TOTAL SYSTEMS APPROACH TO PRODUCED/OILY

WATER TREATMENT

CGPA Fourth Quarterly Meeting

Calgary, Alberta
2000
Ky A. Doucet and Uncas B. Favret
NATCO Group, Inc.

SUMMARY

In order to properly design a complete wastewater treatment system for an

onshore/offshore facility, the technology used to treat the wastewater stream should
employ the most effective methods available. Wastewater streams must be considered
with the respective inlet oil/solid/gas concentrations. These elements are critical in
selecting the equipment that will consistently achieve your desired effluent. The purpose
of this paper is to reiterate the importance of choosing the correct processing components
that include the necessary treatment steps to consistently meet local governmental
regulations. Pre-treatment, primary treatment, secondary treatment, tertiary treatment
and disposal are the process steps that should be considered when designing or evaluating
a wastewater treatment system.

PRE-TREATMENT

The pre-treatment step is a bulk separation process to remove the large concentrations of
hydrocarbons/solids/gas in the wastewater stream. The equipment used in this treatment
step should be designed to remove all oil droplets and solid particles greater than 100
microns in size. Yielding a 90% removal efficiency, the pre-treatment phase will reduce
the hydrocarbon/solid loading on the downstream treatment processes.

The simplest form of preliminary treating equipment is an API skimmer vessel. These
units, which can be pressure vessels or atmospheric tanks, are normally designed to
provide large residence times during which coalescence and gravity separation can occur.
Skimmer can be either vertical or horizontal.

Due to the potential danger from overpressure and potential gas venting problems
associated with atmospheric vessels, pressure vessels are preferred. However, an
individual cost/benefit decision must be made.

A minimum residence time of 5 to 30 minutes should be provided to assure that surges do

not upset the system and to provide for some coalescence. As discussed previously,
potential benefits or providing more residence time probably will not be cost efficient
beyond this point. Skimmers with large residence times require baffles to attempt to
distribute flow and eliminate short-circuiting. Tracer studies have shown that skimmer
tanks, even those with carefully designed spreaders and baffles, exhibit poor flow
behavior and short-circuiting. This is probably due to density and temperature
differences, deposition of solids, corrosion of spreaders, etc.
PRIMARY TREATMENT

Primary treatment equipment is designed to remove the remaining free oil concentrations
that were not removed in the pre-treatment process. Primary treatment vessels should be
designed to remove all oil droplets and solid particles greater than 35 microns. The
effluent from primary treatment will ordinarily contain considerable amounts of
emulsified oil and suspended solids. In order to remove the suspended solids and
emulsified oils, downstream secondary treatment is necessary. Primary treatment is still
needed to reduce the loading on secondary treatment.

Hydrocyclones

In a high-pressure system, liquid/liquid hydrocyclones are the preferred primary

treatment equipment for removing hydrocarbons from the wastewater. The hydrocyclone
is a very effective method for removing oil from produced water. The oily water mixture
is fed tangentially into the hydrocyclone liner. The feed velocity causes the liquid
mixture to spin inside the liner. This spinning motion is accelerated and the internal
diameter is reduced over the length of the liner. This spinning motion generates strong
centrifugal forces to cause the two liquids to separate. The heavier liquid is forced
outward toward the wall of the liner. The lighter phase migrates towards the center,
where it forms a core. The heavier fluid flows out through the smaller underflow end of
the hydrocyclone. By controlling the pressure drop across the liner, the core is forced to
flow in the opposite direction through a centered opening in the inlet end of the
hydrocyclone. The result is a simple, but effective separator with no moving parts.

Corrugated Plate Interceptors (CPI)

In a low-pressure system, the Corrugated Plate Interceptor (CPI) is the most common
form of Parallel-Plate Interceptor (PPI) used onshore/offshore. This is a refinement of
the PPI in that it takes up less space for the same particle size removal, and has the added
benefit of making sediment handling easier.

Parallel plates are corrugated (like roofing material) with the axis of corrugations parallel
to the direction of flow. The plate pack is inclined at 45 degrees and bulk water flow is
forced downward. The oil sheet rises upward, counter to water flow, and is concentrated
in the top of each corrugation. When oil reaches the end of the plate pack, it is collected
in a channel and brought to the oil/water interface.

