WATER TREATMENT TECHNOLOGY

FACT SHEET

Note: Information is from vendor, however specifications may have 

changed. Contact vendor for updates. Water Treatment Catalog and Decision Tool

THE RMAL EVAPOR ATION/

DISTIL LATION

Process Description

Modern distillation/evaporation processes being utilized 

in the shale gas industry include the use of Thermal Vapor 

Recompression (TVR) and Mechanical Vapor 

Recompression (MVR). In principle, both technologies 

distill water in a similar overall process but differ in how 

increases to steam pressure and temperatures are applied. 

With TVR, steam jet ejectors are used to raise the 

pressure and temperature of vapors whereas; with MVR, 

mechanical compressors are used instead of steam jet 

ejectors. 

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With MVR for instance, heat generated during the 

thermal evaporation and distillation process is derived 

from the compression of vapor rather than the direct 

exchange of heat produced from stream produced in a 

boiler. This approach effectively reduces the temperature 

required to boil water relative to the atmospheric boiling 

point and subsequently, reduces the energy demands of 

the treatment process. In the shale gas industry, 

mechanical compression is more widely used and is 

therefore, focused on in the remaining discussion.

Technical Capabilities

The thermal evaporation/distillation process is most 

effective at desalinating brine, removing inorganic 

compounds, such as heavy metals and nitrate; total 

dissolved solids, hardness (calcium and magnesium); and 

in some cases, organic material such as bacteria, through 

the boiling process. When using MVR, the treatment of 

raw water (or brine) with TDS concentrations of 60,000 -

80,000 mg/L will result in fresh water recovery rates of 

approximately 70% - 85% at flow rates exceeding 2,500 

BPD. Treatment Company

Thermal

Distillation/

Evaporation

Shale Gas Basin

Marcellus

Barnett

Haynesville

Fayetteville

Woodford

212 Resources √ √

Fountain Quail √ √ √

Aquatech √ √ √

Veolia √

INTEVRAS √ √

GE Water & 

Process Tech. √ √

Total Separation 

Solutions √

KEY CONSIDERATIONS

 TDS concentrations of 60,000 -80,000 mg/L 

will result in fresh water recovery rates of 

approximately 70% - 85%.

 To include, transportation, power consumption, 

labor and treatment, cost estimates range from 

$3.00 to $5.00 per Bbl.

 Currently, thermal processes, such as MVR, are 

the only practical treatment option for treating 

flowback and produced water with TDS 

concentrations above 40,000 – 45,000 mg/L.

Fountain Quail MVR NOMAD Facility 

ALL Consulting
WATER TREATMENT TECHNOLOGY

FACT SHEET

Note: Information is from vendor, however specifications may have 

changed. Contact vendor for updates. Water Treatment Catalog and Decision Tool

Technical Limitations

MVR systems are capable of treating produced water with

high TDS 

concentrations, but in 

general, levels above

80,000 mg/L – 100,000 

mg/L result in loss of 

water recovery (or 

increased brine 

concentrate) and an 

increase to treatment 

costs due to the 

additional energy 

required for treatment. 

Based on available data, 

MVR systems are 

limited to treating 

unblended water with 

TDS concentrations of 

150,000 mg/L with a 

water recovery rate of 

approximately 50%, 

although some newer technologies are indicating higher 

water recovery rates are obtainable. Problems associated 

with this technology include fouling with organic deposits 

and corrosion within the heat exchanger that is caused by 

the recirculation of brine, which is used for heat recovery 

in the evaporator. Pre-treatment of the feed water (e.g., 

flocculation, cartridge filtration, settling) is required to 

minimize such issues. 

Costs

To include, transportation, power consumption, labor 

and treatment, cost estimates range from $3.00 to $5.00 

per Bbl (disposal costs not built-in to the overall cost). To 

only process or treat the water, costs estimates equate to 

less than $3.00 per barrel, as compared to an estimated 

$2 to $2.50 per barrel for typical water disposal into an 

injection well in the Barnett, or approximately 50 to 75 

percent more. 

References

National Energy Technology Laboratory (NETL). 

Produced Water Management Information System 

(PWMIS). Produced Water Management DescriptionsThermal Distillation. 

AquaPure. NOMAD 

2000 Mobile Oilfield 

Evaporator Fact Sheet. 

A.W. Gaudlip, L.O. 

Paugh, SPE, Range 

Resources Appalachia 

LLC., T.D. Hayes, 

Gas Technology 

Institute. 2008. 

Marcellus Shale Water 

Management 

Challenges in 

Pennsylvania. SPE 

119898.

Dale, Jim. 2009. Clean 

Water Visionary. 

Reproduced with 

permission of Alfa Laval 'Here' magazine and Spoon 

Publishing (March 17, 2009).

STW Resources. 2009. Marcellus Shale Water 

Reclamation. Society of Petroleum Engineers. 

Halldorson, Brent. 2009. Personal Communication on 

July 7th, 2009. Fountain Quail Water Management.

Ft. Worth Basin Oil & Gas Magazine. 2009. The Future 

of Water Recycling. Issue No. 19. July 2009.

Smith, Anthony. 2009. Personal Communication on July 

24th, 2009. Devon Energy Corporation.

Veil, John. 2008. Argonne National Laboratory. Thermal 

Distillation Technology for Management of Produced 

Water and Frac Flowback Water. Water Technology 

Brief #2008-1.

Colorado School of Mines. Produced Water Treatment 

and Beneficial Use Information Center. Treatment 

Options. Enhanced distillation/evaporation.

Aqua-Pure NOMAD MVR Process Diagram

Courtesy of Fountain Quail