Sensitivity Assessment of Boron Isotope as Indicator of Contaminated Groundwater for Hydraulic Fracturing Flowback Fluids Produced from the Dameigou Shale of the Northern Qaidam Basin

Zhaoxian Zheng, Yan Zhang and Bingyan Li ()
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Zhaoxian Zheng: Institute of Hydrogeology and Environmental Geology, Chinese Academy of Geological Sciences, Shijiazhuang 050061, China
Yan Zhang: Geological Survey of Jiangsu Province, Nanjing 210018, China
Bingyan Li: Institute of Hydrogeology and Environmental Geology, Chinese Academy of Geological Sciences, Shijiazhuang 050061, China

Sustainability, 2023, vol. 15, issue 6, 1-15

Abstract: Hydrogeochemical processes occurring in contaminated groundwater and aquifer systems may reduce the sensitivity of boron isotopes as an indicator of hydraulic fracturing flowback fluids (HFFF) in groundwater. In this paper, based on the Chaiye-1 well (the first continental shale gas well in the northern Qaidam Basin), the hydrogeochemical processes affecting boron isotopes were analyzed in HFFF-contaminated Neogene (NG1 and NG2) and Quaternary (QG1) groundwater around the shale gas field. Then, a model for boron isotopes in HFFF-contaminated groundwater was constructed to assess the sensitivity of boron isotopes as an HFFF indicator. The results show that, limited by the range of pH values and saturation indices (SI) in HFFF-contaminated groundwater, the dissolution of alkali feldspar and precipitation of carbonate have little effect on the boron isotopes in shallow groundwater. For the NG2 aquifer system containing clay minerals, the δ11B of simulated contaminated groundwater (40.0–55.6‰) is always higher than that of the corresponding groundwater mixed conservatively (−6.4–55.6‰) due to preferential adsorption of boron isotopes onto clay minerals, indicating preferential adsorption would reduce the sensitivity of boron isotopes as an indicator of groundwater contamination from HFFF. For the scenario of HFFF contamination, when the mixing ratio of HFFF in contaminated groundwater increases by 5%, boron isotopes in Neogene (NG1 and NG2) and Quaternary (QG1) groundwater have detectable responses to HFFF contamination, suggesting δ11B is a sensitive indicator of HFFF contamination in shallow groundwater from the Dameigou Shale in the northern Qaidam Basin.

Keywords: shale gas; hydraulic fracturing flowback fluids; groundwater contamination; monitoring indicator; boron isotopes (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2023
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