Recycling Produced Water

NEW REGULATIONS REQUIRED operators to recycle more water and dispose less, leading a major E&P in the Permian to overhaul their treatment.

PROBLEM:

‍New Mexico regulators tightened their water recycling requirements, forcing an E&P operating on 800,000 acres in the Permian to simultaneously increase the quality of its treated water while reducing its per barrel treatment cost.

• ‍Prior to the new regulations, the operator used a mix of oxidizer, coagulant, and flocculant to treat produced water—an expensive and complex scenario that struggled under the new regime.‍
• The flocculant required make-down and created inconsistent flocs, forcing crews to babysit rigs, regularly caused mis-dosing of the other chemicals, and gumming up filters and presses.

SOLUTION:

‍CarboNet’s SimpleFloc gel, a no make-down flocculant adopted by several operators in the Permian, was recommended as a solution after bench test. The gel is pre-hydrated and can pump directly into the treatment train without requiring the make-down process.

RESULTS:

SimpleFloc gel's plug-and-play chemistry had the immediate effect of reducing costs while improving treatment. Chemistry demand dropped, sludge volume was reduced, and labour cut by 35%.

Additionally:

• Water for makedown was removed, reducing freshwater drawdown 20% and cutting trucking costs and their associated emissions.
• Sludge volume was reduced by 50%.
• Removing make-down reduced labour demand by 35%.

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Chemistry to compete

CarboNet’s NanoNet platform generates flocculants, coagulants, and targeting agents that that adjust in real time to changing wastewater conditions—cutting cost, dose rates, labor, and emissions.