Natural gas is primarily methane (CH4). Its purity makes it an environmentally friendly fuel. Methane is a nonreactive hydrocarbon which means its emissions do not react with sunlight to create smog. Compressed natural gas (CNG) is noncarcinogenic and noncorrosive.
Found in large underground fields much like crude oil, natural gas isn’t feasible to transport over land due to its gaseous state. Rather, extensive underground pipelines are developed to carry it from the wellhead to customers thousands of miles away. Most U.S. households have access to a source of natural gas from a Local Distribution Company (LDC). These LDCs provide gas at pressures ranging from 4-50 psi.
Natural gas is lighter than air, making it a safe fuel for many applications. Any natural gas released in a non-confined setting will quickly dissipate into the atmosphere, reducing the risk of an explosion as compared to liquid fuels, which pool on the ground and can pollute soil, surface water or groundwater.
Origin
The natural gas we use today began as microscopic plants and animals living in the ocean millions of years ago. As they thrived, they absorbed energy from the sun, which was stored as carbon molecules in their bodies. When they died, they sank to the bottom of the sea and were covered by layer after layer of sediment. As the plants and animals became buried deeper in the earth, heat and pressure began to rise. The pressure, combined with a high degree of heat, compressed the biomatter and produced natural gas.
Migration
After natural gas was formed, it tended to migrate upward through tiny pores in the surrounding rock. Some natural gas seeped to the surface, while other deposits traveled until they were trapped under impermeable layers of rock, shale or clay. These trapped deposits are where we find natural gas today.
Extraction
Removal of natural gas can be accomplished through either vertical or horizontal drilling. Chesapeake uses both methods, but specializes in horizontal drilling and hydraulic fracturing to extract natural gas from shale or deep rock formations. The horizontal drilling method uses vertical drilling from the surface down to a desired level. Then, the drill is gradually turned horizontally until it bores into a gas reservoir. Hydraulic fracturing is an innovative technique that involves pumping water, sand and a small amount of additives into the wellbore with enough pressure to create fractures in the rock formation. The sand “props” the created fractures open to allow the trapped natural gas to move through the wellbore and up to the surface.
Clean
Natural gas is by far the cleanest-burning hydrocarbon on the planet. When burned it releases far lower amounts of carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions and fewer pollutants than coal or oil. Learn more about clean energy from the American Clean Skies Foundation.
Abundant
Vast new natural gas resources are being discovered every year across North America, and according to recent academic and government agency studies, we have at least a 120-year supply.
Affordable
Today, with the fluctuating cost of oil per barrel, natural gas remains a highly attractive alternative at its current price.
American
Providing fuel for American homes, natural gas is a quintessentially American fuel, produced in 32 states from coast to coast.