Question 40

Cluster bean, commonly known as Guar, has indeed gained significant global importance beyond its traditional uses as a vegetable or animal feed. The key reason for this enhanced significance lies in the industrial application of guar gum, which is extracted from its seeds. Guar gum is a natural polysaccharide with excellent thickening, stabilizing, and emulsifying properties. Its most notable industrial application in recent times, which has driven its demand and cultivation, is in the oil and gas industry. Guar gum and its derivatives (like hydroxypropyl guar) are critical components of the fracturing fluid used in hydraulic fracturing (fracking) operations for the extraction of shale gas and oil. It helps to increase the viscosity of the fluid, enabling it to carry proppants (like sand) into the fractures created in shale rock, thus keeping the fractures open and facilitating the flow of gas or oil.