Removal of Oil from Produced Water by Dissolved Air Flotation

Abstract

Oil production generates a significant amount of water byproduct known as produced water. Following primary gravity separation, produced water is normally disposed of by injection into the formation from which it came. However, high amounts of suspended solids or oil in the produced water may cause significant problems if the injection formation becomes clogged. This study evaluated the effectiveness of dissolved air flotation in treating two produced water samples obtained from Saskatchewan heavy oil production sites. In the dissolved air flotation experiments, maximum oil and suspended solids removals were 77 and 59%, respectively. The use of polymers with dissolved air flotation showed maximum oil and suspended solids removals of 94 and 66%, respectively.