Plasma Fracturing Device for Shale Gas Extraction
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional shale gas fracturing methods require large amounts of water or LPG, leading to high development costs, environmental contamination, and explosion risks, due to the need for nearby water sources and the inefficiencies and hazards associated with hydraulic fracturing and LPG use.
Innovation Solution
A fracturing device using shock waves generated by a plasma reaction, which includes a partition unit to seal a well casing, a probe to apply energy and generate plasma, and a medium supply unit to inject a reaction medium, such as liquefied petroleum gas, to fracture shale rock layers with reduced medium usage and controlled energy application.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If hydraulic fracturing method using water is used, then shale gas can be extracted, but huge amount of water is needed causing high development cost and environmental contamination
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces the hydraulic fracturing method (using water pressure) with a plasma-based shock wave generation method. Instead of injecting huge amounts of water to create fractures, the invention uses a probe to generate plasma reactions that produce shock waves, thereby fracturing the shale rock layer without requiring large quantities of water.
Solution Approach 2:
The invention changes the physical state and parameters of the reaction medium by using plasma (ionized gas) instead of liquid water. The plasma reaction generates extreme temperatures and pressures that create shock waves, fundamentally changing the mechanism from hydraulic pressure to thermal-mechanical shock, thus reducing water consumption while maintaining fracturing effectiveness.
2Quantity of substance
If LPG is used instead of water for fracturing, then water consumption is reduced, but explosion risk increases due to high pressure state
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces LPG (a flammable gas) with plasma-generated shock waves as the fracturing mechanism. Instead of pressurizing LPG which creates explosion hazards, the invention uses electrical energy to create plasma reactions that generate shock waves, eliminating the need for high-pressure flammable gas storage and handling.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces plasma as an intermediary medium between electrical energy and the shale rock. The plasma reaction acts as a mediator that converts electrical energy into mechanical shock waves, avoiding the direct use of flammable gases like LPG while achieving the same fracturing effect.
3Productivity
If conventional hydraulic fracturing is used, then shale gas extraction is effective, but nearby rock layer and underground water are contaminated by produced substances
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces the hydraulic fracturing process that injects chemical substances into the ground with a plasma-based shock wave method. This substitution eliminates the injection of potentially contaminating chemicals into the underground environment while maintaining the ability to fracture shale and extract gas.
Solution Approach 2:
The invention converts electrical energy (a clean energy source) into plasma reactions that generate shock waves. This approach transforms a potentially harmful chemical process into a cleaner physical process, where the energy source (electricity) can be generated from renewable sources, thereby reducing environmental contamination.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
The method effectively reduces environmental contamination, lowers costs, and minimizes explosion risks by using less reaction medium and employing a low-vibration, low-noise process, while efficiently extracting shale gas with reduced utility investments and no hazardous environmental factors.
Implementation Method 1
a probe for applying energy into the reaction medium to be accommodated into the reaction space to generate shock waves with a plasma reaction of the reaction medium to be propagated to the shale rock layer
Data Source
AI summary
A fracturing device using a shock wave of a plasma reaction includes a partition unit for partitioning a reaction space such that a reaction medium is accommodated therein, by sealing a part having a plurality of through-holes among well casing of a gas well provided at shale rock layer so as to extract shale gas and a probe for applying energy to the reaction medium such that the reaction medium generates shock wave by a plasma reaction as the energy is applied to the reaction medium accommodated inside the reaction space, so as to propagate shock wave to the shale rock layer.