► View and print the entire Proceedings of the Technical Workshops for the Hydraulic Fracturing Study: Chemical & Analytical Methods

Presentations and Individual Abstracts

You may need a PDF reader to view some of the files on this page. See EPA's PDF page to learn more.

• Fracture Fluid Chemistry Theme
• Fingerprinting Theme
• Field and Analytical Challenges Theme

Fracture Fluid Chemistry Theme

• Technical Presentation Session 1: Fracture Fluid Formulations and Purposes

  • HF Fluid Considerations in Marcellus Shale Completions (PDF) Contributed By: Dennis Degner, Range Resources
  • High Rate HF in Non-Marcellus Unconventional Shale (PDF) Contributed By: Rick McCurdy, Chesapeake Energy
  • Cross-linked and Linear Gel Composition (PDF) Contributed By: Richard Hodge, ConocoPhillips
  • Old vs. New Trends in HF Chemicals (PDF) Contributed By: Denise Tuck, Halliburton
  • Unconventional Fracturing Fluids:What, Where, Why? (PDF) Contributed By: Satya Gupta, BJ Services - Baker Hughes

• Technical Presentation Session 2: Fracture Fluid Interaction with Host Materials

  • Inorganic Chemistry of Produced Water in the Appalachian Basin*
    Presented By: Elizabeth Rowan, USGS
    * The author did not contribute an abstract or presentation for the proceedings.
  • Produced Formation Water Sample Results from Shale Plays (PDF)
    Contributed By: Nancy Coleman, Chesapeake Energy
  • Trace Metal Geochemistry and Mobility in the Marcellus Formation (PDF)
    Contributed By: Tracy Bank, University at Buffalo
  • Fracture Fluid Additives and Formation Degradations (PDF)
    Contributed By: George King, Apache Corporation

• Technical Presentation Session 3: Fracturing Fluid Degradation Products

  • What Can You Expect or Not – Chemical Breakdown and Degradation (PDF) Contributed By: Denise Tuck, Haliburton
  • Evaluation of Radionuclides as Degradation Products of Host Materials in Response to Altered Fluid Chemistry Environment (PDF) Contributed By: Zoltan Szabo, USGS

Fingerprinting Theme

• Technical Presentation Session 4: Determining Ambient Groundwater Conditions

  • Chemical and Isotopic Tracers of Natural Gas and Formation Waters in Fractured Shales (PDF) Contributed By: Jennifer McIntosh, University of Arizona
  • Distinguishing the Source of Natural Gas Accumulations with a Combined Gas and Co-Produced Formation Water Geochemical Approach:A Case Study from the Appalachian Basin (PDF) Contributed By: Stephen Osborn, Duke University
  • The Origin of Some Natural Gases in Permian through Devonian Age Systems in the Northern Appalachian Basin and the Relationship to Incidents of Stray Gas Migration (PDF) Contributed By: Fred Baldassare, Echelon Applied Geoscience

• Technical Presentations 5: Introduced Tracers

  • Tracking Fracturing Fluid Movement with Chemical and Gamma-Emitting Tracers with Verification by Microseismic Recording (PDF) Contributed By: George King, Apache Corporation
  • Designing a Water Quality Program for Shale Exploration (PDF) Contributed By: Uni Blake, Gastem USA

• Technical Presentations 6: Tracing Fracturing Fluids in the Environment

  • Elucidating Water Contamination by Fracturing Fluids and Formation Waters from Gas Wells:Integrating Isotopic and Geochemical Fingerprints (PDF) Contributed By: Avner Vengosh, Duke University
  • Isotopic Tracing of Groundwater Contamination:Techniques, Applications,
    and Practical Considerations (PDF) Contributed By: Michael Lawson, ExxonMobil
  • Inorganic Geochemistry of Pennsylvania Marcellus Flowback Waters (PDF) Contributed By: Carl Kirby, Bucknell University

Top of Page

Field and Analytical Challenges Theme

• Technical Presentation Session 7: Sampling Issues – Representativeness, Handling, Preservation

  • Representativeness of Flowback Fluid Samples:
    Impacts of Post-Withdrawal Evolution and Temporal Variability of Composition*
    Presented By: Mark Engle, USGS
    * The author did not contribute an abstract or presentation for the proceedings.

• Practical Quantitation and Method Reporting Limits

  • Quality Assurance, Quality Control and Method Performance Considerations for Chemical Testing: Samples Impacted by Hydraulic Fracturing Fluids (PDF)
    Contributed By: David Thal, Environmental Standards, Inc.
  • Determination of Total Organic Carbons (TOC) in Difficult Sample Matrices Utilizing the Supercritical Water-Oxidation TOC Procedure (PDF) Contributed By: Keith McLeroy, Texas A&M University
  • Practical Quantitation Limits, Method Detection Limits, Interferences and Dilution Challenges
    in Fracturing Fluid Analyses (PDF) Contributed By: Kesavalu M. Bagawandoss, Accutest Labs

• Technical Presentation Session 8: Interference and Dilution Challenges Including Radionuclides

  • Radiochemical Analytical Challenges with Hydraulic Fracturing Fluids (PDF) Contributed By: Terry Romanko, TestAmerica Labs
  • Analytical Challenges of Radionuclides in Brines (PDF) Contributed By: Zoltan Szabo, USGS

Top of Page