Frac sand is the key ingredient in the hydraulic fracturing process, in which oil and gas drillers pump frac sand and other materials into wells to break up shale rock, through which natural gas and petroleum then flow more easily. So easily, it has helped propel the U.S. toward energy independence and insulation from global volatility. What’s helped drill that home is the process known as fracking. So shale to the king, baby. On today’s Freight All Kinds, we’re talking frac sand.