Once drilling and casing are completed, the production casing down the borehole is perforated by a tool that fires a series of small, aimed explosive charges through the wall of the pipe. At the surface the drilling rig is removed, and the fracking process begins. Typically, a fleet of tanker trucks converges on the pad along with several trailer-mounted hydraulic Črpalke, mešalniki in rezervoarji za kemično shranjevanje, samostojno krmilno vozilo ali prikolico, napolnjeno z elektroniko, in drugo opremo .
Količina sladke vode, ki se uporablja pri frakiranju enega samega plina iz skrilavca, se močno razlikuje, odvisno od velikosti vodnjaka in količine loma, ki jo je treba storiti za sprostitev plina: industrija in regulativni viri dajejo številke, ki segajo od približno 7 . 5 do 20 milijonov do 20 milijonov litrov (2 milijona do 5 milijonov galonov), ki je bila enaka voda, ki je bila enakovredna voda, ki je bila enakovredna voda, ki je bila enaka voda, ki je bila enaka voda do voda pools. Environmental groups argue that, in new areas where fracking may grow dramatically, such consumption may represent an unsustainable use of the region's fresh water. In response, the shale gas industry insists that fracturing for shale gas consumes less water per thermal unit than is used in coal and even conventional oil production. The water is obtained from sources determined by the market and Predpisi-e . g ., kupljene iz občinske oskrbe z vodo, črpano iz lokalnih rek ali potokov, ponovno uporabljene iz prejšnjih frack opravil . Včasih je neposredno na blazinico in jih pogosto shranimo v jeklene tanke ali v velikih plinih.
Z uporabo sveže vode se mešanica tekočine in propata meša, ki je sestavljena iz približno 90 odstotkov vode, manj kot 10 odstotkov peska in 0 . 5–2 odstotkov kemičnih dodatkov; Te slednje vključujejo geling sredstva, kisline za čiščenje vrtin, stabilizatorje, ki preprečujejo korozijo, in reduktorji trenja, ki temeljijo na nafti-v kombinaciji, da bi ustvarili "gladek voda", ki je pravi za določeno delo ., ki so natančne formule za te lomljene tekočine, ki so znane dobro.
In a series of closely monitored operations, the fluid is pumped down the borehole and through the perforations in the production casing under great pressure, powerful enough to enlarge and prop open existing tiny fissures in the shale. Once fracturing is complete, production tubing is inserted into the well. Gas freed from the fractured rock enters the tubing and flows to the surface, where the fracking equipment is replaced by a network of valves at the wellhead called the "Christmas tree." Fracking fluid returns along with the gas and in some cases brines from the shale formation. These liquids are diverted to the settling ponds or tanks for further treatment and disposal. A finished production site eventually may be denuded of all previous machinery and structures, leaving little more than the Christmas tree (ali drevesa), povezave s plinovodom, rezervoarji za shranjevanje kondenziranih tekočin ter podpora in vzdrževalno opremo . Neurečene ribniki za poravnavo so napolnjene v .
