Ceramic proppant, also known as ceramic sand, is used in fracturing operations in oil and gas wells to stimulate production.

Fracturing is a technique developed in mid-20th century, using hydraulic pressure and sand-like materials called proppants to cause fractures in formations down in oil/gas wells. When the wells go deeper, the requirements for strength as well as conductivity and permeability of proppants grow higher, which calls for applications of ceramic sands.

The consumption of ceramic sands worldwide is growing fast in recent years, as horizontal drillings are getting more applications and oil/gas wells are going deeper