This could be a unique "Green" fit for HIIT's portfolio:
Is There a Commercial Need for a Sensitive and Specific Method to Directly Measure Hydraulic Fracturing Fluid (HFF)?
Christopher Reinhardt
President and CEO at BioPAL, Inc.
We plan to develop technology to directly measure specific components of HFF without the need to introduce a secondary tracer into the HFF formula. The test will be easy-to-run, inexpensive, and readily adaptable for any laboratory and modifications of the technology can also allow for the development of a home-use test. Overall, the test will be accurate and highly sensitive and specific for the targeted component(s) of the HFF. The technology platform is immunoassay and we have a provisional patent filed.
As you can seek from my profile, I run a biotechnology company. Therefore, scientifically speaking I am confident we can develop the test and it will work as we describe. However, the application of the test is outside our business area of expertise. Therefore, I am hoping members of this group could help me better gauge the commercial interest of this technology. Please feel free to contact me with your questions or opinions on the commercial need for the test.
Additional Background Information:
The test would be used to measure potential HFF contamination in environmental water and soil samples and well-water samples. Since the escalation of oil and natural gas exploration, there has been an increase in the number of complaints alleging well-water contamination due to drilling activity (real or imaginary). At present, there are no routine and commercially available laboratory tests to directly measure trace amounts of fracturing fluid in collected water samples. All current testing methods rely on measuring the presence of uranium, radon, strontium, methane and barium in collected water samples. Higher than expected values could be due to drilling activity, but also could be attributed to natural forces. Given there are no or limited historical baseline levels for these surrogate markers, interruption is problematic and subject to bias. Regularly and legislative bodies are therefore hindered in their ability to compose effective guidelines that would strike a balance between the need for energy and public safety. Therefore, having a diagnostic tool that accurately measures the presence of fracturing fluid in collected water samples combined with current tests designed to measure secondary contamination would provide a clearer picture concerning the environmental impact of hydraulic fracturing techniques. As a result, governments and the energy industry would be able to develop improved guidelines to ensure public safety, as well as establish greater public conference of the process.
