Frakturering
Bilag 3. FRX Fracturing Experience
General notes:
Geology: All soils were clay or silty clays. Most soil was of glacial origin, except as
noted.
Costs: Many factors influence the charges for fracturing. For instance, client
preferences and the degree of our involvement in other aspects of each project are
reflected in final charges. Also, economies of scale strongly impact the significance of
mobilization charges. In order to preserve confidentiality, isolate the cost of creating
fractures, and eliminate gross variations in scale, the following table assigns costs as
high, medium, or low. For purposes of discussion, low should be considered as <$1500
per fracture while high is >$2500 per fracture.
| Client, Location, and Date |
Project Description |
- Hull & Associates and B. P. Oil Co.
|
Fractures were created at three depths in a pilot test well
at the site of a former gasoline station. The remediation contractor reported that flow
rates in an SVE pilot test were enhanced by more than an order of magnitude in the
presence of the fractures and that the lower fracture served to control water level in the
vicinity of the well. Contact:
Nancy P. Kiernan
BP Oil Co. 200 Public Square
Cleveland, Ohio
44114-2375
(216) 586 8833, FAX 216 586 8222
Costs: Low |
- American Petroleum Institute,
US Department of Energy,
Oregon Graduate Institute,
University of Waterloo, and
B. P. Oil Co.
|
Several fractures were installed to provide systems for
various research programs conducted under the auspices of the University of Waterloo. One
fracture, of particular interest, was installed in a 10 m by 10 m isolation cell that was
constructed of sheet piling driven 10 m into the earth. The cell provided a field-scale
laboratory for studying the migration of nonaqueous phase liquids that were intentionally
spilled on the ground surface in the cell. The fracture was created well below the known
water table in this very extensively characterized system. Its purpose was to control the
water level in the cell, thus facilitating studies of NAPL movement. It also served as a
hydraulic barrier against sinking DNAPL. The principal investigator of the test area
reported that the fracture operated as planned. Contact:
Terry Walden
BP Research
Warrensville Research &
4440 Warrensville Center Road
Cleveland, Ohio
44128-2837
216 586 5590, Fax 216 581 5406
Costs:
Because of the research flavor of the project, costs may not be representative of a
commercial application. Otherwise there were no special factors that would increase the
cost of fracturing. |
- Alta Consulting Corp. and
Premier Restaurant Management Company
|
Hydraulic fractures were created to enhance SVE remediation
at the site of a former gasoline station. Two or three fractures, depending on depth to
bedrock, were created at nine locations across the site. Access points to the fractures
were completed below grade to allow imminent erection of a restaurant on the location.
Remediation activities have been in abeyance since discovery of a previously undocumented
UST on the property. Contact:
John Blackman
Alta Consulting Corporation
4 Corporation Center Drive
Broad View Heights, Ohio
44147
216 838 0550 Fax 216 838 0528
Costs:
Fracturing at the site was constrained by its small size and multiple concurrent
construction activities. Nonetheless, the project was representative of a low cost,
turn-key type project. |
- State of Maine Department of Environmental Resources
|
Fourteen fractures were installed along the perimeter of a
parcel of land adversely affect by fuel spills from a gasoline station and fuel storage
yard that was located up-hill and up-stream of the site. The effort showed that suitable
fractures could be created in Maine, even though the soil was considerably more poorly
sorted than any other location. Some of the fractures were installed within a triangle
formed by three pre-existing, conventionally completed SVE pilot wells. Although the pilot
wells were not significantly affected by the presence of the fractures, the wells from
which the fractures were created exhibit substantial (probably 10x) increase in air flow.