In areas where sand or sediment production is anticipated, it should be removed prior to

flowing through a standard downflow CPI. Experience has shown that oil-wet sand may
adhere to a 45-degree slope. Therefore, there is the possibility that it will clog the plates.
In addition, sand collection channels installed at the end of the plate pack cause
turbulence that affects treating and are themselves subject to sand plugging. When solids
are prevalent in the system, an upflow Corrugated Plate Interceptor may be used. This
type of CPI can be fitted with a Sand cleaner which uses high pressure water to blast the
oil-wet sand particles into a header where the oil is knocked loose from the sand.
SECONDARY TREATMENT

Secondary treatment is directed toward the removal of emulsified oil and suspended
solids in the wastewater. The secondary treatment step employs flotation to break
emulsions and remove oil droplets and suspended solids from the wastewater stream that
are less than 20 microns. A conventional four cell flotation unit will achieve a 50%
contaminant reduction in each cell, which yields a 90-97% total reduction.

Dissolved Air Flotation (DAF)

Dissolved air/gas units are usually one cell with a retention time of 20 minutes. The DAF
units take a portion of treated water effluent and saturates it with natural gas in a
contactor. The higher the pressure, the more gas that can be dissolved in the water. Most
units are designed for a 20 to 40-psig contact pressure. Normally, 20 to 50% of treated
water is recirculated for contact with gas. Gas-saturated water is then injected into a
flotation tank. Dissolved gas breaks out of solution in small-diameter bubbles when flow
enters the atmospheric flotation chamber.

Dissolved air/gas units have found applications in refinery operations where air can be
used as the gas and where large areas are available. In treating produced water for
injection, it is desirable to use natural gas to exclude oxygen. This requires venting the
gas or installation of a vapor-recovery unit. Field experience with dissolved natural gas
units has not been as successful as with dispersed gas units.

Induced Gas Flotation (IGF)

The conventional Tridair Hydraulic Induced Gas Flotation Cell achieves 90-97% removal
of insoluble oil/organics and suspended solids. Most of the oil/organics contained in a
wastewater stream are in the form of a reversed emulsion. Suspended solids are usually
oil/organic-wet particles, metal oxides, etc. Both oil/organic and suspended solids are of
the low density that will float when attached to minute dissolved bubbles. The physical
characteristics of the incoming stream such as pH, total dissolved and suspended solids,
temperature, presence of chemicals and the mixtures of different streams influence
removal efficiency.

The Tridair IGF is divided into three or four flotation compartments with a minimum
retention time of 5 minutes. Each cell is separated by a pair of over and under baffle
plates, which eliminates the possibility of short-circuiting of the incoming flow. The
arrangement of the baffle plates permits flow surges up to 50% without loss of removal
efficiency.

As the water leaves the final flotation compartment, it flows through a patented final
filter, which eliminates particles that were not extracted the flotation process. The flow
then enters a smaller quiescent or clean water chamber. From the clean water
compartment, a dual centrifugal pump system recirculates the clean water to a
downcomer in each cell, allowing full operation while maintenance is performed on
either of the pumps.
Located at each downcomer is a nozzle system, which utilizes single or multiple eductors
to ensure that full flotation occurs in each cell and that dead spots in the cell are
eliminated. The nozzle creates back pressure and controls water velocity through a
venturi-type eductor. The unique nozzle/eductor design ensures even dispersion of the
finely divided gas bubbles throughout the liquid. To achieve thorough saturation of gas
within the liquid, a slight positive pressure is maintained above the liquid levels.

TERTIARY TREATMENT

This final step of treatment approaches the removal of dissolved organics. The tertiary
treatment step employs filters or resins to remove oil droplets and suspended solids from
the wastewater stream that are less than 10 microns. Tertiary treatment is used to remove
nutrients or toxic compounds and in some cases a combination of physical, biological and
chemical contaminants. Tertiary treatment is also used in a variety of reuse applications
where high quality water is required, i.e. groundwater recharge or industrial cooling.

Sand Filters

The downflow multimedia filter is designed to remove suspended solids from water.
This is accomplished primarily by an absorption process. The absorption process is
defined as the removal of suspended solid particles from a wastewater stream by
developing a chemical attraction between the very minute suspended particles to a much
larger stationary media grain and adhering that particle to the media surface as water
passes through the filter media.

Resin Filters (Adsorption)

Adsorption occurs when an organic molecule is brought to the resin surface and held
there by physical or chemical forces, or both. The quantity of a compound or group of
compounds that can be adsorbed by the resin is determined by a balance between the
forces that keep the compound in solution and those that attract the compound to the resin
surface. A more advanced resin BTEX-SORB exhibits high dissolved organics
absorptive capacities. Additionally, BTEX-SORB increases media bed life by 5-10
times and flow capacity by 10-fold compared to granular activated carbon.

