TOC/Conductivity: Surrogate Measurements Potentially Guiding Greater Utilization of Treated Produced Water

Abstract

Hydraulic fracturing utilizes pressurized liquid typically consisting of water, proppants, and a multitude of chemical additives, in order to fracture petroliferous strata to extract natural gas and oil. In this process, a vast amount of wastewater is produced. This water is heavily contaminated, which renders it unusable outside of direct reuse, without extensive treatment being performed. Typically, various sophisticated analytical techniques are involved in the characterization of both waste and treated waters, increasing the cost and the complexity of the management efforts. The article discusses the constituents found in oilfield wastewater, the methods used to identify and quantify these constituents, and the present management methods. Additionally, we introduce total organic carbon and conductivity analyses as surrogate measurements of overall water quality. Total organic carbon and conductivity are established bulk measurements, which can be used to facilitate rapid decisions regarding the treatment and greater utilization of flowback and produced oilfield wastes. The application of the proposed surrogates could be used to streamline the current myriad of complex and expensive measurements. This would improve operational efficiency with respect to wastewater management in the energy sector.

Ozonation and Changes in Biodegradable Organic Substances in Drinking Water Treatment: The Future of Green Technology

“…Taking into consideration the wellbeing of consumers, a method of water treatment and disinfection is sought that would be free of water disinfection DBPs or their amount and type would not pose a significant health risk to the consumers. To measure overall water quality, total organic carbon and conductivity analyses are additionally introduced as surrogate measurements of overall water quality [5]. It is important to prepare water in the treatment process that is free of biodegradable organic substances when pumped into the water supply system [6][7][8][9][10].…”