Water use, conservation and wastewater treatment alternatives for oil refineries in New Mexico
This study analyzed the present operations, water use and wastewater treatment and disposal of the operating refineries in New Mexico. Alternatives for water conservation and wastewater reduction/treatment were evaluated for applicability and cost effectiveness. New Mexico refineries presently use from 10.6 to 39.1 gallons of water per barrel of crude oil and generate 6.5 to 25.4 gallons of wastewater per barrel of crude. All New Mexico refineries use either API or tilted plate separators for oil recovery followed by evaporation/percolation ponds. In comparison to national averages, New Mexico refineries have excessively high boiler and cooling tower blowdown rates. Better operational controls could reduce water use significantly. Also, the oil and grease concentration in the effluents are higher than the national average, indicating that better operational control is needed in this area as well. Several water savings alternatives including recycling water to the desalter, adding vacuum pumps to the vacuum unit and adding air coolers to the crude unit were recommended which would reduce water use by sixteen percent (16%). Due to the stringent discharge standards and pending hazardous waste regulations, it was found to be more cost effective to construct new, lined ponds than to add BAT. The cost to clean up existing ponds which were assumed to be hazardous waste TSDFs was also evaluated. Costs for removal and proper disposal of the refinery sludges could be as high as $600,000/acre of pond. Regardless of the water conservation treatment measures adopted, the existing ponds will still require cleanup which could result in the closure of the remaining refineries in New Mexico. 32 refs., 21 figs., 31 tabs.
- Research Organization:
- Jacobs Engineering Group, Inc., Albuquerque, NM (USA)
- OSTI ID:
- 5808988
- Report Number(s):
- NMERDI-2-72-4628; ON: DE85901468
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
Similar Records
New techniques in handling heavy California crude oil in refineries
Floc/Float system cleans crude desalter effluent
Related Subjects
54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES
PETROLEUM REFINERIES
WATER USE
WASTE WATER
PURIFICATION
RESOURCE CONSERVATION
COMPARATIVE EVALUATIONS
ECONOMICS
ENERGY CONSERVATION
EXPERIMENTAL DATA
NEW MEXICO
DATA
FEDERAL REGION VI
HYDROGEN COMPOUNDS
INDUSTRIAL PLANTS
INFORMATION
LIQUID WASTES
NORTH AMERICA
NUMERICAL DATA
OXYGEN COMPOUNDS
USA
WASTES
WATER
020900* - Petroleum- Environmental Aspects
520200 - Environment
Aquatic- Chemicals Monitoring & Transport- (-1989)