Another of the fractures produced water with a heavy sheen of oil, whereas a monitoring
well in the same vicinity had not indicated presence of contaminants. Contact:
Paul Blood
Maine Dept. Environmental Protection
106 Hogan Road
Bangor, Maine
04401
207 941 4570, FAX 207 941 4584
The remote site location in northern Maine increased mobilization charges as well as
freight charges for sand. Water was retrieved from a local bog, which necessitated careful
review of its compatibility with gel. After accounting for these factors, project cost can
be characterized as medium. |
- Earth Sciences Consultants, Inc. and
Specialty Chemical Resources, Inc.
|
SVE pilot tests with a single hydraulic fracture confirmed
ability of fractures to extend radius of influence of extraction wells from a few feet to
dozens of feet. Subsequently, fourteen hydraulic fractures, both above and below the water
table, were created along the perimeter of an area subjected to repeated spills of
commercial solvents. The project objective was to establish complete hydrological control
of the area by as few wells as possible. The project was executed on a tight time table to
facilitate construction of a new overlying building. Approval for the remediation system
was obtained from the Ohio EPA in the spring of 1996. A required NPDS permit from the
local sewer authority is expected in April of 1997. Contact:
Mark Elicker
Earth Sciences Consultants Inc.
(330)535-6966
3575 Forrest Lake Drive
Uniontown, Ohio
44685
(330)535-6966
Costs:
Despite a tight time frame, project costs can be considers as medium. |
- Foremost Solutions and GSA
|
Hydraulic fractures were created with Isolite® a
manufactured porous solid that served as a transport for microbes cultured for efficient
bioremediation. Fractures were created at two locations in surficial soils and weathered
bedrock contaminated with cutting oils. Biological activity at one location was stimulated
by periodic addition of nutrient solutions and injection o air. At both locations, TPH
concentrations in samples at several depths decreased from ~3000 ppm to ~200 ppm in 5
months. Seth Hunt
Foremost Solutions
350 Indiana St
Suite 415
Golden,Colorado
80401
303 271 9114, Fax 303 278 0624
Costs:
Other than the use of a specialty propant, fracturing costs were low. |
|
|
This Superfund site resulted from the disposal of machining
oils and solvents in a dry well. The hydrocarbons penetrated the underlying 40 feet of
clay soil and entered a weathered bedrock system that serves as drinking water aquifer for
the surrounding area. Pump and treat operations have managed to stabilize the aquifer
plume, but the contaminated clay soils acts as a persistent source. Attempts to remediate
the clay by SVE were foiled by low permeability and high water content. A two well pilot
was performed to demonstrate the enhancements effected by hydraulic fracturing. The test
showed that fractures could assist SVE recovery by dewatering the clay and extending the
radius of influence of the wells. Full scale installations are planned for the summer and
fall of 1996. Contact:
Gary Kennett
Linemaster Switch Corp.
29 Plaine Hill Road
Woodstock, CT
06281
680 974 1000 Fax 860 974 1533
Costs:
The Superfund status of the site increased the degree of oversight and planning and
logistical activities. The greater depth of contaminated soil, when compared to sites
discussed above, permitted creation of larger fractures, which consumed commensurably more
material. The convenient location and availability of resources diminished costs of the
project. In aggregate, representative fracture costs were medium. |
- Rickenbacker ANGB, Columbus, OH
|
Electro kinetics, which perform better in finer pore media,
offer a opportunity to mobilize contaminants in tight clay soil that do not permit
substantial hydraulic or pneumatic flow. Hydraulic fractures filled with conductive
material, such as graphite, serve as horizontal, plate-like electrodes for in situ
electrokinetic processes. Contaminants in between the electrodes can be mobilized and
driven to intermediate fractures that can be completed as collectors or filled with agents
to destroy the contaminants. Techniques for creating suitable fractures have been worked
out, and several means of treating chlorinated solvents, such as biodegradation or iron
catalyzed dechlorination , will be tested at the site. Contact:
Mike Roullier
US EPA
5995 Center Hill Road
Cincinnati, OH
45224
513 569 7206
Costs:
More expensive propants must be used. Even without the research nature, cost must be
considered to be high. |
