With a traditional vertical well, energy companies would only be able to get the gas directly next to the well in some rocks. Fracking allows access to natural gas trapped in impermeable rocks such as shale. A fractured well starts in much the same way as a traditional one. The engineer drills straight down towards the target of bed rock and then turns the drill horizontally to make an L-shape deep under the surface. At that point, millions of gallons of fluid are forced through the well to fracture the rock. This fluid is made of water, sand or some other proppant to keep the cracks open, and chemicals to help erode at the work. That natural gas diffuses up through the cracks and is collected. Unfortunately, according to Ehrenburg (2012), “shale gas extraction is like blasting open a faucet. There’s a huge surge in gas, but it may become merely a dribble after a few years” (p. 2). This process has afforded access to a significant amount of natural gas all throughout the
With a traditional vertical well, energy companies would only be able to get the gas directly next to the well in some rocks. Fracking allows access to natural gas trapped in impermeable rocks such as shale. A fractured well starts in much the same way as a traditional one. The engineer drills straight down towards the target of bed rock and then turns the drill horizontally to make an L-shape deep under the surface. At that point, millions of gallons of fluid are forced through the well to fracture the rock. This fluid is made of water, sand or some other proppant to keep the cracks open, and chemicals to help erode at the work. That natural gas diffuses up through the cracks and is collected. Unfortunately, according to Ehrenburg (2012), “shale gas extraction is like blasting open a faucet. There’s a huge surge in gas, but it may become merely a dribble after a few years” (p. 2). This process has afforded access to a significant amount of natural gas all throughout the