Open-FF just published a summary page of the substance classes of FracFocus. The purpose of this page is to introduce the broad characterization of the materials used in fracking. This analysis uses the authoritative work of the Chemical Abstract Service.
The dominant structural classes are:
- Small Molecules such as ethylene glycol and naphthalene.
- Polymers – long-chain molecules such as polyacrylamide, guar gum and PTFE.
- “Salt and Compound” complexes – materials with chemical components that likely dissociate under typical fracking conditions.
- Minerals – sand and the like.
One important finding from this summary is that more than 20% of the materials in FracFocus are not classified into a structural class. This indicates that many fracking materials are loosely or incompletely defined materials. This makes it hard to understand the properties and toxic profile. Several of these materials are commonly used in fracking jobs.
With the next disclosure release (late January), Substance Classes and the components of materials will be available on the Chemical Index page. Use the Column Visibility button to show those columns:
Title art by Becky Mansfield (2024); modified by author