Shale Oil and Gas Handbook

Theory, Technologies, and Challenges

Sohrab Zendehboudi,Alireza Bahadori

• Publisher: Gulf Professional Publishing
• Year: 2016
• ISBN:
  9780128021132
• Topic: Technology & Engineering
• Subtopic: Fossil Fuels
• Index: Technology & Engineering

Shale Oil and Gas Handbook: Theory, Technologies, and Challenges provides users with information on how shale oil and gas exploration has revolutionized today's energy industry. As activity has boomed and job growth continues to increase, training in this area for new and experienced engineers is essential.

This book provides comprehensive information on both the engineering design and research aspects of this emerging industry. Covering the full spectrum of basic definitions, characteristics, drilling techniques, and processing and extraction technologies, the book is a great starting point to educate oil and gas personnel on today's shale industry.

Critical topics covered include characterization of shale gas, theory and methods, typical costs, and obstacles for exploration and drilling, R&D and technology development in shale production, EOR methods in shale oil reservoirs, and the current status and impending challenges for shale oil and gas, including the inevitable future prospects relating to worldwide development.

• Reveals all the basic information needed to quickly understand today's shale oil and gas industry, including advantages and disadvantages, equipment and costs, flow diagrams, and processing stages
• Evenly distributes coverage between oil and gas into two parts, as well as upstream and downstream content
• Provides a practical handbook with real-world case studies and problem examples, including formulas and calculations

Chapter One

Shale Gas

Introduction, Basics, and Definitions

Abstract

Shale gas plays an important role in supplying the growing demands of energy. These types of reservoirs have their own characteristics which make them different from other reservoirs. There are different shale gas reservoirs around the world and they are categorized based on parameters such as type of shale, adsorbed gas, and permeability. There are some technical and economic challenges in the production of gas reservoirs which should be systematically studied.

Keywords

Natural gas; Production challenges; Shale gas type; Shale gas properties

1. Introduction

Hydrocarbons in the forms of oil and gas phases are the primary energy sources which humans around the globe depend on to provide fuel for the advanced technologies that we rely on to make our lives easier. Thus, the demand for energy from fossil fuels is constantly on the rise to meet our increasingly energy-intensive lifestyles [1–3].

Natural gas is a fossil fuel which is derived from living organisms that are buried under the earth's crust. Over time, heat and pressure convert the organisms into oil and gas. It is one of the cleanest and most efficient sources of energy. Due to its high calorific value and no ash content, it is widely employed as a major fuel in several sectors such as automobile, refining, house heating, and so on [1–3].

Natural gas has been used as an energy source in Canada since the 1800s, but it did not become a common energy source until the late 1950s. Following the construction of the Trans Canada Pipeline, it started gaining popularity. After the price hike of crude oil in the late 1970s, its demand grew very quickly. The oil crisis resulted in long line-ups outside gas stations, which caused decision-makers to consider natural gas. The environment safety concern has also added to its popularity because burning of natural gas is cleaner, compared to other fossil fuels [1–3].

Natural gas comes from both conventional and unconventional formations. The key difference between conventional and unconventional natural gases is the method, ease, and cost associated with technology of extraction/production [1–3].

Shale gas is natural gas, one of several forms of unconventional gas. Shale gas is trapped within shale formations with low permeability, which is fine-grained sedimentary rock. The rock acts as its source as well as a reservoir. The shale rock appears to be the storage material and also the creator of the gas through the decomposition of organic matters. Therefore, the techniques used at one well may not result in success at another shale gas location [2,4,5].

Shale reserves discovered across the world consist of several billion of tons of trapped oil and gas, making them fossil fuel resources of the century [1,2]. It is estimated that approximately 456 × 10¹² m³ of shale gas are available globally [6]. Development of economic, eco-friendly and safer drilling technologies to access trapped gas, made shale resources the next big reliable source of energy in the world, particularly in North America [7]. The US Department of Energy projects that shale gas will occupy 50% of total energy produced in the country by 2035, that is, around 340 billion cubic meters/year [8]. In addition to the production of natural gas, other fuels like NGLs (natural gas liquids; propane and butane) are simultaneously produced from the shale reservoirs [3,7].

The gas in many US shale formations such as Antrim shale formation (Michigan) and New Albany Shale formation (Illinois) has been created in the last 10,000–20,000 years [9]. In 1825, the first extraction of shale gas was performed in Fredonia (NY) in shallow and low-pressure fractures. In naturally fractured Devonian shales, the development of the Big Sandy gas field commenced in Floyd County, Kentucky, 1915 [10]. Until 1976, the field extended over 1000 square miles of southern West Virginia and into eastern Kentucky, with production from the Cleveland Shale and the Ohio Shale, together called the “Brown Shale,” where there are 5000 wells in Kentucky alone. By the 1940s, to stimulate the shale wells, explosive down the hole operations had been utilized. In 1965, other efficient techniques, such as hydraulic fracturing (including 42,000 gallons of water and 50,000 pounds of sand), were developed for production wells, particularly those with low recovery rates [10]. The average production per-well was small since the flow rate was mainly dependent on the existence of natural fractures; however, the field had a final gas recovery of 2 × 1012 ft3. In the 1920s, there were other widespread commercial gas production basins such as Michigan, Appalachian, and Illinois basins in the Devonian-age shale, though the production was typically insignificant [10].

The discovery and exploitation of shale oil and gas present a major innovation with economic and political implications for developing countries. In recent years, the rapid expansion of shale gas development and production has had a profound impact on the current and future of the global energy market. The advancement of natural gas production from shell formations is revolutionizing the energy...