Development of an Advanced, Membrane-Based Water Treatment Process for Produced Water from the Petroleum Industry

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Scarcity of clean, fresh water is an issue of immediate and grave concern. It adversely impacts people from both developing and developed countries and the United Nations has predicted that in just over a decade, nearly half the world population will experience persistent water shortages. Oil and gas extraction processes require large quantities of water to produce desired products; however, along with such products, they also generate a highly complex waste stream known as produced water. Treatment of produced water is a growing and necessary practice that not only curtails its adverse effects on the environment and our well-being, but also improves available water resources for reuse. Produced water is a complex waste stream with inconstant composition, which varies with temporal and geologic conditions, but its elevated salinity remains one of the key limitations for treatment and reuse. Petro-Techna International Ltd., a Canadian energy company, and Lambton College aim to develop a low-cost, high-performance, and durable nano-engineered composite membrane for direct contact membrane distillation (DCMD) applications for efficient treatment of high-salinity industrial wastewater associated with the oil and gas industry. The primary aim of the proposed applied research project is to synthesize and optimize a series of highly hydrophobic, nano-composite membranes with high porosity, superior anti-fouling and wetting properties, excellent mechanical and chemical stability and low cost for treatment of produced water in the oil and gas sector in Canada and beyond. The successful completion of this applied research collaboration will significantly benefit Petro-Techna International Ltd. and has the potential to increase their annual revenue and technical and professional workforce. This technology will have a positive, lasting impact on the environment as the need for fresh water for oil and gas production will be substantially reduced, leading to significant reductions in the release of untreated wastewater into the environment.