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Technology / Advancements Advanced technologies: Directional drilling- drilling systems that travel deeper into the ground and in numerous directions to reach natural gas more quickly and precisely - Can find target five miles from the well drill site and over a mile below the surface
Recovery techniques- using water and steam to increase the flow in drilling natural gas makes its production more efficient, reduces energy use, noise and waste, and produces fewer emissions Slimhole drilling- 90% of the well is drilled with a drill bit less than 6 inches in diameter, instead of the usual drill bit of 12.25 inches; decreases environmental impact (drilling footprint 75% less) and increases drilling efficiency (save 50% in cost because of increased efficiency; useful for both new fields and depleted fields
Coiled tubing- the traditional rigid, jointed drill pipe is replaced by a flexible, coiled pipe string, which reduces surface impact and also takes much less time; it is often used in combination with slimhole drilling CO2 sand fracturing- use a mixture of sand propants and liquid CO2 to fracture formations to allow oil and gas to flow more freely and be extracted more easily; it does not produce below-ground waste or damage the deposit
Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) - If natural gas is cooled at regular pressure to -260° F, it exists in a liquefied form that is easier to transport than its gas form - Currently, it is expensive to produce, but it can be economical where pipelines are uneconomical since it is so much easier to transport - LNG will only burn or explode under very specific conditions, so it is unlikely to have adverse effects if it spills - It is almost pure methane (oxygen, carbon dioxide, sulfur, and water are removed) - Transported by specialized tanker with insulated walls - Allows for production and marketing of gas where before unrecoverable - Currently, only 1% of natural gas used in U.S., but increasing
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