what is hydraulic fracturing? - crc€¦ · what is hydraulic fracturing? pump sand and water...
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WHAT IS HYDRAULIC FRACTURING?
Pump sand and water mixture into the well below the cap rock under pressure. This mixture contains about 0.5% additives*, mostly found in common products you can buy at your local grocery store.
Allow the pressure to create a fracture through which oil and natural gas in the reservoir zone can flow into the well.
Prop the fracture open with sand to prevent it from closing and to provide space for oil and gas to move into the wellbore.
Reclaim, recycle or responsibly dispose of the water used or generated in the process.
*The amount of water and sand and the types and amounts of additives are available on the FracFocus® and DOGGR websites.
Hydraulic fracturing, sometimes known as “fracking,” is an established technique that’s been used safely over the last six decades to free oil and natural gas trapped in rock and sand formations deep underground.Here’s how hydraulic fracturing works in California:
CementConductor
CasingCementSurfaceCasing
IntermediateCasing
WELL CONSTRUCTION IS DESIGNEDTO KEEP FLUIDS CONTAINED
FOR MORE INFORMATION VISIT CRC.COM
Cement
CementProduction
Casing
All casings in the well are steel.
Impermeable rock, which traps fluids in the
oil and gas reservoir.
CAP ROCK
Rock that contains trapped oil and natural gas, usually sandstone or shale.
In California, the process yields thin fractures less than one inch wide at the wellbore that narrows and only
reaches a few hundred feet into the reservoir.
OIL AND GAS RESERVOIR
Wellbore
Injection of Water and Sand Fracturing Fluid
Hydraulic fracturing takes place at average depths of 4,000 feet.