Chapter 1 Research purpose and meaning
1.1 Concept
Shale gas is a kind of unconventional nature gas, which is trapped or gathered in the dark shale or carbon rock. The rock layer has low permeability and low porosity, which means that the best way to get this recourse is fracturing to enhance connectivity and porosity. The shale gas reservoirs are mainly located in North America, Central Asia, China, Latin America, Middle East, North Africa and Russia and other countries and regions. The United State and Canada are only two countries, which have significant shale gas production.
1.2 History
In 1821, Shale gas was first time extracted from under ground as an energy resource in Fredonia, New York state. The shale gas technology has been developed from 1930s, and the first shale gas developing well was established in 1947. The scale shale gas industry was began at 1970s; during that time, the United State government had to fund into shale gas in order to face the decline of nature gas recourse capacity. Thanks to this situation and the investment, some unavoidable technologies’ develop such as: directional well and horizontal well technology, seismic imaging technology and large hydraulic fracturing technology.
In 1982, the federal government put the billions of dollars in some research institutions of this field. During the 1980s, Federal government passed energy act, which provides tax incentives or other preferential policies for the energy industry. In 1986, with several private gas companies, the energy department of United States successfully built the first air drilling technology shale gas horizontal well. In the 80s and 90s, the federal government act further by 29th of unconventional gas tax incentives to encourage...
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...luence on migration, aggregation and forming reservoir. There have two aspects. On the one hand, the development of cracks in the shale can greatly improve the permeability of the reservoir; it also can increase the aggregate amount of free gas; and it can promote the migration of shale gas as a drainage system.
1.3.5 Thickness and humidity
In order to ensure enough organic matter and plenty of space to form commercial shale gas reservoirs, the effective thickness of shale rock is required. Shale gas reservoir’s thickness controls of the economic benefits of shale gas reservoirs. The larger the effective thickness, especially the larger continuous effective thickness, the more the total amount of organic matter, the higher the degree of enrichment of shale gas. The limitation of shale thickness gas can be reduced with maturity of organic carbon content increasing.
In the video “Fracking Hell: The Untold Story” by Link TV explains how natural gas has been a huge problem not only for the earth in general but for everyone and everything living in it. The video explains how North East of Pennsylvania is having difficulties to conserve a healthy environment and people. North East of Pennsylvania is the main sources to extract gas and send it throughout the United States for gasoline and so on. However, this action is wonderful for the cost of gas, but has a huge impact on the environment and the people living in Pennsylvania. A lot of people in this state are worried having health issues because everything is not usable is being thrown out to the rivers where they get their fresh water.
United States is known for their innovation towards alternative energy like solar power, wind power and nuclear power. However , these alternative energies are not completely beneficial towards the United States. For example, Hydrofracking; What is hydrofracking? Gas industries use hydrofracking to extract natural gases from shale ground in order to power Americans homes. When gas industries hydrofrack, they dig ten-thousand feet into the mantle of the earth and turn perpendicular to the t into shale layers with cement and steel casing to prevent leaks.
On January 10th 1901 the discovery of oil at Spindletop would lead to the greatest economy boom the world has ever encountered. The amount of oil that would be discovered across Texas would be more than enough to power America through the next several decades. The effects of having oil would completely change Texas culture, lifestyle, and business tremendously. In the book of Oil In Texas, will prove that America would change completely from agriculture nation to an industrial nation after the discovery of oil in Texas.
In today's global economy, energy is one of the most crucial and sought after commodities. Who supplies it and how much they supply determines how much influence they have over other countries as well as the global economy. This is why hydraulic fracturing is currently such an important and controversial topic in the United States. Hydraulic fracturing, more commonly known as "fracking" or hydrofracturing, is the process of using pressurized liquids to fracture rocks and release hydrocarbons such as shale gas, which burns more efficiently than coal. This booming process of energy production provides a much needed economic boost, creating jobs and providing gas energy for Americans. The efficiently burning shale gas reduces carbon emission from electricity production plants, reducing carbon footprints on the environment. However, the process of hydraulic fracturing uses millions of gallons of pressurized liquid, which contains toxic chemicals, and some of this water is left over undealt with. The air near fracking sites is often also polluted and unsafe for nearby community residents. Injecting millions of gallons of water laced with toxic chemicals into the rock thousands of feet deep can cause earthquakes, causing a safety hazards for all nearby areas. Hydraulic Fracturing makes rare natural gases easily attainable, boosting the economy and reducing carbon emissions. However, the negative side effects such as contaminated water and air, make hydraulic fracturing a process that may not be worth the benefits.
