CA2640421A1 - Process for removing silica in heavy oil recovery - Google Patents

Process for removing silica in heavy oil recovery Download PDF

Info

Publication number
CA2640421A1
CA2640421A1 CA2640421A CA2640421A CA2640421A1 CA 2640421 A1 CA2640421 A1 CA 2640421A1 CA 2640421 A CA2640421 A CA 2640421A CA 2640421 A CA2640421 A CA 2640421A CA 2640421 A1 CA2640421 A1 CA 2640421A1
Authority
CA
Canada
Prior art keywords
stream
brine
concentrated
produced water
evaporator
Prior art date
Legal status (The legal status is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the status listed.)
Granted
Application number
CA2640421A
Other languages
French (fr)
Other versions
CA2640421C (en
Inventor
Keith R. Minnich
Dan Peterson
Current Assignee (The listed assignees may be inaccurate. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation or warranty as to the accuracy of the list.)
HPD LLC
Original Assignee
HPD LLC
Priority date (The priority date is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the date listed.)
Filing date
Publication date
Priority claimed from PCT/US2008/074442 external-priority patent/WO2009029653A1/en
Priority claimed from US12/199,348 external-priority patent/US7905283B2/en
Application filed by HPD LLC filed Critical HPD LLC
Publication of CA2640421A1 publication Critical patent/CA2640421A1/en
Application granted granted Critical
Publication of CA2640421C publication Critical patent/CA2640421C/en
Active legal-status Critical Current
Anticipated expiration legal-status Critical

Links

Abstract

A process for recovery oil includes recovering an oil/water mixture from an oil well. Thereafter, the method includes separating oil from the oil/water mixture to produce an oil product and produced water having dissolved silica therein. The produced water is directed to an evaporator and produces steam and a concentrated brine. The method or process entails mixing a precipitant or crystallizing reagent with the produced water or the concentrated brine and causing the silica to precipitate from the produced water or the concentrated brine. Steam produced by the evaporator is condensed to form a distillate which is directed to steam generator. At the steam generator the distillate is heated to produce steam which is injected into an injection well, giving rise to the formation of the oil/water mixture.

Claims (24)

1. A method of recovering oil from an oil well comprising:

a. recovering an oil/water mixture from the well;

b. separating oil from the oil/water mixture to produce an oil product and produced water having dissolved silica therein;

c. directing the produced water to an evaporator and producing steam and a concentrated brine;

d. mixing magnesium oxide or magnesium chloride with the produced water or the concentrated brine and forming magnesium hydroxide;

e. co-precipitating the magnesium hydroxide and silica from the produced water or the concentrated brine;

f. condensing the steam to form a distillate;

g. directing the distillate to a steam generator and heating the distillate in the steam generator to produce steam; and h. injecting the steam into an injection well, giving rise to the formation of the oil/water mixture;
2. The method of claim 1 including maintaining the pH of the produced water or brine at approximately 9.8 to approximately 12Ø
3. The method of claim 1 including dosing the produced water or concentrated brine with magnesium oxide or magnesium chloride so as to maintain the weight ratio of magnesium to silica at approximately 0.5:1 to approximately 3.0:1.
4. The method of claim 3 including dosing the produced water or concentrated brine with magnesium oxide or magnesium chloride so as to maintain the weight ratio of magnesium to silica of approximately 1:1.
5. The method of claim 1 wherein the magnesium oxide or magnesium chloride is mixed with the produced water causing co-precipitation of the magnesium hydroxide and silica in the produced water; and the method includes:

a. directing the produced water with the precipitated silica to a first evaporator and evaporating the produced water to form a first brine stream and a first distillate stream; and b. directing at least a portion of the first brine stream to a second evaporator and evaporating at least a portion of the first brine stream to produce a second brine stream and a second distillate stream.
6. The method of claim 5 including separating the second brine stream into a filtrate stream and a stream concentrated with suspended solids, and recycling at least a portion of the stream concentrated with suspended solids to the first evaporator.
7. The method of claim 5 including maintaining the concentration factor of the produced water directed to the first evaporator below the concentration factor of the first brine stream directed to the second evaporator.
8. The method of claim 5 including directing the second brine stream to a ceramic membrane and separating the second brine stream into a filtrate stream and a reject stream concentrated with suspended solids and recycling at least a portion of the stream concentrated with suspended solids to the first evaporator or to a point in the process where the reject stream is mixed with the produced water.
9. The method of claim 1 wherein there is provided two evaporators and a first separation device disposed between the two evaporators, and the method includes:

