according to the invention , hydrocarbon fluids having a kinematic viscosity of about 2 . 20 cst ( 25 ° c .) or less , a pour point of − 35 ° c . or less , a total aromatics concentration of 0 . 02 wt % maximum , and preferably a polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon ( pah ) content of less than 10 mg / kg , and preferably further characterized as having “ not detected ” ( nd ) levels of benzene , toluene , ethylbenzene , and xylenes ( btex ), are used in hydraulic fracturing formulations ( including intermediate and final end - use formulations ), and processes using the same . heretofore such fluids were considered to lack the proper viscosity for use in certain hydraulic fracturing formulations . however surprisingly it has been found that with appropriate viscosification , slurries of guar , guar derivatives , and the like , can be prepared from said fluids which provide significant advantages over what is suggested in the prior art , particularly with respect to low or no btex content , and which , in embodiments are stable , that is , no visible phase separation of said hydrocarbon fluid and viscosifier , even at low or high temperatures . in preferred embodiments , there is also no phase separation of the suspension agent , e . g ., guar , from the hydrocarbon fluid and viscosifier . however , in other embodiments , up to 5 wt %, such as up to 2 wt % of separation of the suspension agent is acceptable . the hydrocarbon fluids useful herein are normal paraffinic , isoparaffinic , cycloparaffinic , and dearomatized mixed aliphatic ( normal , branched , and cyclic paraffins ) fluids , and mixtures thereof . the most preferred dearomatized mixed aliphatic fluids are dearomatized mixed aliphatic solvents containing linear , branched , and cyclic paraffins which have aromatics removed or significantly reduced ( e . g ., & lt ; 0 . 02 wt %). in preferred embodiments such hydrocarbon fluids are also characterizable as having no or low btex content . particularly preferred fluids are escaid ™ fluids , commercially available from exxonmobil chemical company , baytown , tex ., usa , most particularly escaid ™ pathfrac ™ fluid , a mixture of de - aromatized aliphatic molecules composed of normal , branched , and cyclic alkanes , and having a kinematic viscosity of about 2 . 20 cst ( 25 ° c . ), a pour point of − 35 ° c . or less , a total aromatics concentration of 0 . 02 wt % maximum , a polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon ( pah ) content of less than 10 mg / kg , and having “ not detected ” ( nd ) levels of benzene , toluene , ethylbenzene , and xylenes ( btex ). particularly useful thickening agents include such known and commercially available polymeric viscosifying agents available from kraton , for example kraton ™ g1701 polymer or kraton ™ g1650 polymer . particularly useful thickening agents also include such known and commercially available polyalphaolefins ( paos ) available from exxonmobil chemical company , baytown , tex ., particularly spectrasyn ™ grade paos , more particularly spectrasyn ™ elite ™ 65 pao , spectrasyn ™ elite ™ 150 pao , both of which are metallocene paos ( mpaos , produced with metallocene catalysts ), and spectrasyn ™ 100 pao . as used herein , the term “ pao ” includes mpao . the thickening agent is dissolved in the hydrocarbon fluid typically with the use of heat and agitation as necessary . the viscosity of the homogenous solution is then measured , for example , using test method astm d7042 and a viscometer instrument such as an anton paar ™ svm 3000 . in preferred embodiments a polymeric viscosifying agent is used as the thickening agent in the amount of from 0 . 3 to 1 . 0 wt %, preferably 0 . 4 to 0 . 7 wt %, based on the amount of hydrocarbon fluid ( without solid material to be suspended , e . g ., guar ). in other preferred embodiments a pao viscosifying agent is used as the thickening agent in the amount of from 5 . 0 to 20 . 0 wt %, based on the amount of hydrocarbon fluid ( without solid material to be suspended , e . g ., guar ). for instance , using 10 wt % spectrasyn ™ elite ™ 65 pao in escaid ™ pathfrac ™ fluid provides a solution having a viscosity of about 3 . 24 cst at 25 ° c ., and 10 wt % spectrasyn ™ elite ™ 150 pao in escaid ™ pathfrac ™ fluid provides a solution having a viscosity of about 3 . 77 cst at 25 ° c . in addition to guar and derivatives thereof , xanthan and derivatives thereof , hydroxy - ethyl cellulose , carboxymethylhydroxyethyl cellulose , and derivatives of such cellulosic materials , or other polysaccharide polymers known to be useful in hydraulic fracturing compositions as polymeric suspension agents , and mixtures thereof , are also useful herein . accordingly , such additives are broadly referred to herein as “ suspension agent ”. in embodiments and among other characteristics , the suspension agent is provided in order to assist in the suspension and / or delivery of the proppant ( discussed below ). in embodiments , one or more suspension agents are added in an amount sufficient to suspend the particulate material , i . e ., proppant ( discussed below ) and reduce settling during storage , transportation , and use in the fracturing process . also useful in this regard are friction reducing agents such as polyacrylamide inverse emulsions . the term “ proppant ” as used herein , takes the meaning well known in the art . the term “ proppant ” refers to a granular substance suspended in the fracturing fluid during the fracturing operation . proppants useful herein are familiar to those skilled in the art , such as sand , resin - coated sand , sintered bauxite , glass beads , and the like , and includes mixtures thereof . the final hydraulic fracturing formulation may contain a variety of additional materials , in addition to those mentioned previously , which may be included in the fracturing fluid formulation or added at the site , to perform desired task , such as friction reduction , formation clean up , foam stabilization , leakoff inhibition , surface tension reduction , or carrying or dissolving other ingredients . these additives include friction reducers , liquid gelling agents , biocides , fluid - loss agents , enzyme breakers , acid breakers , oxidizing breakers , and surfactants such as emulsifiers and non - emulsifiers . several products may exist in each of these categories . the composition of the present invention , in combination with other appropriate additives known in the art may also be used in drilling , completion , work - over and stimulation of wells drilled for petroleum sources . while the illustrative embodiments of the invention have been described with particularity , it will be understood that various other modifications will be apparent to and can be readily made by those skilled in the art without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention . trade names used herein are indicated by a ™ symbol or ® symbol , indicating that the names may be protected by certain trademark rights , e . g ., they may be registered trademarks in various jurisdictions . all patents and patent applications , test procedures ( such as astm methods , ul methods , and the like ), and other documents cited herein are fully incorporated by reference to the extent such disclosure is not inconsistent with this invention and for all jurisdictions in which such incorporation is permitted . when numerical lower limits and numerical upper limits are listed herein , ranges from any lower limit to any upper limit are contemplated .