DISPOSAL

Once the wastewater has been treated effectively in the upstream treatment process, the
cleaned water must be disposed. For surface disposal on offshore platforms, a sump
caisson is usually used. The sump caisson is designed for a retention time of 10-20
minutes to act as a final holding vessel before disposal. If surface disposal is not
permitted, deep well injection is the preferred method of disposal. Disposal is not
considered a treatment step in wastewater process; therefore, all governmental
regulations must be met with upstream processing prior to disposal.
 NEW COMBINED PROCESS TECHNOLOGY

New combined process technology uses proven technologies and combines the processes
into one treatment vessel where space, weight and cost are considered critical. Rather the
application is for onshore or offshore use, combining process technologies in one vessel
is often effective.

Submersed Column Flotation Unit Patent Pending (Underwater oil/water Separator)

The Flotation Pile combines secondary treatment and disposal on offshore production
facilities. This is very useful on offshore platforms since space and weight are primary
concerns. The Flotation Pile is a combination of the following proven technologies.

ESI Sump Caissons and Skim Pile Patents and Technology

Conventional Horizontal Induced Gas Flotation (IFG) Technology
Chevron Patented Sparger Column Flotation Technology

The Submerged Column Flotation unit is designed to remove 90-98% of insoluble oils
and suspended solids. As wastewater enters the unit, the water flows downward towards
the outlet nozzle. Before reaching the outlet, the wastewater enters the flotation section.
The flotation section is divided into four (4) vertical cells by a patented internal baffle
system. Each cell is designed for a minimum 50% removal efficiency with a 90-98%
overall removal efficiency. Each cell of the flotation section is complete with a set of gas
spargers. Once the number and size of spargers have been determined from the design
parameters, the internal sparger orientation is decided. The sparger orientation can either
be horizontal or vertical. The horizontal orientation is employed in systems that are
located above mean sea level with easy access. If the flotation section of the Submerged
Column Flotation unit is located beneath mean sea level, the vertical orientation is
preferred. The advantage of the vertical arrangement is the reduced area for solids
deposition, which decreased sparger plugging. As the wastewater flows downward
through the flotation cells, the minute gas bubbles rise upward through the wastewater.
The insoluble oils and suspended solids adhere to the gas bubbles and rise to the top of
the units oil/water interface via the patented oil riser arrangement. The baffles in the
Submerged Column Flotation unit eliminate gas bubble collision, which yields higher
removal efficiencies. At the same time, the baffles remove the oil droplets rising
vertically in the flotation compartment. The baffles also remove ineffective gas bubbles
that have increased in diameter due to pressure changes. After exiting the flotation
compartment, the wastewater enters the disposal section of the Submerged Column
Flotation unit. The disposal section can either be an open or closed-ended caisson.

Cyclomax Patent Pending

The Cyclomax combines pre-treatment and primary treatment in one vessel. This is
accomplished by adding internal media, degassing/defoaming agents or hydrocyclone
liners. The Cyclomax technology can be used on onshore or offshore applications.
When retrofitting an existing system, the Cyclomax will improve the efficiency of an
existing pre-treatment vessel.

CONCLUSION

It is often necessary to handle wastewater, which may include water produced with crude
oil, rainwater and washdown water. The water must be separated from the contaminants
and disposed of in a manner that does not violate environmental criteria. In offshore
areas, the governing regulatory body specifies a maximum hydrocarbon content in
discharge water. Onshore, water normally cannot be disposed of on the surface, due to
possible salt contamination and must be injected into an acceptable disposal formation or
disposed of by evaporation. In either case, it will probably be necessary to treat produced
water to lower its hydrocarbon content below that obtained from free water knockouts
and water treaters. This paper presents the engineer with a procedure for selecting the
appropriate type of equipment for treating wastewater streams. When this process
consideration is followed, the engineer will be able to develop a process flowsheet,
determine equipment sizes and evaluate the specifications for any wastewater treating
system.
 REFERNCES

1. Metcalf & Eddy Wastewater Engineering, Treatment, Disposal and Reuse, 3rd,
pp. 242, McGraw-Hill, Inc.

2. Arnold, Ken and Stewart, Maurice Surface Production Operations, 1:pp. 195,
204-212, Gulf Publishing Company.

3. Arnold, K, Stewart M. Designing Oil and Gas Production

Systems. World Oil. January 1, 1986.

4. Design and Operation Oil-Water Separators, API Publication 421. February 1990.

5. Ditria, J. C., Hoyback, M. E. The Separation of Solids and Liquids with

Hydrocyclone Based Technology for Water Treatment and Crude Processing,
Copyright 1994, Society of Petroleum Engineers, Inc.

6. Data on file with Engineering Specialties, Inc., Covington, LA

7. Case Histories on File at Engineering Specialties, Inc., Covington, LA

8. Gallup, D. L. BTEX-SORB Tertiary Treatment of Wastewater for the Removal

of Dissolved Organic Compounds, Santa Rosa, CA