Transformation of Energy, Technologies in Purification and End Use of Shale Gas

Abstract

Improvements in horizontal drilling combined with recent advancement in hydraulic fracturing techniques have resulted in the production of natural gas from shale formation, being one of the fastest growing segments in the United States (U.S.) oil and gas industry today. The shale gas production boom is transforming the energy market place, where the U.S. was expecting increased volume of imported Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) to meet its domestic natural gas demand five to six years ago, is now looking forward to exporting LNG produced from the domestic gas in less than five to six years. In addition, it is also expecting growth in a wide range of chemical manufacturing industries relying on the use of low cost natural gas and its co-products. This paper provides a general description for the shale gas with recent advancement in production techniques. The paper identifies U.S. shale gas resources and the expected increase in gas production which has revolutionized and transformed the U.S. energy picture. The paper also provides recently identified worldwide shale gas resources that can be exploited.

The growth in shale gas production will also spur the growth in the associated infrastructure including gas purification or treatment facilities installation requirement for the removal of contaminants from the gas making it suitable for the end use. The paper provides a description of the available technologies that are generally utilized in gas treatment or purification of shale gas. The paper further describes the extraction of Natural Gas Liquids (NGL), or co-products of natural gas, consisting of ethane, propane, butane and natural gasoline (or light naphtha) that provides a low cost feedstock to downstream chemical production reducing the dependency on the import of foreign oil. The increased production of ethane from the NGL will have a significant positive economic impact and added value as a chemical precursor in transforming ethane to ethylene production at a lower cost. Over the last five years, the advancement in the shale gas production techniques has not only transformed the energy industry in the U.S. but also has a potential to change the global energy picture in the future.