Representatives from NETL’s Oil and Gas Program attended the 2019 Unconventional Resources Technology Conference (URTeC) July 22-24 in Denver, connecting with other experts advancing the science and technology of unconventional resource development and exploration.

Unconventional resources, which include supplies of oil and gas contained in shales and other tight formations, are critical to ensuring energy security for the nation, and conferences like URTeC provide a way for Lab employees to share their expertise in the field while learning about important new developments in academia and industry.

NETL engages in a variety of projects that enhance the nation’s ability to benefit from its vast unconventional natural gas and oil resources. Researchers are advancing fracture diagnostic technologies to more accurately characterize the dimensions of hydraulic fractures, improving well design to more effectively produce hydrocarbons from the reservoir and recover more natural gas or oil from each fractured interval, investigating ways to reduce the volumes for fresh water required for hydraulic fracturing, and supporting modeling studies to improve industry’s basic understanding of fluid-water-rock behavior in tight rocks.

URTeC is comprised of three sponsoring organizations — the Society of Petroleum Engineers, the American Association of Petroleum Geologists and the Society of Exploration Geophysicists — that unite several disciplines to connect to all things related to unconventional resources.