Produced Water Treatment Field Manual

Table of Contents

Cover image

Front matter

Copyright

Part 1. Produced Water Treating Systems

Part 2. Water Injection Systems

Appendix A. Definition of Key Water Treating Terms

Appendix B. Water Sampling Techniques

Appendix C. Oil Concentration Analysis Techniques

Index

Front matter

Produced Water Treatment Field Manual

Produced Water Treatment Field Manual

Maurice Stewart

Ken Arnold

Copyright

Gulf Professional Publishing is an imprint of Elsevier

225 Wyman Street, Waltham, MA 02451, USA

The Boulevard, Langford Lane, Kidlington, Oxford, OX5 1GB, UK

© 2011 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher. Details on how to seek permission, further information about the Publisher's permissions policies and our arrangements with organizations such as the Copyright Clearance Center and the Copyright Licensing Agency, can be found at our website: www.elsevier.com/permissions.

This book and the individual contributions contained in it are protected under copyright by the Publisher (other than as may be noted herein).

Notices

Knowledge and best practice in this field are constantly changing. As new research and experience broaden our understanding, changes in research methods, professional practices, or medical treatment may become necessary.

Practitioners and researchers must always rely on their own experience and knowledge in evaluating and using any information, methods, compounds, or experiments described herein. In using such information or methods they should be mindful of their own safety and the safety of others, including parties for whom they have a professional responsibility.

To the fullest extent of the law, neither the Publisher nor the authors, contributors, or editors, assume any liability for any injury and/or damage to persons or property as a matter of products liability, negligence or otherwise, or from any use or operation of any methods, products, instructions, or ideas contained in the material herein.

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Application Submitted.

British Library Cataloguing-in-Publication Data

A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library.

ISBN: 978-1-85617-984-3

For information on all Gulf Professional Publishing publications visit our Web site at www.elsevierdirect.com

10 11 12 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1

Printed and bound in the USA

Part 1. Produced Water Treating Systems

Contents

Introduction 1-1

Disposal standards 1-3

Characteristics of produced water 1-4

Scale removal 1-5

Controlling scale using chemical inhibitors 1-6

Sand and other suspended solids 1-6

System description 1-16

Theory 1-18

Equipment description and sizing 1-26

Drain systems 1-114

Information required for design 1-115

Equipment specification 1-123

Nomenclature 1-133

Disposal standards

Offshore Operations

Standards for the disposal of produced water are developed by the government regulatory agencies.

Regulatory agencies generally specify the analytical for determining the oil content.

Produced water toxicity is regulated only in the United States where a government permit is necessary to limit toxicity of produced water discharged into the waters.

Table 1-1 summarizes offshore disposal standards for several countries. The standards are current as of this writing.

Onshore Operations

Disposal of produced water into freshwater streams and rivers is generally prohibited except for the very limited cases where the effluent is low in salinity.

Some oilfield brines might kill freshwater fish and vegetation due to high salt content.

Regulatory agencies generally:

Require produced water from onshore operations be disposed of by subsurface injection

Regulate the completion and operation of the disposal wells

Characteristics of produced water

Produced water contains a number of substances, in addition to hydrocarbons, that affect the manner in which water is handled.

Composition and concentration of substances may:

Vary between fields

Vary between different production zones within a single field

Concentration is expressed in milligrams per liter (mg/l), which is mass per volume ratio and is approximately equal to parts per million (ppm).

Some of the important produced water constituents are discussed in this section.

Dissolved Solids

Produced waters contain dissolved solids, but the amount varies from less than 100 mg/l to over 300,000 mg/l, depending on:

Geographical location

Age and type of reservoir

Water produced with gas is condensed water vapor with few dissolved solids and will be fresh with very low salinity.

Aquifer water produced with gas or oil will be much higher in dissolved solids.

Produced water from hot reservoirs tend to have higher TDS concentrations while cooler reservoirs tend to have lower levels of TDS.

Dissolved solids are inorganic constituents that are predominantly sodium (Na +) cations and chloride (Cl −) anions.