Gas in shale formations are“low in permeability,” making it very tedious to extract, but with the increase in technological knowledge in fracking and horizontally drilling into shale beds, the vast reserves of natural gas resource could be extracted (4). Fracking is a large industrial operation that boost the “productivity of a oil or gas well” (5). It is a process by which, under very high pressure, a mixture of water, chemicals, and sand, are pumped into shale formations that causes fractures in the rocks to open wider or create new fractures that would allow otherwise trapped oil and gas to flow into the wells (6).
Marcellus Shale drilling is a dangerous process with many consequences. The Marcellus Shale industry is said to create new jobs and be a source of “clean” energy (Environmental) (Griswold). However, this process uses hundreds of deadly chemicals, it causes pollution, and it has few regulations. A solution to these negative consequences would be to create and enforce more regulations. After all if you had to pick between safe resources and a cheap, risky energy source, which would you choose?
The United States relies on imports for about forty percent of its crude oil, which is the lowest rate of dependency since 1991 according to the U.S Energy Information Administration. Today our country is trying to keep on track in becoming less and less dependent. When it comes to the topic of the future ways the United States will get its fuel, most of us readily agree that the United States should become more independent by using natural gas that is already here on our land. Where this argument usually ends, however, is on the question of the consequences drilling for natural gas brings. Whereas some are convinced drilling is safe, others maintain that it is actually in fact dangerous. Hydraulic fracturing or "fracking", the terms for drilling for natural gas, is dangerous to our public health and to the environment because of the water contamination it causes. Therefore, it is not something that should become a project for alternative fuel used by the United States.
In the past couple of years the word fracking has been prevalent in the media whether its been mentioned in the news or in the movie Matt Damon stared in titled “Promised Land”. Many people know it as a method of extracting gas from the earth and don’t inquire further into what hydraulic fracturing actually is. Before the process is explained we should understand why it has become prevalent in the last decade. The reason Hydraulic fracturing has become so popular in the last couple of years is because of the passage of the energy policy act of 2005, which contained the Halliburton loophole. The Halliburton loophole stripped the Environmental Protection Agency of its authority to regulate hydraulic fracturing (New York Times 2009). Allowing Hydraulic Fracturing allowed companies to finally access the abundant sources of natural gas legally. This act made it possible to access the vast amounts of natural gas contained in the Marcellus Shale, which created a boom in hydraulic fracturing. What exactly is hydraulic fracturing? Hydraulic fracturing is a method of extracting oil and gas, that is not accessible by conventional drilling methods. The process, injects chemically treated water and sand at high pressures into shale rock to release the oil and gas (Pritchard 2013).
It is a known fact Pennsylvania is greatly impacted by the Marcellus Shale. The Marcellus Shale is a layer of black shale located under the Appalachian basin from Prehistoric times. Natural gas and oil are being extracted from this layer for their increasing economic value, with natural gas having a worth of $10 for every thousand cubic feet of it. Furthermore, improved technology such as “hydraulic fracturing” and “horizontal wells” has made Marcellus drilling more efficient and has increased the implementation of the drilling as a source of economic opportunity for not only drilling companies but for the whole state of Pennsylvania (“Marcellus Shale”). An important part of this Marcellus activity is that “most drilling is occurring in rural areas” according to Joseph Morris, a poll analyzer from Mercyhurst College (Begos, Kevin. “Gas”). Amid the economic opportunity, farmers in these areas are resistant to signing over their farmland to drilling companies. Bradford County farmer Carol French, who wrote an editorial in The Patriot News, stated, “Has anyone considered how these gas developments and industrial uses on farmland will impact agriculture production for years to come if a farmer does not have the necessary means or information to negotiate protection measures?” She fears that drilling will ruin rural property and thus unnecessarily change or hurt farmers’ economic way of life (French). However, because of the vital economic benefits that Marcellus Shale drilling has for Pennsylvania, farmers in rural areas of the state should choose to allow drilling on their property.
