What Is Ceramic Proppant Made Of

In addition there may be unconventional fracking fluids.

What is ceramic proppant made of.

Proppant is a solid material that is designed to keep a hydraulic fracture open during treatment. Man made proppants include materials such as resin coated sand or strong ceramic materials. Ceramic proppants can be made from a variety of materials. It is added to a fracking fluid which may vary in composition depending on the type of fracturing used and can be gel foam or slickwater based.

One job can require a few thousand tons of this proppant material. Ceramic proppant agents include sintered bauxite intermediate strength proppant and lightweight proppant. A proppant is a solid material typically sand treated sand or man made ceramic materials designed to keep an induced hydraulic fracture open during following fracturing treatment 17 apr 2014. It is usually sand grain or a man made proppant that includes high strength ceramic materials like resin coated sand.

There are several different types of materials used as proppant. Fluids make tradeoffs in such material properties as viscosity where more viscous fluids can carry. While most are made from bauxite kaolin aka china clay or a blend of the two materials a variety of other materials may be used including magnesium silicate and fly ash. View chapter purchase book.

Completion designs today utilize either naturally occurring crystalline silica sand or an engineered proppant material including ceramic. These proppants are optimal for stimulating deep wells greater than 8 000 ft where in situ stresses are very high. Most ceramic proppants are manufactured from powdered bauxite or kaolin clay which is fused into tiny beads and baked at very high temperatures. Proppants come in a variety of different sizes and spherical shapes for a variety of different situations.

Recently demand for proppants has increased as oil and natural gas wells are being made to yield more oil and gas using hydraulic fracturing.