Petroleum production facilities face increasing challenges with rising water-production rates during crude-oil extraction, especially in waterflooding operations for secondary oil recovery. This not only increases operational costs but also raises environmental concerns related to energy consumption and carbon emissions from water-handling processes.
To address these challenges, Saudi Aramco took a pioneering step by integrating hybrid flotation technology into a conventional gravity water/oil separator (WOSEP) to enhance water-deoiling efficiency. This case study provides valuable insights into the design, operation, and performance of hybrid flotation systems that can benefit other petroleum industry initiatives.
By combining enhanced gravity separation with induced gas flotation (IGF) in the same vessel, the retrofit significantly enhanced deoiling capacity, reduced oil-in-water content in the outlet, and improved operational efficiency. The methodology for this upgrade project began with an assessment of the existing WOSEP system and its operational issues. Through careful planning and implementation of innovative hybrid flotation technology, significant improvements were achieved in deoiling efficiency and operational sustainability.
The results of this case study offer valuable guidance for the broader petroleum industry on how to optimize water-deoiling processes while minimizing environmental impact and reducing operational costs.
