Advanced Shale Gas Recovery Technologies for Horizontal Well Completion Optimization

a. Advanced Shale Gas Recovery Technologies for Horizontal Well Completion Optimization Advanced Shale Gas Recovery Technologies for Horizontal Well Completion Optimization Proposals are sought to develop and test technologies that will reduce the amount of or eliminate the water needed for hydraulic fracturing when completing natural gas wells or that will improve the apparent low (<30%) natural gas and liquids recovery efficiency currently associated with horizontal, hydraulically fractured wells producing from shale formations. Proposals should focus on addressing a number of important areas where cost effective improvements may be possible. The objective is to increase the efficiency of resource recovery on a per well basis or reduce the volume of fresh water required to produce a unit volume of natural gas. For example, research could include quantitative assessments of the practical and economic limits and potential benefits (if any) of employing mixtures of natural gas (not LPG as is currently practiced) with conventional sand-laden fracturing fluids, as a novel fracturing fluid to partially replace water in the large volume, multiple stage hydraulic fracturing treatments representative of those being applied in shale gas and shale oil plays today. Examples of analyses could include laboratory experiments and/or computer simulations that quantify the effect on relative permeability to gas in a producing wellbore when mixtures of conventional fracturing fluids and natural gas (versus fracturing liquids only) are employed as fracturing fluids under conditions representative of major shale gas plays. Research could characterize the potential volumes and rates of natural gas / conventional fracturing fluid mixtures required to achieve well productivity similar to that achieved when wells are fractured using conventional fracturing fluids alone. Questions Contact: William Fincham, william.fincham@netl.doe.gov