a. directing the produced water to the first evaporator and producing a first brine stream and a first distillate stream;

b. directing the first brine stream to the separation device and separating the first brine stream into a filtrate stream and a stream concentrated with suspended solids;

c. recycling at least a portion of the stream concentrated with suspended solids to the first evaporator; and d. directing the filtrate stream produced by the separation device to a second evaporator and producing a second brine stream and a second distillate stream.
10. The method of claim 9 wherein the separation device includes at least one ceramic membrane.
11. The method of claim 9 wherein there is provided a second separation device disposed downstream of the second evaporator and the method includes directing at least a portion of the second brine stream to the second separation device and producing a second filtrate stream and a second stream concentrated with suspended solids; and recycling at least a portion of the second stream concentrated with suspended solids to the first evaporator.
12. The method of claim 11 including bypassing the first separation device disposed between the two evaporators with at least a portion of the first brine stream such that a portion of the first brine stream is directed to the second evaporator without being filtered by the first separation device.
13. The method of claim 1 including raising the pH of the brine or produced water to approximately 9.8 to approximately 12.0 by mixing the magnesium oxide or magnesium chloride with produced water.
14. The method of claim 5 including directing one or both of the first and second brine streams to a membrane and producing a reject stream, and recycling at least a portion of the reject stream to the first evaporator or to a point in the process where the reject stream is mixed with the produced water.
15. The method of claim 1 including:

a. recirculating the concentrated brine through a brine recirculating line associated with the evaporator;

b. directing at least some of the concentrated brine from the brine recirculating line to a side stream;

c. mixing the magnesium oxide or magnesium chloride with the concentrated brine in the side stream and forming magnesium hydroxide in the concentrated brine in the side stream; and d. co-precipitating the magnesium hydroxide and silica from the concentrated brine.
16. The method of claim 15 including returning at least some of the concentrated brine from the side stream to the brine recirculating line.
17. The method of claim 15 including after mixing magnesium oxide or magnesium chloride with the concentrated brine in the side stream, directing the concentrated brine to a membrane disposed in the side stream and filtering the concentrated brine to form a permeate stream and a reject stream concentrated with suspended solids.
18. The method of claim 1 wherein silica is precipitated from the produced water or concentrated brine; and wherein the method includes directing the produced water with precipitated silica or the concentrated brine with precipitated silica to a separator and producing a low suspended solids stream and a high suspended solids stream concentrated with suspended solids; and recycling at least a portion of the high suspended solids stream to the produced water or the concentrated brine to increase the concentration of suspended solids therein.
19. The method of claim 18 including recycling sufficient quantities of the reject stream to the produced water or concentrated brine so as to maintain the concentration of suspended solids in the produced water or concentrated brine at 10,000 Mg/L
or higher.
20. A method of recovering oil from an oil well, comprising:
a. recovering an oil/water mixture from the well;

b. separating oil from the oil/water mixture to produce an oil product and a produced water having dissolved silica therein;

c. directing the produced water to an evaporator and producing steam and a concentrated brine;

d. recirculating the concentrated brine through a recirculating brine line associated with the evaporator;

e. directing brine from the brine recirculating line to a side stream having a mixing tank;

f. mixing a precipitant with the concentrated brine in the mixing tank in the side stream;

g. precipitating silica in the concentrated brine in the side stream;

h. returning at least a portion of the concentrated brine with the precipitated silica in the side stream to the brine recirculating line;

i. condensing the steam produced by the evaporator to form a distillate;

