EDINA, Minn. (June 6, 2014)—Dow Water & Process Solutions’ ultrafiltration (UF) membrane technology will soon start treating seawater required for reservoir injection off the coast of the Republic of the Congo. The UF seawater treatment installation on the new Moho Nord offshore floating production unit (FPU), commissioned by Total, will treat 210,000 barrels of seawater per day. High-quality water will be produced on the FPU through a compact multi-element UF system designed and supplied by Veolia Water Technologies.
Oil recovery operations require high-quality injection water in order to maximize reservoir performance. UF membrane technology is increasingly being adopted in the industry as an effective method for the treatment of injection water on offshore oil and gas production facilities due to space and weight advantages, when compared to more conventional seawater pretreatment options. High-quality treated seawater, delivered through UF membrane pretreatment, also serves as an exceptional pretreatment solution for the downstream sulphate removal unit (SRU), by reducing the rate of fouling of the sulphate removal membrane, thus reducing cleaning cycles and increasing overall plant availability.
Dow technology will be used as a pretreatment in the Moho Nord FPU water injection system, enabling effective removal of suspended solids and bacteria from seawater. Following pretreatment by the UF system, the seawater will be fed to the FPU’s Sulphate Removal Unit (SRU), prior to injection into the reservoir. The SRU removes the sulphate from the seawater, which prevents reservoir scaling and souring. The water is then injected into the oil bearing reservoir for waterflooding and pressure maintenance.
For more information, visit www.dowwaterandprocess.com.