In today’s age of information, it’s hard to believe that there is so much misinformation regarding the process of hydraulic fracturing, or fracking for short. Fracking is a process that has been around for over 40 years. It is a process used by the oil industry to drill for oil and natural gas. There has been a lot of media scrutiny into this practice and the potential for shallow water contamination. However, procedures are in place that minimize this risk.
Frac tanks are large, welded tanks that are found in oilfields across the country. They serve to store a variety of liquids from water to frac proppant or even acids. Most tanks are manufactured so that they will hold anywhere from 400-600 barrels of liquid at their maximum and are usually rectangular in shape.
There are several different configurations for frac tanks including open topped units, which expedite the removal of solids from the tank and closed top versions. The type of tank used depends on the purpose for the tank and the liquids contained therein. Fracking refers to the process of using a high pressure liquid to drill down into a new well and fracture the existing rock in order to reach oil or natural gas pockets. The word is derived from the process whereby the liquid enters into the existing perforations in the rock and fracturing it to allow the oil or gas to escape. The liquid used in this process is generally held and mixed in a frac tank during the operation.
While this is the main purpose for frac tanks, the can also be found in other industries such as paper mills, refineries and more.
Because frac tanks are used to contain liquids that can be hazardous to the ground water supplies, Frac Tank Manufacturers must take care to ensure that each tank is manufactured with the utmost care and consideration. In most cases, heavy duty steel is used to create the tanks as it is durable and strong. Experienced personnel create the frac tank by welding the individual walls to each other to form a liquid-tight container. These Production Tank Manufacturers put each tank through a rigorous testing procedure to ensure that liquids placed into the tanks remain there without leaking to ensure they meet the high standards set forth by local and federal environmental regulations.
Some frac tanks are equipped with sloped floors in order to facilitate easy drainage of fracking liquids. Depending on the needs of the customer, some tanks feature multiple outlets and valves which allow the operator to customize the configuration of the tank for a specific purpose. Some frac tanks have a V bottom that allows the operator to reclaim all of the fracking fluid along with the proppant and other additives introduced to the fluid for hydraulic fracking purposes without the need for workers to enter the tank. This is especially important for tanks designed to hold corrosive chemicals and frac acid. For these tanks, production tank manufacturers add a special coating to the interior surfaces of the tank to prevent corrosion.
AFC tanks is one of the leading Production Tank Manufacturers and Frac Tank Manufacturer. For more information regarding their line of quality frac tanks, please visit afctanks.com.