Managing produced water for more efficient operations

Produced water is by far the largest waste stream in oil and gas production today. With water cuts of up to 99% in some mature fields, the water production rates are vast. Additionally, operations are moving into frontier environments that often must meet new and stricter environmental regulations regarding permissible overboard disposal limits.

Optimized produced water treatment solutions that feature increased capacity and performance in a reduced footprint have become necessary to adhere to admissible disposal regulations while maintaining desired oil production. New-build offshore production facilities in particular require a process solution for produced water that meets the highest standards of oil removal while simultaneously minimizing operator interference requirements.

Streamlining processes and reducing footprint

The EPCON Dual CFU introduces an engineered internal design that increases the overall oil-in-water removal efficiency while fully degassing the clean water outlet. The advanced CFU uses residual flotation gas to achieve optimal secondary separation in the lower part of the vessel.

The major advantages of the EPCON Dual CFU include

• significantly enhanced oil removal and degassing compared with conventional systems
• enabled compliant overboard disposal, eliminating the need for bulk storage and transportation to onshore disposal facilities
• reduced consumption of additional flotation gas compared with traditional multistage treatment systems.

Confirming excellent separation through extensive testing

The EPCON Dual CFU was developed through computational fluid dynamics simulation, onshore pilot testing, and offshore verification. Additionally, a successful field trial was performed on a Statoil installation in the Norwegian sector of the North Sea. The field trial verified 27% better separation rates compared with conventional technologies.