Abstract
A Southern California oil producer needed to expand its light oil waterflood. An existing oil treating plant was expanded to include a new state-of-the-art water plant to recycle all produced water associated with light oil production for use in the existing waterflood. The new 350,000–barrel-per-day water plant was designed to treat the produced water to remove suspended solids and oil to a specification that equaled or exceeded the existing waterflood aquifer source. In addition, the plant had to minimize waste while maximizing treated water output and be built for a 40-year life. The plant addition was designed and constructed using a unique combination of water de-oiling, desanding, and filtration equipment together with centrifuges and gas flotation equipment similar to equipment used in municipal wastewater treatment plants. All wastes such as filter backwash are processed and reused.
The water plant is now operational, performing at or above expectations. It treats and recycles more than 340,000 barrels of water per day for use in the field's waterflood project. This recycling has largely displaced the existing waterflood source supply system (saving power and well maintenance and replacement costs) and reduced produced water disposal well injection costs resulting from much improved water quality. The new plant has met its goal of providing a high-quality water source for waterflood with typically less than 2 milligrams per liter of solids, oil, and grease.
