Unconventional natural gas Glossary
Abiogenic gas
- Natural gas originating from non-biological sources
- Where molecules of a gas, liquid or solute are held to the surface of a solid substance, causing a thin film to form. Natural gas is adsorbed onto the surface of coal or shale in coalbed methane and shale gas reservoirs respectively.
- Bacteria capable of surviving without oxygen
- Depleted of or deficient in oxygen
- Actions taken by staff or a third party to help measure a company’s compliance with legislation and internal requirements, and to identify opportunities for improvement. Audits can involve field inspections, interviews with management and document review.
Biodiversity
- Refers to the variety of ecosystems and animal, bird, fish and plant species.
- Natural gas originating from bacteria acting on organic matter
- A seismic reflector paralleling the sea floor and resulting from seismic energy slowing significantly as it passes from denser hydrate-bearing strata to less dense gas bearing strata
Clastic
- Made up of pieces (clasts) of older rock; rock derived from mechanical processes; generally sandstone, siltstone or shale
- Natural gas contained by a lattice of water molecules. Also known as gas hydrate
- Term used to describe the view that the Earth’s temperature and climate will change, in part, due to the buildup of greenhouse gas emissions from human activities.
- Natural gas in its gaseous state that has been compressed to about one per cent of its volume and stored at 20,000 to 27,500 kilopascals.
- Natural gas generated during the coalification process and trapped within coal seams, commonly referred to as natural gas from coal
- Transformation of organic material, primarily plant remains, into coal through high temperature and pressure
- Preparing a newly drilled well for production; usually involves setting casing – pipe that lines the interior of a well to prevent caving and protect against ground water contamination – and perforating the casing to establish communication with the producing formation
- Increasing the pressure of natural gas to move it through pipelines or other facilities
- : Cryogenic liquids are liquefied gases that are kept in their liquid state at very low temperatures and have a normal boiling point below -238 degrees Fahrenheit (-150 degrees Celsius). All cryogenic liquids are gases at normal temperatures and pressures. These liquids include methane, oxygen, nitrogen, helium and hydrogen. Cryogens normally are stored at low pressures.
- Changes to the environment caused by an activity in combination with other past, present and reasonably foreseeable human activities.
Darcy
- A standard unit of measure of permeability. One darcy describes the permeability of a porous medium through which the passage of one cubic centimetre of fluid having one centipoise of viscosity flowing in one second under a pressure differential of one atmosphere where the porous medium has a cross-sectional area of one square centimetre and a length of one centimetre
- Freeing natural gas from the surface of coal or kerogen, usually by lowering the reservoir pressure
- Controlled drilling of a well at a specified angle from the vertical using slant rigs or downhole motors or deflecting the bit
- Process to resolve conflicts in mutually beneficial ways, using techniques such as negotiation or third-party mediation instead of public hearings or courts
- Developing a gas field by drilling more than one well per section
- The operation that involves boring a hole through overlying geological horizons to the target zone(s) to determine if oil or gas is present in commercial quantities, and to convey oil and gas to the surface if found in commercial quantities.
Fracturing (or fracing)
- A reservoir stimulation technique in which fluids are pumped into a potentially productive formation under high pressure to create or enlarge fractures allowing the oil or gas to flow from the zone at higher rates. In some operations proppants such as frac sand are injected with the frac fluid to help hold the rock fractures open.
Gas hydrates
- Crystalline solids comprising single gas molecules surrounded by a framework of frozen water molecules
- Shale formations containing natural gas
-
The warming of the Earth’s surface caused by the presence of carbon dioxide and other gases, known as greenhouse gases, in the atmosphere that trap the heat of the sun.
- Gases that trap heat near the Earth’s surface. These include carbon dioxide, methane, nitrous oxide and water vapor. These gases occur through natural processes (such as ocean currents, cloud cover, volcanoes) and human activities (such as the burning of fossil fuels).
- Water accumulations below the earth’s surface that supply freshwater to wells and springs.
Kerogen
- Insoluble organic matter
Landfill
- Site designed for disposal of solid or chemical wastes by burial. It may be an open pit or an engineered facility that includes special linings to prevent wastes from leaking into water supplies.
- The process by which natural gas is converted into liquid natural gas.
- Supercooled natural gas that is maintained as a liquid at or below -160°C; LNG occupies 1/640th of its original volume and is therefore easier to transport if pipelines cannot be used.
Methane (CH4)
- Methane consists of one carbon atom and four hydrogen atoms and is the largest component of natural gas. Methane remains in a gaseous state at relatively low temperatures and pressures. Methane is also produced when organic matter decomposes
- One thousandth of a darcy; a commonly used unit for measuring permeability reservoir rocks. See Darcy.
