Unconventional gas production uses large volumes of water to increase formation permeability and liberate gas through hydraulic fracturing (fracing). A complex cocktail of chemical additives is used to render surface or ground water suitable for fracing operations and to control deleterious microbial growth. Many of these additives are regulated in both the US and Canada due to their potentially harmful effects on the environment. In addition to additives, the large volumes of water recovered after fracing contain a variety of sub-surface derived components (e.g. complex hydrocarbons, heavy metals, salts and radionuclides) culminating in appreciable of levels biologically active components and high water salinity. Many of these components are known to degrade through microbial metabolic activity, at least under laboratory conditions, and identifying similar such activity in the environment, for example in native soils, represents an important opportunity to minimize the liability incurred by spillage or disposal of fracing fluid components, and may indeed also represent an opportunity to enhance capacity for water reuse. Here we evaluate the response of soil microbial communities to frac fluid components and report on both the dregradation of these components through soil metabolism as well as the effects of fracing fluids on soil ecosystem services.<br/>

The response of soil microbial communities to hydraulic fracturing fluids

255th National Meeting (2018)

The official archive and repository for all ACS Meetings & Expositions abstracts and select posters or presentations.