Chemical Use

Chemical
Use

Chemicals serve many functions in hydraulic fracturing. From limiting the growth of bacteria to preventing corrosion of the well casing, chemicals are needed to insure that the fracturing job is effective and efficient.

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Why Chemicals Are Used

Chemical additives are present in most fracture fluids. These additives serve primarily to increase viscosity, which helps the fluid to carry proppant more effectively, and reduce friction, which allows the fluid to flow more easily to and into the target formation. Additives tend to make up less than 1% of fracture fluids and can serve several purposes, from corrosion inhibitors, which prevent the metal in a wellbore from deteriorating, to anti-bacterial agents.

What Chemicals Are Used

Chemical additives perform many functions within fracture fluids. A Chemical Abstracts Service (CAS) Number is a unique identifier for chemical substances. The CAS is a division of the American Chemical Society that is responsible for the administration, quality assurance and maintenance of the CAS registry. A CAS Number itself has no inherent chemical significance but provides an unambiguous way to identify a chemical substance or molecular structure when there are many possible systematic, generic, proprietary or trade names.