National Energy Board (NEB)
- The federal regulatory agency in Canada that authorizes oil, natural gas, and electricity exports; certifies interprovincial and international pipelines, and designated interprovincial and international power lines; and sets tolls and tariffs for oil and gas pipelines under federal jurisdiction.
- Natural gas generated during the coalification process and adsorbed onto coal faces. Also referred to as coalbed methane
- Natural gas found in fine-grained, low permeability sandstone reservoirs which require extensive stimulation or sophisticated drilling techniques to produce
- Natural resources that cannot be replaced after they have been consumed. This term applies particularly to fossil fuels such as coal, oil and natural gas, but also applies to other mineral resources found in the Earth's crust.
Particulate matter
- Dust, ash, soot, metals and other solid or liquid particles released into the air. Particulate matter comes from natural sources (such as forest fires and volcanoes) and human sources (such as burning of fossil fuels, dust from mining operations, road dust and wood stoves). Particulate matter can cause eye, nose and throat irritation and other health problems.
- A facility for both storing and vaporizing LNG intended to operate on an intermittent basis to meet relatively short term peak gas demands. A peakshaving plant may also have liquefaction capacity, which is usually quite small compared to vaporization capacity at such facility.
- The capacity of a substance (such as rock) to transmit a fluid, such as crude oil, natural gas, or water. The degree of permeability depends on the number, size, and shape of the pores and/or fractures in the rock and their interconnections. It is measured by the time it takes a fluid of standard viscosity to move a given distance. The unit of permeability is the Darcy.
- The capacity od a reservoir to store fluids. The ratio of the aggregate volume of pore spaces in rock or soil to its total volume, usually stated as a per cent.
- The process of involving all affected parties in the design, planning and operation of a seismic program, an oil or gas well, pipeline, processing plant or other facility.
- Usually intended to mean the interest of the public generally as opposed to the interest of an individual or company.
Recoverable resources
- Hydrocarbon reserves that can be produced with current technology including those not economical to produce at present.
- The process by which LNG is heated, converting it into its gaseous state.
- Injecting natural gas produced with crude oil back into the reservoir to maintain reservoir pressure. Also disposing of water produced with natural gas by injecting it into a downhole formation
- Naturally occurring energy sources that are continually replenished. Examples of renewable energy are wind, solar and water.
- The reserve life index measures the length of time current proved or established reserves would last if current production rates were maintained and no new reserves were added. Essentially, it measures the "ready inventory" of crude oil or natural gas. Also known as reserves-to-production (R/P) ratio.
- Recoverable portion of resources available for use based on current knowledge, technology and economics.
Section
- An area of land equal to one square mile (640 acres)
- Natural gas produced from rock formations consisting mainly of shale or mudstone.
- Raw natural gas with a relatively high concentration of sulphur compounds, such as hydrogen sulphide. All natural gas containing more than one per cent hydrogen sulphide is considered sour. About 30 per cent of Canada’s natural gas production is sour, most of it found in Alberta and northeastern British Columbia.
- Controlled or accidental release of a substance to land or water (oil, emulsion, produced water or other liquids).
- People with an interest in industry activities that affect them. They may include nearby landowners, Aboriginal communities, recreational land users, other industries, environmental groups, governments and regulators.
- Enhancing the production of a well; includes acidizing and fracturing the reservoir as well as removing wax and sand from the wellbore.
- Gas is considered stranded when it is not near its customer and a pipeline is not economically justified.
- Ecosystem condition in which biodiversity, renewability and resource productivity are maintained over time.
- Development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs (as defined by United Nations World Commission on Environment and Development).
Thermogenic gas
- Natural gas originating from organic matter subjected to temperature and pressure increasing with depth of burial
- Natural gas that is found in sandstone with low permeability.
- A reservoir where the permeability is so low, extensive stimulation or sophisticated drilling techniques are required to produce the natural gas
Unconventional natural gas
- In the case of natural gas from coal, natural gas from tight sands and shale gas, conventional gas found in unconventional reservoirs or reservoirs requiring special production methods or technologies; in the case of gas hydrates, conventional methane in an unconventional form occurring in a conventional reservoir
- Drilling where the hydrostatic pressure of the fluids in the wellbore is lower then the reservoir pressure; commonly used in tight reservoirs to avoid reservoir damage
- Refers to companies that explore for, develop and produce petroleum resources (in contrast, downstream refers to the refining and marketing components of the industry).