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44 | Frac Sand Insider May 2015 www.rockproducts.com Geology SILICA SANDS MINED FOR RESIN-COATED PROPPANTS Sandstones of the Bidahochi Formation in Arizona and the un- consolidated Quaternary Loup River sands in Nebraska are less op- timal for use as frac sand, but are suitable for use in the production of resin-coated sand proppants. Bidahochi SandStone The uppermost informal member of the terrestrial Pliocene Bidahochi Formation is a tuffaceous, fuvio-lacustrine sandstone that extends from northeastern Arizona (Figure 11) (Plate 1) into nearby parts of New Mexico in the area northeast of the Little Col- orado River (Repenning and Irwin, 1954). The sediments of the Bidahochi Formation were deposited by southwestward fowing streams (Hack, 1942) and were derived from the Chuska Moun- tains, and the Defance, Zuni, and Mogollon Plateaus (Kiersch and Keller, 1955). The sandstone member is composed predominantly of white to very pale brown, cross-bedded, poorly cemented, me- dium- to fne-grained, argillaceous sandstone with a few beds of white rhyolitic ash (Repenning and Irwin, 1954), and has a maxi- mum thickness of approximately 600 ft. (183 m) near Greasewood, Arizona (Kiersch and Keller, 1955). The sandstone member is an immature sandstone that was used as frac sand only sparingly and in shallow wells (Zdunczyk, 2007). In 2012, it was announced that Preferred Sands purchased a sand-mining operation with as many as three quarries in the Sanders area and is producing resin-coated proppants (Arizona Geology, 2012). used or use as low-quality frac sand or for use in the manufacture of alternative proppants. In northeastern Arizona, the fuvio-lacus- the production of resin-coated proppants. In south-central Utah, the Quaternary aeolian dune sands (deep red) are at the surface in canyon country northwest of the Colorado River at Lake Powell. The Middle Jurassic White Throne Member (open circtes) of the Temple Cap Formation, which has limited suitability for frac sand, is exposed only in cliff faces in canyons in southwestern Utah. The Lower Permian White Rim and Cedar Mesa Sandstone Members (purple) of the Cutler Formation, which also have limited suitability for frac sand, are exposed in the popular recreation area of the San Rafael Swell. Towns appear as red dots. loup river Sand Quaternary fuvial deposits along the Loup River in Nebraska (Figure 12) are aeolian reworked sands derived from Pleistocene glacial outwash (Epley, 2014). These are being mined and pro- cessed by Preferred Sands of Genoa and used in the production of resin-coated sand proppant (Shale Reporter, 2013). 12. Surface exposures of sand source units in the Great Plains states that for future use as frac sand. In Genoa, in eastern Nebraska, modern fuvial sand use as resin-coated sand. The the fanks of the Black Hills of South Dakota has the attention of the com- munity, as it is reported to be a potential frac sand. Towns appear as red dots.