Produced and Flowback Water Recycling and Reuse: Economics, Limitations, and Technology

The demands for the fresh water used in many hydraulic fracturing operations are placing pressure on water sources in some regions of the United States. Because of the high volumes of water needed for fracturing (e.g., in the Marcellus, a typical hydraulic fracturing operation for a horizontal gas well in a tight shale formation requires from 3 to 5 million gallons of water over a 2- to 5-day period), the competing demand driven by industrial, municipal, and agricultural users has in some cases decreased the availability of fresh water and increased associated costs.