Cost-effective treatment of a petroleum refinery effluent

Conference · Thu Jan 01 04:00:00 EST 1976 · Proc., Am. Pet. Inst., Sect. 3; (United States)

OSTI ID:7219283

Crame, L W

During the summer of 1975, Texaco's Research and Technical Department conducted a comprehensive study at the Company's 52,000 BPD West Tulsa, Oklahoma, refinery to develop a cost-effective method for wastewater disposal. Energy conservation was not a prime consideration initially but appeared more significant as the study progressed. The existing West Tulsa Plant wastewater treatment facilities include storm and off-test water diversion, oil/water separators, and an aerated lagoon system with discharge to the Arkansas River. Based on pilot studies, technically viable options for improvement of wastewater disposal were: (1) conversion of the present system to either (a) an air flotation-activated sludge-tertiary filtration system, or (b) a rotating disk biological system, or (2) discharge to the Tulsa city sewer after pretreatment of refinery effluent for cyanide and metals removal. The rotating disk system was selected as it offered capital investment savings of $640,000 over pretreatment and discharge to Tulsa sewers and $920,000 over activated sludge treatment at the design flow of 1000 gpm. The activated sludge system was not competitive economically with the simpler rotating disk system because secondary oil removal and tertiary filtration (with return of backwash to aeration basin) were required with the former to meet design total suspended solids and oil and grease limits and to maintain sufficient mixed-liquor biological solids. The rotating disk process could tolerate higher oil and grease levels and sustain a healthy population of fixed-film microorganisms on disks at low influent BOD/sub 5/ (less than 100 mg/1) concentrations. Theclarified effluent from the four-stage disk unit was exceptionally clear. The rotating disk system coupled with improvements in storm water holding, pH control, oil/water separator modifications, and better equalization should result in an improved facility.

• Research Organization: Texaco Inc., Port Arthur, TX
• OSTI ID: 7219283
• Conference Information: Journal Name: Proc., Am. Pet. Inst., Sect. 3; (United States) Journal Volume: 55
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

02 PETROLEUM
020800* -- Petroleum-- Waste Management
32 ENERGY CONSERVATION, CONSUMPTION, AND UTILIZATION
320300 -- Energy Conservation
Consumption
& Utilization-- Industrial & Agricultural Processes
ACTIVATED SLUDGE PROCESS
BIODEGRADATION
CAPITAL
CHEMICAL REACTIONS
COST BENEFIT ANALYSIS
DECOMPOSITION
HYDROGEN COMPOUNDS
LIQUID WASTES
MANAGEMENT
OXYGEN COMPOUNDS
PETROLEUM REFINERIES
PROCESSING
WASTE DISPOSAL
WASTE MANAGEMENT
WASTE PROCESSING
WASTE WATER
WASTES
WATER
WATER TREATMENT