduction Ironically, water is considered as one of the most abundant compounds in the world as more than 70% of the earth’s surface is covered with water. However, abundant as the world’s water supply may seem, 96.5% of it is found in oceans; obviously salinized while the remaining volume of freshwater is somehow trapped beneath the earth’s surface, icecaps, and icebergs or would have to be pumped from rivers and lakes. If only this water supply can be tapped and directly utilized, water would not be commoditized as it is today. The NAE ...

An Analysis of the Formulation of California Senate Bill 4

Chapter 3: Methodology California Lutheran University Chapter III: Methodology Overview The purpose of this research has been to focus on the decision making and agenda setting policy concerning the regulation of hydraulic fracturing to drill for petroleum products when California Senate Bill (SB) 4 was passed. Hydraulic fracturing has been used for many years in California, but this is the first time a bill has been passed to regulate the activity. The bill was passed in the assembly first and then moved to the senate where it was passed in the form of SB 4. ...

Introduction.

Offshore oil drilling and affiliated technological advances have long been considered to be the driving force of the oil industry, the backbone of our economy. In a fast technologically evolving age, the oil industry has not been left out. That is continuing to affect demand and supply of energy as seen in the past. The industry has been seen to involve complex processing of big data gathered at the various stages of oil production: exploration, discovering and it is processing. Petroleum science is steadily evolving from traditional under-developed geology to highly advanced super computer 3D calculations and analysis of the ...

Hydraulic fracturing is a method that allows natural gas and oil to have free movement from the rock pores to a low permeability rock formation where they are trapped to come to the surface. The technology came into place in the 1940s and had been operational in most of the drilling stations. The method uses water, ceramic beads or sand, and other chemicals, as the main materials for the exercise. The mixture is pumped into the surface under high pressure and causes fractures in the rock that extends outward from the bore (Michael 2011). The main function of using the proppant ...

An Analysis of the Formulation of California Senate Bill 4

CHAPTER IV This research has the ambitious goal of identifying the political process that took for the passing of SB 4. The subject is especially interesting because hydraulic fracturing (fracking) has taken place in California for several decades. In this chapter, data collected about the drilling style in California will be presented with an effort to include the variety of data available from viewpoints of different stakeholders. Fracking is a national as well as a state political issue. It has been assumed that both external and internal factors have impacted the policy process. Decisions made at federal government agencies have a ...

Statement of the Problem

The problem of petroleum depletion has since posed problems to the global demand for energy, thus driving related costs to rise to unbearable proportions and economic crashes affecting all other sectors. Efforts to counter the foregoing have since resulted to the emergence of viable energy options using alternative resources to supplement what would otherwise require petroleum to operate. Natural gas obtained through hydraulic fracturing, also known as fracking, has become a much-sought alternative to petroleum currently supplied in known oil-rich areas such as the Middle East and Russia. In the United States (US), specifically in California (Siegel), fracking has recently ...

[University]

Introduction

There is no doubt that the world’s energy demand today is far greater since the industrial revolution began in the early 1800’s. With most nations embracing industrialization in an unprecedented scale, the search for energy sources is extensive. Some nations even risk the possibility of war just to secure territories known to have fossil fuel deposits. Like what happened between China, Japan and their neighbors in their scuffle for the possession of Senkaku-Diaoyu, an island wherein geological surveys have revealed massive oil and gas reserves . America, unarguably the largest consumer of petroleum products in the world, ...

Natural gas resources will continue to play a significant role in the sustainability and objective of having an independent, self sufficient energy mix for the United States in the coming years. With its objective of being able to increase its use of clean energy in the mix, American energy sector policy makers are looking to harness the extensive stores of natural gas that have become commercially viable resulting from the use of cutting edge technology in the fields of “horizontal drilling” and “hydraulic fracturing” that have allowed operators to extract greater amounts of oil and natural gas from shale formations ( ...

The Bakken formation in the Williston Basin is a closed, low permeability petroleum system that generated approximately 200 to 400barells of oil (Janet K. Pitman, Leigh C. Price, and Julie A. LeFever, 2001). The middle member of the bakken is an oil reservoir with high thermal maturity and has been extensively cored, offers the opportunity to examine the major control of reservoir quality (Janet K. Pitman, Leigh C. Price, and Julie A. LeFever, 2001). The multiple fractures occurs on the macroscopic and microscopic level in the bakken formation and most are abundant in the lower and middle members, the majority ...

Senate Bill 4.

