Water Recycling Breakthrough? | Russell T. Rudy Energy LLC
“Rigzone” reports that California based research and development firm, OriginOil, appears to have developed a very promising technology. The new Electro Water Separation process will remove oil particles, suspended solids and bacteria from both frac blowback and produced (formation brine) water. This continuous, chemical free and low cost method of water treatment consists of two stages, extraction and concentration.
In the initial phase, extraction, contaminated water moves from a separator or skim tank into tubes where electric pulses cause oil droplets and suspended solids to agglomerate. Concurrently, the electricity kills any bacteria present.
In the final phase, concentration, the water moves into a flotation chamber where anodes and cathodes create clouds of micro-bubbles. These in turn attach themselves to the agglomerated oil droplet/suspended solid particles, forcing them to the top where they are skimmed off for disposal. The residual water can then be re-used for fracing, returned to the ocean in offshore applications, or further treated for other uses.
Origin maintains that in third party tests, 99.9% of oil droplets and 99.6% of suspended solids were removed in a matter of minutes. While pilot projects have produced promising results, the first large scale test (1,000 barrels of contaminated water per day) is being conducted in Colorado this week. If successful, it is hoped that processing up to 10,000 barrels a day will prove feasible. If large scale applications are successful, the cost of a typical frac job could be reduced by $150,000-$200,000. Savings could be realized by reducing the cost of fresh water, transportation to and from the drill site and disposal via injection wells.
To read the article in its entirety, please go to www.rigzone.com/news/oil_gas/a/133055/OriginOil .