Other common cations are:

Calcium (Ca ²+)

Magnesium (Mg ²+)

Iron (Fe ²+)

Cations encountered less frequently are:

Barium (Ba ²+)

Potassium (K +)

Stontium (Sr +)

Aluminum (Al ³+)

Lithium (Li +)

Other antions present are:

Bicarbonate (HCO 3)

Carbonate (CO 3)

Sulfate (SO 4)

All produced water treating facilities should have water analysis data for:

Each major reservoir, and

Each combined produced water stream

Particularly important are constituents that could precipitate to form scales.

Precipitated Solids (Scales)

The more troublesome ions are those that react to form precipitates when pressure, temperature, or composition changes.

They form deposits that form in tubing, flowlines, vessels, and produced water treating equipment.

Mixing of oxygenated deck drain water with produced water should be avoided because this may result in the formation of calcium carbonate (CaCO 2), calcium sulfate (CaSO 4), and iron sulfide (FeS 2) scale, along with oil-coated solids.

Scale removal

Hydrochloric acid can be used to dissolve calcium carbonate and iron sulfide scales.

However, iron sulfide chemically reacts with hydrochloric acid and produces hydrogen sulfide.

Calcium sulfate is not soluble in hydrochloric acid, but chemicals are available that will convert it to an acid-soluble form that can than be removed by the acid.

This two-step process is slow.

Removal of calcium sulfate is more difficult than the removal of calcium carbonate.

Practical means of dissolving barium or strontium sulfate are not available.

These hard scales are removed by mechanical means which is time-consuming.

Mechanical removal of scale creates a disposal problem for the waste material and the possibility of forming NORM.

Controlling scale using chemical inhibitors

Scale-inhibiting chemicals are available to retard or prevent all types of scale.

They mostly function by enveloping a newly precipitated crystal, thereby retarding growth.

Common scale inhibitors include:

Inorganic phosphates (inexpensive but only applicable at low temperature)

Organic phosphate esters (easy to monitor but limited to temperatures below 100°F (38°C)

Phosphates (easy to monitor and have a higher thermal stability to 150°F (57°C)

Polymers (best thermal stability and effectiveness, but difficult to monitor)

Sand and other suspended solids

Produced water often contains other suspended solids including:

Formation sands and clays

Stimulation (fracturing) proppant

Miscellaneous corrosion products

Amount of suspended solids is usually small unless the well is producing from a unconsolidated formation, in which case large volumes of sand can be produced.

Produced sand is characterized by the following:

Usually oil wet

Disposal is a problem

Sand removal is discussed in the later section Equipment Description and Sizing.

Small amounts of solids in produced water may or may not create problems in water treating depending on:

Particle size

Its relative attraction to the dispersed oil

If the physical characteristics and electronic charge of such solids result in an attraction to the dispersed oil droplets, the solid particles:

Can attach to the dispersed oil droplets to stabilize emulsions

This prevents coalescence and separation of the oil phase

The combined specific gravity of the resulting oil/solid droplet can be approximately equal to that of the produced water, and gravity separation becomes difficult, if not impossible.

The concentration of suspended solids can be monitored with 0.45-micron Millipore filter test, and residue is analyzed for mineral content in an attempt to identify the source of the solid.

When solids are present, the following practices should be applied:

Chemical treatment must be used to break the electronic attraction between the solid and the oil droplet.

Equipment design must incorporate solids removal ports, jets, and/or plates.

Oil measurement techniques not affected by the solids should be used.

Solids are likely to be oil-coated, and offshore disposal may be prohibited.

This is the case in the United States.

Applies to solids removed from desanders or vessels, not to the solids suspended in the water.

Water injection for disposal should be made into a disposal zone that has high enough pore space openings to prevent the suspended solids from plugging.

Consideration should be given to using filtration equipment to remove the larger particles prior to injection into the disposal well.

Periodic back flowing and acidizing are generally needed to maintain disposal wells if filtration is not applied.

Water-flood injection for pressure maintenance and additional recovery often requires filtration (to remove suspended solids).

Water injection pressures typically must be maintained below the fracture pressure of the formation.