ABBREVIATIONS AND ACRONYMS Btus British thermal units CA California CASB 4 California Senate Bill 4 Chapt. Chapter CIPA California Independent Petroleum Association EIA Energy Information Agency MWh Megawatt hours SB Senate Bill Sect. Section US United States USA United States of America USGS United States Geological Survey Introduction On Friday, September 20, 2013 California Governor Jerry Brown signed into law the Senate Bill 4 (CASB 4) that sets up the organization of a permitting system for hydraulic fracking using the technique of fossil fuel well drilling ...

Introduction

Many are often amazed at the term hydraulic Fracturing. Hydraulic fracturing is a technique that involves typical mixing of water with chemicals and sand, under high pressure. The mixture is injected into wellbore to create small fractures where fluids such as petroleum, gas, brine water and uranium-bearing solution might migrate to the well. It is at this point that some have voiced their concern on the possible pollution of ground water due to the injection of these chemicals to the ground (Spellman 45). However, others have also supported the process so strongly citing that the amount of chemicals released in ...

Hydraulic fracturing or fracking is a technique that involves typical mixing of water with chemicals and sand, under high pressure. The mixture is injected into wellbore to create small fractures where fluids such as petroleum, gas, brine water and uranium-bearing solution might migrate to the well. The hydraulic pressure is removed from such well and small proppant grains are used in holding the fractures open when the rock achieves equilibrium. This technique is common in wells for tight gas, shale gas, coal seam gas and tight oil. Such well stimulation is carried out once in the well’s life time ...

Putting a mixture of water, sand and chemicals under high pressure under the ground to release locked up oil and gas deposits in deep reservoirs has been put to use for nearly 70 years. This method of crude oil extraction, known as Hydraulic fracturing, includes pumping water, some trace chemicals and sand under high pressure into a finished wellbore in order to create fissures in comparatively impermeable rock basin formations for example shale. These fissures so created allow oil or natural gas to then flow into the wellbores and pumped out for use. The sand supports the fissures to remain open, ...

The law in question goes on to address the surmounting national concern regarding the effects of hydraulic fracturing or “fracking” on the environment and the communities of the land. It has to be taken into consideration that hydraulic fracturing is quite a risky venture and is controversial to a large extent. In this process, the well simulation treatment is used to increase the oil and gas production. According to the SB4, the California Division of Oil Gas and Geothermal Resources has been directed to undertake elaborate regulations for hydraulic fracturing. Additional regulators have to be consulted which include fracking fluid chemical ...

Introduction

The Senate Bill 4 Pavley is a law approved by the Governor of California on the 20th September 2013 and hence immediately becomes law. The law falls under the ambit of environmental sustainability in the exploitation of oil and gases. It is imperative to appreciate the main drafter of the law, Senator Fran Pavley whose commitment to environmental sustainability knows no boundaries. In addition, it is essential to appreciate that the law comes in the backdrop of the discovery of billions of barrels of oil in the Monterey Shale in California.

Policy

The law’s main concern is on hydraulic fracturing ...

This documentary film by Josh Fox that exposes the devastating impact that gas drilling has on America’s environment. With American energy firms looking for new petroleum sources, natural gas is becoming increasingly important and they have set their sights on the Marcellus Shale Field. The film focuses on hydraulic fracturing or ‘fracking’, which is a process necessary for gas exploration. Hydraulic fracturing is a process which involves drilling and injection of fluid into the ground at a high pressure so as to fracture shale rocks and in turn releasing the gas inside. The fluid is usually chemically treated water which is ...

Military reluctance towards the report implementation

Military branches have shown reluctance due the feasibility of the report DSB proposed for implementations. The report is very illustrative on the solutions but there are the loopholes the report possesses. Historically the military have trained for the incidents where there is an immediate response to the crisis at hand. The implementation of the report means new methods of the tackling shortages of energy supplies among others. Most of the military equipment is old. The systems that were made earlier are old but still used in the running of the business of the military. The military is overwhelmed ...

There is a high demand for gas in the United States. Due to this high demand, many gas and oil companies have developed a new process of drilling natural gas. This process is known as Hydraulic Fracturing. Hydraulic Fracturing refers to the process of drilling horizontally by injecting a mixture of water, sand and chemicals- in high rate of concentration or pressure- into rocks as a means of creating new fissures for extracting gas and oil. This process of drilling is applied in difficult-to-reach areas. The technique was developed to stimulate oil production from wells, especially in declining oil reservoirs. However, improvement in ...

