Project No.: 0172.09. 03 7 .0 72 Page 1 of 2

Project Name: Coal Be d Methane 

### CBI?

Yes

No TELEPHONE CALL RECOR D

Incoming

Outgoing Date: 2 / 14 /1 2 Time: 12 :00 am

pm

Company Name: EMIT Water Technologies ERG Staff Name: Steve Strackbein

Lori Weiss

E PA Staff Name: Ahmar Siddiqui

Contact Name: Douglas Beagle Contact Phone N umber 307

- 673

- 0805

General Subject: EMIT Higgins Loop TM Technology (Ion Exchange)



### TOPICS DISCUSSED AND ACTION TAKEN

EPA contacted E xterran (formerly EMIT) on February 14 , 20 12 to speak with Douglas Beagle regarding the

current state of CBM operations in the Powder River Basin and to discuss the EMIT Higgins Loop TM

Technology. Prior to the call, EPA emailed the following questions to Mr. Beagle:

1. What are the flow requireme nts for the EMIT system? Are there upper boundaries such that two

systems may be required if flow is high? Are there lower boundaries such that a collection tank

would be needed and water would be batch treated if flow is low?

2. What are the TDS and T SS requirements for the system? At what point would water need to be

treated to avoid system fouling?

3. Do operators typically treat only a portion of their flow?

4. Can you provide any information on the costs of the system?

5. How many operators ar e currently using the EMIT system?

Mr. Beagle stated that the current operations in the Power River Basin have been significantly affected by the

price of natural gas. He stated that the quantities of water being treated continues to drop and this month he saw

a ~40% reduction in treated water.

Mr. Beagle’s responses to the listed questions are as follows:

1. Mr. Beagle indicated that the ion exchange unit s can be modified to address flow demands. The ion

exchange units come in two sizes, 200 gal/min and 800 gal/min. If the flow is less that 200 gal/m in,

EMIT will include a collection system prior to the ion exchange unit in order to collect enough water to

run the unit and if the flow is greater than 800 gal/min EMIT will run more than one unit in parallel.

2. Mr. Beagle stated that the EMIT Higgins Loop TM Technology does not have issues with TSS and

produced water does not require filtration prior to ion exchange treatment. He indicated that the EMIT

Higgins Loop TM Technology has a high tolerance for TSS. In regard to TDS, Mr. Beagle said that 3,500

mg /L is the upper limit TDS concentrations for effective ion exchange treatment. The EMIT Higgins

Loop TM Technology can treat sodium levels as high as 1,500 mg/L. Mr. Beagle indicated that produced

water from the Power River Basin is ideal for the Higgins Loop TM Technology because the levels of

sodium bicarbonate are high and allow the system to run efficiently. Water without levels of sodium

bicarbonate similar to that of the Power River Basin are not optimal for the Higgins Loop TM

Technology.3. Mr. Beagle stated that all of his treatment systems incorporate flow bypass and blending. The treatment

system is setup to treat only the amount of produced required to meet permit limits. Treated water is

blended with untreated water prior to discharge. Mr. Beagl e indicated that many of the projects have

eliminated the need for treatment by using impoundments or moving the location of the outfall to meet

Wyoming permit requirements

.

4. Mr. Beagle stated that EMIT Higgins Loop TM Technology treatment is priced on a per barrel treated

basis. Each system is setup on a contract basis with varying costs per barrel and includes everything

needed to treat and discharge the water and dispose of any residual waste.

5. Mr. Beagle indicated that there is only one operator in Montan a and two in Wyoming using the EMIT

Higgins Loop TM Technology. Mr. Beagle indicated he thought that one of the two operations in

Wyoming would stop in the near future.