j. directing the distillate to a steam generator and heating the distillate in the steam generator to produce steam; and k. injecting the steam into an injection well, giving rise to the formation of the oil/water mixture.
21. The method of claim 20 including mixing magnesium oxide or magnesium chloride with the concentrated brine in the mixing tank in the side stream and forming magnesium hydroxide in the concentrated brine in the side stream; and co-precipitating magnesium hydroxide and silica in the concentrated brine in the side stream.
22. The method of claim 20 wherein after mixing the precipitant with the concentrated brine, directing the concentrated brine to a membrane and filtering the concentrated brine and producing a filtrate stream and a reject stream concentrated with suspended solids.
23. The method of claim 22 including recycling at least a portion of the reject stream and mixing the reject stream with the concentrated brine upstream of the membrane, increasing the concentration of suspended solids in the concentrated brine.
24. The method of claim 23 including maintaining the concentration of suspended solids in the mixing tank at 10,000 Mg/L and higher.
CA2640421A 2008-08-27 2008-10-06 Process for removing silica in heavy oil recovery Active CA2640421C (en)

Applications Claiming Priority (4)

Application Number Priority Date Filing Date Title
USPCT/US2008/074442 2008-08-27
PCT/US2008/074442 WO2009029653A1 (en) 2007-08-27 2008-08-27 Process for removing silica in heavy oil recovery
US12/199348 2008-08-27
US12/199,348 US7905283B2 (en) 2007-08-27 2008-08-27 Process for removing silica in heavy oil recovery

Publications (2)

Publication Number Publication Date
CA2640421A1 true CA2640421A1 (en) 2010-02-27
CA2640421C CA2640421C (en) 2011-06-14

Family

ID=41722794

Family Applications (1)

Application Number Title Priority Date Filing Date
CA2640421A Active CA2640421C (en) 2008-08-27 2008-10-06 Process for removing silica in heavy oil recovery

Country Status (1)

Country Link
CA (1) CA2640421C (en)

Also Published As

Publication number Publication date
CA2640421C (en) 2011-06-14

Similar Documents

Publication Publication Date Title
CA2742867C (en) Process for recovering heavy oil utilizing one or more membranes
US8999171B2 (en) Membrane and electrodialysis based seawater desalination with salt, boron and gypsum recovery
US7909098B2 (en) Process for recovering heavy oil utilizing one or more membranes
CN105712436B (en) For just permeating the recycling of the reversed solvable solute of water process
US10160683B2 (en) Wastewater treatment processes employing high rate chemical softening systems
US10287201B2 (en) Methods and systems for treating produced water
CN110734166B (en) Method for efficient desalination and comprehensive utilization of seawater
CA2707011A1 (en) Method for removing silica from evaporator concentrate
US20150376033A1 (en) Methods and systems for treating produced water
RU2010111793A (en) METHOD FOR REMOVING SILICON OXIDE IN EXTRACTION OF HEAVY OIL
CN104909390B (en) A kind of embrane method couples lime-flue gas purified brine technique
US8430164B2 (en) Production of steam and its application to enhanced oil recovery
CN102001763A (en) Production method for desalting seawater by de-hardening preprocessing
CN104619951A (en) Treatment of produced water concentrate
CN104817134A (en) Full-membrane method seawater desalting integration system adopting ultrafiltration-nanofiltration-reverse osmosis, and full-membrane method seawater desalting integration process adopting ultrafiltration-nanofiltration-reverse osmosis
CN205556349U (en) Novel zero release of desulfurization waste water is handled device
CN109796099A (en) A kind of reverse osmosis -- positive infiltration -- seawater desalination system and method for multi-effect distilling coupling
CA2891199C (en) Method for treating organic laden produced water
AU2005100689A4 (en) Process for desalination of seawater with zero effluent and zero greenhouse gas emission
CN211620231U (en) Device for efficient desalination and comprehensive utilization of seawater
CA2640421A1 (en) Process for removing silica in heavy oil recovery
CN211497269U (en) Device for reducing salt in mine water
CN101565250A (en) Seawater desalination and chemical resource comprehensive extraction device and extraction method thereof
CN105121359A (en) Process for treating brine recovered from a coal seam gas operation
CN206414980U (en) A kind of film separation system for the function that added water online with continous way

Legal Events

Date Code Title Description
EEER Examination request