The demand of energy in the world has grown significantly in the last few decades. This has made countries with these precious resources to do all that they can to harness them in an effort to meet the growing demand. However, other countries that previously had been importing energy have discovered natural gas and oil reserves that they are hurrying to explore. Large reserves of natural gas have been discovered in North and South America, Europe and China. According to figures from the US Energy Information Administration, this has seen an increase of 40% of the available natural gas ...

The shale reservoir cannot be complete without understanding the mechanical properties of a rock. The shale samples of North America and South China have been used to conduct tests to check the brittleness of the rock. The tests concluded that the black shales are brittle and the shale from China had good power with low Poisson’s ratio and higher Young’s modulus when compared to the shale of North America. The three dimension Mohr representation method identified the active fractures and determined the hydraulic channels in hydraulic fracture stimulation treatment on a reservoir rock. The stimulation measures can be derived ...

The Petroleum Industry faces many challenges regularly and one of the challenges is to hydraulically fracture a reservoir that is naturally fractured. The natural fracture systems are essential as they are considered for ideal stimulation. Oil and gas reservoirs use hydraulic fracturing, but using the hydraulic fracture in unconventional gas reservoirs’ is the main challenge as hydrocarbons cannot be extracted from these reservoirs without the fractures. A few factors that affect the hydraulic and natural fracture interaction are the horizontal differential stress, the angle set for the fracture and the pressure that is applied during the treatment. An observation ...

Drinking water contaminated with Arsenic is regarded as a major environmental and health concern as contact with arsenic results in incidents of diseases and severe medical conditions. Arsenic is a compound that occurs naturally from underground rocks and soil and it also finds its ways to water sources through the rocks, soils and human activities such as wood preservatives and paint. As a result, drinking water from the underground sources in some regions is contaminated with high levels of arsenic in comparison to the surface water. The federal government and other environmental agencies such as the U.S. Environmental Protection agency (EPA) have ...

Introduction

This environmental study will cover current federal regulations and enforcement for managing environmental impacts related to hydraulic fracturing for oil and gas development.

About Hydraulic-Fracturing of Oil and Gas Development

It is known that hydraulic fracturing, a.k.a. “hydrocracking” is a technique that uses a mix of water, sand and chemicals to crack preceding impenetrable rock down a gas or oil well to induce fractures that will allow cornered oil or gas to flow aboveground. The process uses million gallons of water and it is the main ingredient in hydraulic fracture. The sand is to utilize the fractures open once formed. The chemical mixture helps the process and eases ...

Development of the drinking water standards for arsenic since the year 2000

Exposure to Arsenic has become a considerable global environmental health concern as contact through contaminated drinking water leads to cases of several medical conditions and ailments as well as human reproduction and development effects. The source of arsenic in drinking water consists of natural supplies such as rocks, soil and from human activities for instance in preservatives, paints, and agricultural activities. There are increased levels of arsenic in the ground water sources as compared to surface water and this makes people who rely on ground water to be vulnerable to water that is contaminated. In the U.S. the mean ...

LITERATURE REVIEW: UNITED STATES ENERGY INDEPENDENCE

Question: How the concerns relating to the exploration of Shale gas were mitigated.

The issue of energy independence is a subject of debate that has dominated US politics for several decades. Virtually, every President since Richard Nixon to Barack Obama have pledged allegiance to assisting the United States realize the goal of energy dependence. Policy debates tend to focus on the strategies that could be implemented to minimize US’s dependence on foreign oil. Homans (2012) argues that the United States has remained independent on imported oil despite increasing demands for energy anxiety across the globe. According to Miller (2010), ...

Oil and its products comprise some of the key commodities and products for any economy from their crucial role in energy supply. In addition, oil has been a commodity whose sourcing, production as well as marketing has being of great concern to many economic stakeholders as energy is one of the key drivers of economic growth and development. In addition, oil has been at the centre of governments’ policies focus as countries seek to secure supply and enhance production as well as tap the benefits that come with the precious commodity. In that respect, this analysis seeks to establish the ...

Hydraulic fracturing is one of the popular methods of producing natural gas being applied in US in extraction of Shale Gas. The method has been hailed as a success in producing clean gas and as a source of energy that is responsibly produced. However, the method has its limitations in that it involves negative externalities. In this respect, this analysis seeks to explain the process, its pros and cons as well as its costs.

HYDRAULIC FRACTURING PROCESS AND COSTS

Hydraulic fracturing for shale gas extraction has been in US since 194o with an average of 90 percent of US gas and oil production being through hydraulic ...