In a conventional oil or gas field, where the oil or gas is in relatively porous and permeable rock (i.e. the pores are connected), the oil or gas can usually flow naturally from the reservoir rock to the wellbore. Nonetheless, a variety of techniques are often used to improve the flow of oil or gas, including hydraulic fracturing.
Rock formations that are very impermeable require artificially fracturing the rock using hydraulic fracturing in order to produce significant amounts of oil or gas.
Learn more: Hydraulic Fracturing
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Can hydraulic fracturing impact the quality of groundwater or surface water?
Conducted properly, hydraulic fracturing (or “fracking”) has little possibility of contaminating water supplies. Properly constructed wells prevent drilling fluids, hydraulic fracturing fluids, deep saline formation waters, or oil and gas from entering aquifers. Carefully constructed and operated well sites have the ability to contain potential spills and minimize runoff into surface waters.As...
How and where do drillers dispose of waste hydraulic fracturing fluid?
Most of the water and additives used in hydraulic fracturing (or “fracking”) remain deep underground in the geologic formation from which the oil or gas is being extracted. But some of the fluid, mixed with water or brine from the formation, returns through the well to the surface and is referred to as “produced water”. After a well is brought on-line, large volumes of produced water (primarily...
How does hydraulic fracturing affect the surface or landscape of an area?
An area undergoing production of oil or gas using hydraulic fracturing technology shares many features with areas where conventional oil or gas is being developed, including:RoadsPipelinesCompressor stationsProcessing facilities.Features that are unique to areas in which hydraulic fracturing is used include:Fewer but larger drilling pads, both to accommodate the equipment needed to conduct the...
What is hydraulic fracturing?
Hydraulic fracturing, informally referred to as “fracking,” is an oil and gas well development process that typically involves injecting water, sand, and chemicals under high pressure into a bedrock formation via the well. This process is intended to create new fractures in the rock as well as increase the size, extent, and connectivity of existing fractures. Hydraulic fracturing is a well...
Where in the United States is hydraulic fracturing being used for oil and gas extraction?
Hydraulic fracturing is used in many established oil and gas producing regions of the country as well as some areas new to the petroleum industry. Maps of major shale gas, tight gas, and tight oil basins are available from the U.S. Energy Information Administration, although not all of the shale basins shown currently have production.Learn more: Hydraulic Fracturing
When did hydraulic fracturing become such a popular approach to oil and gas production?
Hydraulic fracturing in vertical wells has been used for over fifty years to improve the flow of oil and gas from conventional reservoirs. However, the current practice of horizontal drilling coupled with multiple applications of hydraulic fracturing in a single well was pioneered in the late 1980s and has continued to evolve. Since the final years of the 20th century, the use of this technique to...
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- FAQ
Can hydraulic fracturing impact the quality of groundwater or surface water?
Conducted properly, hydraulic fracturing (or “fracking”) has little possibility of contaminating water supplies. Properly constructed wells prevent drilling fluids, hydraulic fracturing fluids, deep saline formation waters, or oil and gas from entering aquifers. Carefully constructed and operated well sites have the ability to contain potential spills and minimize runoff into surface waters.As...
How and where do drillers dispose of waste hydraulic fracturing fluid?
Most of the water and additives used in hydraulic fracturing (or “fracking”) remain deep underground in the geologic formation from which the oil or gas is being extracted. But some of the fluid, mixed with water or brine from the formation, returns through the well to the surface and is referred to as “produced water”. After a well is brought on-line, large volumes of produced water (primarily...
How does hydraulic fracturing affect the surface or landscape of an area?
An area undergoing production of oil or gas using hydraulic fracturing technology shares many features with areas where conventional oil or gas is being developed, including:RoadsPipelinesCompressor stationsProcessing facilities.Features that are unique to areas in which hydraulic fracturing is used include:Fewer but larger drilling pads, both to accommodate the equipment needed to conduct the...
What is hydraulic fracturing?
Hydraulic fracturing, informally referred to as “fracking,” is an oil and gas well development process that typically involves injecting water, sand, and chemicals under high pressure into a bedrock formation via the well. This process is intended to create new fractures in the rock as well as increase the size, extent, and connectivity of existing fractures. Hydraulic fracturing is a well...
Where in the United States is hydraulic fracturing being used for oil and gas extraction?
Hydraulic fracturing is used in many established oil and gas producing regions of the country as well as some areas new to the petroleum industry. Maps of major shale gas, tight gas, and tight oil basins are available from the U.S. Energy Information Administration, although not all of the shale basins shown currently have production.Learn more: Hydraulic Fracturing
When did hydraulic fracturing become such a popular approach to oil and gas production?
Hydraulic fracturing in vertical wells has been used for over fifty years to improve the flow of oil and gas from conventional reservoirs. However, the current practice of horizontal drilling coupled with multiple applications of hydraulic fracturing in a single well was pioneered in the late 1980s and has continued to evolve. Since the final years of the 20th century, the use of this technique to...
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