Removal of total organics and grease from oil production effluents by an adsorption process

Oilfield produced water accounts for 98% of all waste generated in oil and gas exploration and processing. this process water may contain up to 1000 ppm total oil and grease, which must be treated prior to discharge. a novel inorganic adsorbent was designed to have high affinity towards such organics. lab scale evaluations of this adsorbent on production effluents obtained from an onshore site consistently yields tog removal > 96%. this was found to be a significant improvement over the chemically assisted daf at 74% in similar lab scale evaluations. this novel technology has the potential to provide a substantial reduction in capital and operating costs for water treatment.