Glossary
R |
| Reservoir |
A portion of the formation found to contain commercial quantities of hydrocarbons within the pores of the rock. |
S |
| Shale |
A dense rock formed over millions of years from ancient sediments of decaying, organic material. Although geologists have known about the energy-potential of shale rock for generations, only within the past decade have these resources been considered economical to produce – thanks in large part to the advances in horizontal drilling and the application of the 60-year-old technology of hydraulic fracturing. Shale is known as a "source rock" because it is the source of oil and gas deposits that are contained in sandstone and carbonate formations from which oil and gas are normally produced. |
| Stimulation |
Generally, any process performed on an oil or natural gas well to increase the flow of energy to the surface. Stimulation processes include fracturing, scale and paraffin removal, controlling unwanted water, and certain types of perforating. |
T |
| Tight Sands |
A sandstone rock formation with extremely low permeability, similar in that respect to shale. |
V |
| Vertical Wellbore |
A wellbore in which the angle between the wellhead at the surface and the bottom of the well is between 0° and 60°. A wellbore approaching a 60° angle is called highly deviated. |
W |
| Water Frac |
A fracturing treatment performed using a water-based fluid formulation in which the friction pressure is reduced when pumping fluid volumes through several thousand feet of casing. This increases the amount of hydraulic pressure imparted on the oil or natural gas-bearing formation. These formulations also have a very low viscosity, which encourages the development of many small interconnected cracks to improve production. |
| Wellbore |
The conduit used to connect the oil and natural gas-bearing reservoir to the surface |
Z |
| Zone of Interest |
A segment of the formation in a single wellbore that is considered likely to produce commercial amounts of hydrocarbons. |
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