Chemicals used in fracking operations can be seen through many lenses. To better understand their use and consequences, it is critical that we consider multiple perspectives.
Chemicals as Problem Solvers
Fracking chemicals are used in large quantities because they perform critical work towards the goal of extracting fossil fuels. These pages outline challenges that chemicals solve.
| Unpacking Fracking Fluids: The Chemicals Behind the Process | This resource explains the functional roles of chemicals used in hydraulic fracturing fluids, categorizing them by the problems they address, such as reducing friction, preventing corrosion, and controlling bacteria, and providing examples of chemicals reported to FracFocus. (1 page) |
Chemical Structures
The overwhelming diversity of chemicals used in fracking operations can be simplified through grouping by chemical similarities.
| The Substance Classes of FracFocus Materials | This article categorizes fracking chemicals from FracFocus using SciFinder’s “Substance Classes,” revealing the complexities of these chemicals, ranging from well-defined small molecules to poorly understood mixtures. The analysis highlights that over 20% of these materials, crucial in most fracking operations, lack a defined structural classification. (1 page) |
| Chemical Classification Index | This series classifies reported FracFocus chemicals by their dominant chemical structure, and provides an overview of the major chemical classes, common examples and usage statistics. (about 20 pages) |
| Upcoming: Reported chemicals vs. universe of chemicals | |
| Upcoming: What more can we learn about UVCBs |
Chemical Hazards
Many materials used in fracking can have serious health and environmental consequences.
| EPA’s Cheminformatics and Open-FF’s graphic summary | EPA’s Cheminformatics tool assesses chemical hazards across 20 categories. Open-FF uses this data to create visual “hazard fingerprints” that summarize these assessments. (1 page) |
| Upcoming: Focus on known hazardous chemical groups: PAH, quats, | |
| Upcoming: Focus on specific hazards: carcinogens, endocrine disrupters, etc. |
Limits of Understanding
While disclosure instruments may promise transparency, many factors obstruct a full understanding of fracking’s impact.
| Holes in FracFocus | FracFocus suffers from significant data gaps, including trade secrets, ambiguous identifications, and unreported components in mixtures and water sources, hindering accurate risk assessment. (1 blog post) |
| Catalog of Holes in FracFocus | Open-FF developing page with links to in-depth examinations of systemic FracFocus weaknesses. |
| Upcoming: Using ChemInformatics to understand how much is known | |
| Upcoming: Factors that obscure our understanding |