Fracking No More

Hydraulic fracturing, aka fracking, revolutionized energy production in the United States but new technology better than fracking could vastly expand oil reserves.

The term fracking refers to how the rock is fractured apart by the high pressure hydraulic. Fracking is the process of drilling down into the earth before a high-pressure water mixture is directed at the rock to release the gas inside. Water, sand and chemicals are injected into the rock at high pressure, which allows the gas to flow out to the head of the well.

As strange, as it seems Oil giants like BP and ConocoPhillips are pouring resources into finding ways to extract oil resources with microwaves.

Using microwaves can be far less water and energy-intensive than fracking.

Producers can microwave oil shale formations with a beam as powerful as 500 household microwave ovens, cooking the rock and releasing the oil. It also would turn the water found naturally in the deposits to steam, which would help push the oil to the top of the well.

Peter Kearl, co-founder and CTO of Qmast, a Colorado-based company pioneering the use of the microwave tech stated that if producers can find a way to microwave oil shales in the Green River Formation, which sprawls across Colorado, Utah and Wyoming, the nation’s recoverable reserves could soar and energy independence could become more than an election slogan. He believes that there are more than 4 trillion barrels of oil in the Green River Formation, which is impossible to reach by fracking.

This could mean more opportunities for the Joliet residents who are moving across the country to find fracking jobs.