- US DOE, Oak Ridge National Lab, Martin Marietta Energy Systems
- Portsmouth Uranium Enrichment Plant, Piketon, Ohio
- July - September, 1996
and
July - September, 1997
|
A TCE plume is available for demonstrations and tests of
innovative and enhanced technologies in low permeability media. Target soil is a ~20 ft
thick surficail clay unit. The current year project will test four technologies, all of
which will utilize hydraulic fractures as enhancements. Steam and hot air will be injected
into sand filled fractures while adjacent fractures are connected to conventional SVE or
pump and treat systems. Extensive temperature measurements will permit estimates of
efficiency of the processes. Two in situ chemical processes will be tested at other
location s at the site. Fractures will be created with iron and with encapsulated
permanganate to test iron catalyzed reduction of chlorinated hydrocarbons and to test
destructive oxidation of contaminants. Contact:
Bob Seigrist
Oak Ridge National Lab and
Colorado School of Mines
1500 Illinois
Golden CO 80401
(303) 273 3490
Costs:
Security and health concerns substantially inflated costs of this project. Otherwise,
fracturing costs would be low. |
|
|
Multiple hydraulic fractures were installed for use in
various research projects concerning fluid flow in the subsurface. Some fractures were
created using directional techniques to manipulate the shape and orientation of the
fracture. Contact:
Prof. Dave Rudolph
Department of Earth Sciences
University of Waterloo
Waterloo, Ontario
Canada
(519) 888 4567 x6778 |
|
|
Hydraulic fractures were successfully created to demonstrate
feasibility of fracturing in clay and silt soils at the base. Soils are lacustrine with
strong bedding. Nearly perfectly symmetrical fractures were formed. The site is being
considered for the EPA Lasagna program Contact:
Jennifer Rock
55CES/CEVR
106 Peacekeeper Drive
Suite 2N3
Offutt AFB, NE
68113-4019
Costs: More expensive propants must be used. Even without the research nature, cost
must be considered to be high. |
- U-Pump-It, Lakewood, CO and
Mustang Gas, Grand Junction, CO
|
Hydraulic fractures were created with porous granules that
were inoculated with selected bacteria. The resulting structures, which are known as
Bionets.®, have reduced soil and groundwater concentrations of gasoline compounds at the
sites. Seth Hunt
Foremost Solutions
350 Indiana St
Suite 415
Golden, Colorado
80401
303 271 9114, Fax 303 278 0624
Costs:
Other than the use of a specialty propant, fracturing costs were low. |
- November 1996 - August 1997
|
See description of Linemaster site, above. Full scale
implementation of fracturing was implemented during two deployments in 1996 and 1997. A
fracture testing program was developed to provide quantitative assessment of the created
fractures. Monitoring of process function was augmented by emplacement of TDR sensors
designed and installed by FRX. The project was the subject of a platform presentation at
the 1st Annual Conference on Remediation of Chlorinated and Recalcitrant
Compounds at Monterey, CA, May 14- 20, 1998.
Contacts: See above. |
- US DOE, Oak Ridge National Lab, Lockheed Martin Energy Systems
- Portsmouth Uranium Enrichment Plant, Piketon, Ohio
|
Following the results the 1996 and 1997 tests at the site
(see above) in situ destruction by potassium permanganate was selected for application in
adjacent locations. Potassium permanganate fractures were created in and below a
back-filled section of landfill that was contaminated with TCE and petroleum hydrocarbons.
Contacts: see above |
- Applied Engineering Science, Atlanta GA
- CSX Railyard, Birmingham, AL
|
Several feet of diesel fuel has been observed in monitoring
wells in an abandoned railyard near downtown Birmingham. Hydraulic fractures created
around recovery wells have improved the rate of recovery by a factor of 6. Several dozen
fractures have been installed across an area amounting to six city blocks. Dave Butler
Applied Engineering Science
2261 Perimeter Park Drive
Atlanta, Georgia
30341
770 454 1810 Fax 770 454 1816 |
- Foremost Solutions, Inc & AGRA Earth & Environmental & New Mexico Dept of
Transportation
|
Gasoline leaks and spills from USTs migrated fifty feet
downward and several hundred feet laterally. Hydraulic fractures were created with porous
granules that were inoculated with selected bacteria, creating structures that are known
as Bionets®. Contacts: see above &
Bob Wilcox
AGRA Earth & Environmental
Albuquerque, NM
505 821 1801 Fax 505 821 7371 |
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