Quantity of flowback and produced waters from unconventional oil and gas exploration

Abstract

The management and disposal of flowback and produced waters (FP water) is one of the greatest challenges associated with unconventional oil and gas development. The development and production of unconventional natural gas and oil is projected to increase in the coming years, and a better understanding of the volume and quality of FP water is crucial for the safe management of the associated wastewater. We analyzed production data using multiple statistical methods to estimate the total FP water generated per well from six of the major unconventional oil and gas formations in the United States. The estimated median volume ranges from 1.7 to 14.3millionL (0.5 to 3.8milliongal) of FP per well over the first 5-10years of production. Using temporal volume production and water quality data, we show a rapid increase of the salinity associated with a decrease of FP production rates during the first months of unconventional oil and gas production. Based on mass-balance calculations, we estimate that only 4-8% of FP water is composed of returned hydraulic fracturing fluids, while the remaining 92-96% of FP water is derived from naturally occurring formation brines that is extracted together with oil and gas. The salinity and chemical composition of the formation brines are therefore the main limiting factors for beneficial reuse of unconventional oil and gas wastewater.

Wastewater from hydraulic fracturing in the UK: assessing the viability and cost of management

“…The majority of this controversy is due to concerns surrounding the hydraulic fracturing (fracking) process which is required to extract the hydrocarbons, and the management of resulting wastewater. [1][2][3][4][5] During this process, injected fluids consisting of 99.5% fresh water and proppant (to maintain fracture connectivity) and 0.5% chemical additives such as biocides, surfactants, viscosity adjusters, cross-linkers, breakers, corrosion inhibitors, bactericide, and friction reducers 6 react with the freshly fractured and exposed minerals, and mix with the formation fluids within the shale rocks being targeted. On de-pressurisation of the well following the fracturing process, these fluids are returned to the surface having inherited heavy metals, naturally occurring radioactive material (NORM), salts and hydrocarbons from interaction with the rocks and fluids at depth.…”

An Integrated Approach to Water-Energy Nexus in Shale-Gas Production

“…Table 1 shows the estimated value of flowback and produced water that returned from shale gas formations to the surface in the Eagle Ford basin. This estimated value is based on the study [37] for 10 plays since the early 2000s until 2015. The techno-economic data for RO and MED are reported in Table 2.…”

Petrochemical Wastewater and Produced Water

“…Multiple statistical methods were used to estimate the total FPW generated per well from six of the major Water Environment Research, Volume 90, Number 10 -Copyright © 2018 Water Environment Federation unconventional oil and gas formations in the United States using production data (Kondash et al, 2017). The estimated median volume ranges from 1.7 to 14.3 million L (0.5 to 3.8 million gal) per well over the first 5-10 years of production.…”