Swamp Stomp
WM
Volume 18 Issue 31
Many people in the United States believe that hydraulic fracturing, better known as “fracking” is a relatively new technique used to help extract oil and gas trapped in layers far below the Earth’s surface. For the most part, they are correct. Modern fracking used in combination with horizontal drilling was only introduced in the 1990’s and with great success. But the history of fracking has a much longer and richer history that can trace its roots back to the 1860’s and the Civil War.
Back in 1862, Lt. Col. Edward A. L. Roberts, a Lieutenant Colonel of the 28th New Jersey Volunteers, had the idea of opening underground oil-bearing cracks and crevices by the introduction of explosives. He eventually received one of many patents on a device he called the “exploding torpedo”. In his process, a long, thin, iron tube packed with black powder was lowered into a borehole. It was then back-filled with water to concentrate the explosive force downwards and detonated. Production in some wells improved by more than 1200%!
Through the years this technique continued to be successfully used and improved upon with further increases in production. Then in 1947, the first use of hydraulic fracturing, the introduction of pressurized fluids, was demonstrated in an oil field in Kansas, where 1000 gallons of napalm were injected into a limestone formation. There was little increase in production at the time, but this modest beginning led to further work with different materials and techniques and within a decade, 30% increases in oil production and 90% increases in natural gas production were common.
Then, in the 1980’s, companies began experimenting with combining the fracturing process with horizontal drilling techniques and by the 90’s modern fracking began to thrive. Previously unproductive wells were now producing and new formations, up until now, mostly inaccessible, began to produce in abundance. Some of the more notable formations are the great Bakken oil shale fields of the northern US and Canada and the Marcellus and Utica formations in the East. The USGS estimated the recoverable oil in the Bakken to be 3 to 4 billion barrels and possibly up to 7.4 billion barrels of yet to be discovered oil and more than 6.7 trillion cubic feet of natural gas. In the east, a new report by the Colorado School of Mines’ Potential Gas Committee (PGC) finds the Atlantic region — which includes the Marcellus and Utica shales — has the most promising natural gas potential in the country at more than 1,047 trillion cubic feet!
So, why do we need “Re-fracking”? Re-fracking is the practice of returning to older shale oil and gas wells that had been fracked in the recent past to capitalize on newer, more effective extraction technology. Re-fracking can be effective on especially tight deposits – where the shale produces low yields – to expand their productivity and extend their life. Wells sunk as little as three years ago and fracked until yields fell too low to be worthwhile are now being re-fracked. With wells costing many millions of dollars to drill and complete, it makes sense to return to see if new technology can extend their life. Most re-fracking success has been with vertical wells but an increasing number of horizontal wells show great promise. According to an analysis by the Los Alamos National Laboratory, on average just 13% of the gas from any given US shale is recovered. The potential for re-stimulating existing wells is therefore huge.
It is believed that over 90% of existing wells have undergone some form of fracking. Though there are health and safety concerns involving fracking, it is hard to argue with the results. Because of fracking, the United States has moved from a net oil-importing country, back to a net oil-exporting country. A recent concern, at least for natural gas, is that overproduction has lowered the price of natural gas to historical lows. While good for the consumer, it is not necessarily good for the producers who have had to cap off existing new wells due to oversupply (along with the inadequate infrastructure to get the gas where it is needed most.) The fact that fracking is now such an efficient process has allowed companies to continue to make money despite the abundance of natural gas in the marketplace.
There is no doubt that fracking and re-fracking are tremendous tools that will continue to benefit our country and the companies that produce our oil and gas. At least for the present, we can’t do without them. Let us hope that in our effort to become energy independent that we are mindful of the negative effects of this technology as well, and not sacrifice the health and safety of our nation’s people or our beautiful country from which we harvest these products. Do you think the pros of fracking out way the cons? Please comment below.
Sources:
https://web.archive.org/web/20121114205741/http://www.spe.org/jpt/print/archives/2010/12/10Hydraulic.pdf Hydraulic Fracturing, History of an Enduring Technology, By Carl T. Montgomery and Michael B Smith, 2010
https://aoghs.org/technology/hydraulic-fracturing/ Shooters – A “Fracking” History, By Bruce and Kris Wells, 2016, updated in 2017
https://www.businessinsider.com/the-history-of-fracking-2015-4 The origin of fracking actually dates back to the Civil War, By John Manfreda, OilPrice.com 2015
https://www.fool.com/investing/general/2015/08/24/refracking-could-be-huge-if-oil-stays-lower-for-lo.aspx, Refracking Could Be Huge If Oil Stays Lower for Longer, By Matthew DiLallo, 2015
https://physicstoday.scitation.org/doi/full/10.1063/PT.3.3761 Refracturing may not be all it’s cracked up to be, By David Kramer, November 2017
https://www.forbes.com/sites/judeclemente/2017/09/24/why-u-s-natural-gas-prices-will-remain-low/#2775e2ed3783 Why U.S. Natural Gas Prices Will Remain Low, By Jude Clemente, 2017
https://www.energyindepth.org/infrastructure-key-marcellus-utica-shales-realizing-enormous-potential/ Infrastructure Key to Marcellus and Utica Shales Realizing Enormous Potential, By Jackie Stewart 2017