Dissolved Gases

The most important gases found in produced water include:

Natural gas (methane, ethane, propane and butane)

Hydrogen sulfide

Carbon dioxide

In the reservoir the water can be saturated with these gases at relatively high pressures.

As the produced water flows up the wells:

Most of these gases flash to the vapor phase

Most of these gases are removed in primary separators and stock tanks

The pressures and temperatures at which the produced water is separated from the main oil, condensate, and/or natural gas streams:

Impact the quality of dissolved gas that will be contained in the produced water stream feeding the water treating facilities.

The higher the separation pressure, the higher the quantity of dissolved gases will be.

The higher the separation temperature, the lower the quantity of dissolved gases will be.

Natural gas has the following characteristics:

Components are slightly soluble in water at moderate to high pressures and will be present in the produced water stream.

Components have an affinity for dispersed oil droplets, and this principle is applied to the design of gas floatation equipment used in produced water treating systems.

Hydrogen sulfide:

Will be present in the produced water stream if:

Hydrogen sulfide is present in the produced reservoir fluid, or

Sulfate-reducing bacteria are a problem in the reservoir or production equipment

Is corrosive

Can cause iron sulfide scaling, and

Is extremely toxic if inhaled.

The toxicity of hydrogen sulfide:

Hinders operation and maintenance of equipment, particularly when the vessels must be opened for adjustments, as in the case when weir adjustments are required in gas flotation cells

Requires personnel to take specialized training and wear life support breathing equipment

Iron sulfide (the corrosive product of hydrogen sulfide) presents a potential fire hazard since it is prone to auto-ignition when exposed to air or other sources of oxygen.

Carbon dioxide :

Will be present in the produced water if CO 2 is present in the produced reservoir fluid

Is corrosive and can cause CaCO 3 scaling

Removal of H 2S and CO 2 will result in increased pH, which could lead to scaling

Oxygen is characterized by the following:

It is not found naturally in produced water

When produced water is brought to the surface and exposed to the atmosphere, oxygen will be absorbed into the water

Water containing dissolved oxygen can cause

Severe and rapid corrosion

Solids generation from oxidation reactions

Oil weathering, which inhibits cleanup

To prevent the above, a natural gas blanket should be maintained on all of the production and water treating tanks and vessels used within the process

Seawater is characterized by the following:

It is often used as the source of water for water floods and water injection pressure maintenance projects offshore.

It contains considerable amounts of dissolved oxygen and some carbon dioxide.

It may also contain bacteria.

Oxygen and carbon dioxide must be removed from the source water by either vacuum de-aeration or gas stripping prior to injection.

Oil-in-Water Emulsions

Normal emulsions are encountered in most oil fields.

Water droplets are dispersed in the oil continuous phase.

Water is dispersed in the form of small droplets ranging between 100 and 400 microns in diameter.

Reverse emulsions can occur in produced water treating operations.

Oil droplets are dispersed in the water continuous phase.

Oil is dispersed in the form of very small droplets typically less than 150 microns in diameter.

Unstable emulsions

Oil droplets will coalesce when they come in contact with each other and form larger droplets, thus breaking the emulsion.

Unstable emulsions usually break within minutes and do not require any treatment

Stable emulsions

Stable emulsions are the suspension of two immiscible liquids in the presence of a stabilizer or emulsifying agent that act to maintain an interfacial film between the phases.

Chemicals, heat, settling time, and electrostatics are used to alter and remove the film and cause emulsion breakdown.

Untreated, stable emulsions can remain for days or even weeks.

Water-in-Oil Emulsions

Emulsion breakers are known as destabilizers or demulsifiers. They are:

Oil-soluble

Added to the total well stream ahead of the process equipment

Being oil-soluble:

The emulsion breaker is carried with the crude.

Thus, if the emulsion is not broken in the first-stage separator, the chemical has additional time to act in the subsequent separators and the stock tank.

Oil-in-Water Emulsions

Emulsion breakers are known as reverse emulsion breakers which are special destabilizers or demulsifiers. They are:

Similar to conventional emulsion breakers except