Water Processing Technology For Space And Weight Savings
Authors: Favret Uncas B. , Caudle Dan D. 
Published: December 2007

Uncas B. Favret and Dan D. Caudle, SPE Member

Sump piles have been used on offshore platforms for many years. The very first platforms placed in open waters outside the recognized coastline were fitted with a large diameter tubular vessel which extended from above the surface of the sea to some distance under water. The original purpose of these vessels was to serve as a conduit for waste (rain water and wash water) off the platform deck so that it would not foul the platform structural members. There has been a steady development of this technology since the early 1970's and it has been improved and adapted to other treating applications. Today this technology is capable of doing much more than simply acting as a catch basin for waste oil in deck drains. This paper discuss the advances made in this technology and describes some of the potential applications of it.

Modern sump technology includes a number of new products with a range of capabilities. From the original 'sump pile' used on early platforms several levels of increasingly sophisticated features have been added. The original sump pile was an open ended tubular vessel that extended into the water from the lower levels of the platform. It had an open bottom and no internals. Subsequent improvements have included vessel internals, ways to control level and level fluctuations, and incorporation of more sophisticated separation schemes. This paper will discuss some of these improvements and discuss some illustrative applications.

Introduction

As the oil and gas industry moves further and further offshore into ever deeper water, The cost of deck space and load bearing capacity becomes ever greater. Water separation and processing equipment is a major portion of most production treating facilities. If the deck area and weight of this equipment could be reduced then deep water projects would be more economic and more of the potential projects would be feasible. For older platforms the retrofit of new processing equipment could also benefit from lower weight and less deck space requirements. This paper describes a new approach for providing these benefits which is rooted in an earlier technology.

Most platforms are already equipped with a technology that minimizes space and weight. Sump piles have been used on offshore platforms for many years. The very first platforms placed in open waters outside the recognized coastline were fitted with a large diameter tubular vessel which extended from above the surface of the sea to some distance under water. A combination of the vertical arrangement of this equipment and its being partially submerged under water lend the very characteristics to these vessels that is sought for minimizing the weight and space requirements of water processing equipment. Engineering Specialties, Inc. was a pioneer in supplying sump technology as well as conventional water processing systems. The experience gained in both fields has now been combined to develop new water treating technology for solving a variety of treating problems including those where weight loading capacity and space are limited.

In order to put the new water treating technologies in perspective it is instructive to examine its roots in sump technology. Modern sump technology includes products with a range of capabilities.

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