Before one can see the devastating effects of fracking, one must first understand how fracking works. As previously stated, the main intent of hydro-fracking is to access and harvest natural gas that lies below the surface of the Earth. Having formed over 400 million years ago by the collision of tectonic plates (Marsa 3), the Marcellus Shale plays host to a gold mine of natural gas, which is currently at the center of the fracking debate in the Northeastern region of the United States. Unfortunately, access...
Natural gas extraction and consumption has risen over the past thirty years. Also known as hydraulic fracturing or fracking, a tremendous amount of uproar is being made in the environmental and political communities. Natural gas use is a great source of energy worldwide, only in America have we had a gold rush affect when it comes to extraction. Natural gas provides less dependence on foreign oil, less need for coal plants, and a more affordable energy source worldwide. There are many advantages to using natural gas but the way in which it is being extracted has caused many people to become sick. The detrimental environmental impacts caused by hydraulic fracturing continue to rise. Not to mention the political pull on big corporations and water quality standards. Currently in the Marcellus shale in Pennsylvania and the Barnett shale in Texas, the air and water quality have diminished over the past years since drilling sites ran rampant. Natural gas is natural in terms of how it came to be, but not natural in how they extract it and the problems it is causing everyone involved. To make aware the dangers of hydraulic fracturing, environmental impacts, water quality and air emissions, must be considered.
After natural gas forms, it then rises to the top of the surface through the pores spaces in the rock because of its low density compared to the surrounding rock. MAJOR RESERVES AND HOW THE GAS IS EXTRACTED The biggest reserve of natural gas is in...Russia!, which has seven times the reserves of the U.S. Our country is endowed with a substantial resource of natural gas and new findings has revised that number in the upward position in the last few years.
Around the world, countries are dependent on oil and more often than not, foreign oil. The U.S. is at a time where they believe buying foreign oil supports terrorism and hurts our economy. Shale formations deep underground that spread all over the U.S. have been found to contain natural gas. This includes the Marcellus Shale formation and the Utica Shale formation, which can be found all throughout New York State and down the East Coast (Hydro-Fracking pg.1). To get at this abundance of gas underground, hydraulic fracturing was invented, but this new method of gas extraction safe for the environment and for the people around it?
“In 1821 decades before the first oil well was drilled, commercial shale gas was extracted in Fredonia, New York”(Sovacool 250). The availability of natural gas and its relatively clean properties has allowed the expansion of natural gas extraction. By the year 2005, the extraction of shale gas had expanded with the discovery of hydraulic fracturing. In the United States alone it has led to an enormous growth in the oil industry and this technology has been adopted by many other countries around the world including Iran, Canada, and Europe. As a result, the country is less dependent on foreign countries to meet the growing demand for natural gas, and it has improved the country’s economy while producing less carbon emissions into the atmosphere. But what is hydraulic fracturing?
The role of shale oil, shale gas, tight oil and tight gas reservoirs, generally classified as unconventional reservoirs, in meeting with the ever-increasing energy demand has come under serious considerations in recent times. While significant successes have been achieved in getting some of these resources out of the ground, detailed understanding on the mechanisms that interplay in these types of reservoirs for their optimal productivity has not being thoroughly researched. This often result in significant hydrocarbons still left unrecovered after such reservoirs have been put to production using existing models and methods of recovery. In essence, there seems to be a need for better characterization of these unconventional reservoirs if they must be developed and produced optimally. It is on this premise I intend pursuing a PhD program with the hope of advancing knowledge that could help solve some part of the problem.