Considerations for Wastewater Reuse in the Petroleum and Petrochemical Industry

Overview:

Water conservation is becoming a major focal point, both in the public and private sector whether it is due to cost of water, availability of water, or environmental concerns.

In the private sector, the petroleum and petrochemical industries are one of the largest users of water. The uses of water can vary considerably in these facilities based on the manufacturing processes. But in general, most of these facilities use a large amount of water for a variety of purposes including steam generation, cooling water, and utility water. In addition, a significant amount of this water is returned to the environment in various water and wastewater streams which are treated to meet environmental discharge standards. In those areas where renewable water resources are limited, and/or in regions where there are significant environmental concerns/costs associated with wastewater discharges, reuse of wastewater may be a valid option to conserve valuable water resources and to reduce overall water treatment costs.

While there is a significant amount of interest in the reuse of water from petroleum and petrochemical facilities, the number of facilities at the present time actually reusing wastewater from centralized wastewater treatment plants is somewhat limited. Reuse of wastewater from specific process areas, or reuse of wastewater from sources outside the petroleum or petrochemical facility, are more common. As the costs and availability of fresh water becomes more prohibitive, more and more petroleum and petrochemical plant are looking to internal reuse of wastewater as a solution to their water needs.