eCORP Stimulation Technologies(eCORPStim, eCORP) announced on July, 2015 plans to deliver a shale gas extraction technology which uses naturally occurring components in conventional and shale hydrocarbon production – a selection of low molecular weight alkanes or light alkanes* – that are usually referred to as “baby oil” in common language.
Now, eCORP Stimulation Technologies, LLC (“ecorpStim”) is proud to announce the successful field demonstration of its new Light Alkanes Stimulation (LAS) system, during which it safely stimulated the Marcellus Shale with a fluid other than water. This field demonstration is part of ecorpStim’s ongoing efforts to advance the development of shale gas in a sustainable manner and with minimal environmental impact.
The test, conducted in January and February 2016 in Fayette County, Pennsylvania, confirmed the mechanical performance of the light alkane (LAS) fluid working in conjunction with the simple natural sand proppant to achieve injection and subsequent mechanical breaking of the rock, placing fluid and sand within it.
The only fluid used to initiate the stimulation was pure mineral oil. These alkanes are non-flammable and completely safe: they are approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration for human ingestion and exposure. They also have no adverse impacts on the environment: they are non-ozone depleting and have zero global warming potential.
Just like propane in pure propane stimulation (PPS) developed by ecorpStim, light alkanes are a component of natural hydrocarbon production from shales and conventional reservoirs. Thus, as they are already present in the reservoir, using them as the stimulation fluid does not damage the reservoir rock, and therefore should allow increased production from the well compared with traditional hydraulic fracturing. Likewise, light alkanes can also be self-supplied from the reservoir being stimulated. Lastly, they can be recycled through the reservoir and recovered for further use, in the same way as for propane and heptafluoropropane (as in ecorpStim’s NFP stimulation).
Light Alkanes Stimulation (LAS) also provides a greater flexibility (broad range of viscosity / density) which enables this new technology to be used in varied shale formations and operating conditions.
Dr. John Thrash, eCORP’s CEO and Chairman, stated, “We are extremely pleased with what we have confirmed with this procedure. We believe there is a certain path for sustainable shale gas development and this demonstration proves a viable clean alternative exists for stimulating shale. We intend to extend this design philosophy and demonstrate that a total reduced impact can be achieved through other innovations in drilling and exploration technologies we are developing at eCORP.”
Key Facts
- Technological innovation developed in 2015 by ecorpStim R&D team in Houston, Texas (USA).
- Not a single drop of water, no chemical additives of any kind whatsoever are used in the LAS system.
- Concept: using a selection of low molecular weight alkanes (sometimes referred to as “baby oil”) which are naturally occurring in hydrocarbon production (conventional/ unconventional) as the stimulation fluid.
- The selection of light alkanes used in LAS can be self-supplied from the reservoir, and recovered for an immediate or future re-use.
- The LAS system is non-flammable, because this mixture of light alkanes has a low vapor pressure and high flash point.
- The LAS system is non-toxic: these specific light alkanes are FDA approved for direct and indirect food use. They are also widely used in personal care products and cosmetics all over the world.
- The light alkanes used in the LAS system are non-ozone depleting and have no global warming potential.
What is Light Alkanes Stimulation?
Developed in 2015 by ecorpStim R&D teams in Houston (USA), Light Alkanes Stimulation or LAS is a technology for extracting unconventional hydrocarbons, which uses not a single drop of water and no chemical additives.
It uses naturally occurring components of conventional and unconventional hydrocarbon production – a selection of low molecular weight alkanes or light alkanes – that are sometimes referred to as “baby oil” in common language.
These alkanes are non-flammable and completely safe: they are approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration for human ingestion and exposure. They also have no adverse impacts on the environment: they are non-ozone depleting and have zero global warming potential.
These light alkanes used in LAS are a subset of odorless colorless technical grade organic oils as described in the classifications and / or standards of U.S. Department of Agriculture, U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration, U.S. Food and Drug Administration, U.S. Pharmacopeial Convention, NF, BP, DAB, EuP, Japanese and other pharmacopoeias worldwide.
Specifically excluded from this subset of hydrocarbons used in the LAS system are the very low molecular weight alkanes such as natural gas and LPGs. Also excluded from the LAS system are heavier alkanes which are often solids and possess different chemical characteristics.
In organic chemistry, an alkane is a hydrocarbon consisting only of hydrogen and carbon atoms where all molecular bonds are single bonds. Alkanes (always open-chain compounds) have the general chemical formula CnH2n+2. For example, Methane is CH4, in which n=1 (n being the number of Carbon atoms).
How does Light Alkanes Stimulation compare vs other ecorpStim systems?
Light Alkanes Stimulation (LAS) is a natural extension of Pure Propane Stimulation (PPS) and Non-Flammable Propane Stimulation (NFP). The philosophy is exactly the same for all three ecorpStim stimulation systems: they use no water and no chemical additives whatsoever, thus eliminating the drawbacks that are generally associated with the use of high volume hydraulic fracturing.
Also, like for propane in PPS, the light alkanes used in LAS are already present in the reservoir. Consequently, they do not damage the reservoir rock which should therefore result in increased productivity of the well compared with traditional hydraulic fracturing. The same principle applies with heptafluoropropane used in NFP.
What are the benefits of Light Alkanes Stimulation (LAS) compared with the other ecorpStim stimulation systems?
All three ecorpStim stimulation systems, Pure Propane Stimulation (PPS), Non-Flammable Propane Stimulation (NFP) and Light Alkanes Stimulation (LAS) complement one another to provide a range of “ecological” solutions to unconventional O&G operators.
Compared with PPS, LAS is a non-flammable option, just like NFP. And compared with NFP, LAS has no global warming potential.
From a technical point of view, LAS provides a broader range of viscosities / densities, which enables this technology to be used in a diversity of shale formations. Lastly, the light alkanes that are used in LAS exist in liquid form / phase at surface temperatures, rather than as a gas such as is the case with propane or other LPGs. As these liquids have a very low vapor pressure, they are therefore easily handled at the surface.
ecorpStim (eCORP Stimulation Technologies, LLC) is a subsidiary of eCORP that was created in 2012 to develop alternative technologies to hydraulic fracturing, using no water and no chemical additives. The stimulation fluids used in ecorpStim technologies are composed of naturally occurring components of natural gas, propane or other light alkanes, or of a fluorinated version of propane, in combination with low density proppants.
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