Enhanced water treatment for reclamation of waste fluids and increased efficiency treatment of potable waters

• US 7,699,988 B2
• Filed: 03/06/2009
• Issued: 04/20/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 08/02/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Brisben Water Solutions LLC
• Original Assignee: Ecosphere Technologies, Inc.
• Inventors: McGuire, Dennis, Jakhete, Sanjeev
• Primary Examiner(s): Griffin; Walter D
• Assistant Examiner(s): Allen; Cameron J
• Application Number:
  US12/399,481
• Publication Number:
  US 20090230059A1
• Time in Patent Office: 410 Days
• Field of Search: 210/638, 210/151, 210/721, 210/669
• US Class Current: 210/638
• CPC Class Codes: C02F 1/283 using coal, charred products, or inorganic mixtures containing them
• CPC Class Codes: C02F 1/32 with ultraviolet light
• CPC Class Codes: C02F 1/36 ultrasonic vibrations
• CPC Class Codes: C02F 1/385 by centrifuging suspensions centrifuges B04B
• CPC Class Codes: C02F 1/40 Devices for separating or removing fatty or oily substances or similar floating material cleaning or keeping clear the surface of open water from oil or like materials E02B15/04; devices in sewers for separating liquid or solid substances from sewage E03F5/14, e.g. for use in drains leading to the sewer E03F5/16
• CPC Class Codes: C02F 1/441 by reverse osmosis
• CPC Class Codes: C02F 1/444 by ultrafiltration or microfiltration
• CPC Class Codes: C02F 1/4602 for prevention or elimination of deposits
• CPC Class Codes: C02F 1/4672 by electrooxydation
• CPC Class Codes: C02F 1/5236 using inorganic agents
• CPC Class Codes: C02F 1/78 with ozone C02F1/4672 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: C02F 2001/46119 Cleaning the electrodes
• CPC Class Codes: C02F 2101/20 Heavy metals or heavy metal compounds
• CPC Class Codes: C02F 2201/008 Mobile apparatus and plants, e.g. mounted on a vehicle for biological treatment C02F2203/008
• CPC Class Codes: C02F 2201/4617 DC only
• CPC Class Codes: C02F 2303/16 Regeneration of sorbents, filters
• CPC Class Codes: C02F 9/00 Multistage treatment of water, waste water or sewage

Abstract

Disclosed is a process for reclamation of waste fluids. A conditioning container is employed for receipt of waste material on a continuous flow for treatment within the container by immersible transducers producing ultrasonic acoustic waves in combination with a high level of injected ozone. The treated material exhibits superior separation properties for delivery into a centrifuge for enhanced solid waste removal. The invention discloses a cost efficient and environmentally friendly process and apparatus for cleaning and recycling of flowback, or frac water, which has been used to stimulate gas production from shale formations. The apparatus is mobile and containerized and suitable for installation at the well site.

Claims

1. A mobile flowback water treatment system comprising:

a backwash filter having an inlet that is fluidly connected to a source of flowback fluid, said backwash filter also having an outlet, the outlet of said backwash filter is fluidly connected to a first inlet of an ozone injector device, said ozone injector device having a second inlet fluidly connected to a source of ozone, said injector device having an outlet fluidly connected to an inlet of an ozone contact tank, said ozone tank having an outlet fluidly connected to a first inlet of an inline static mixer, said system also including a source of aluminum sulfate, said source of aluminum sulfate being fluidly connected to a second inlet of said inline static mixer, said in line static mixer having an outlet in fluid communication with an inlet of a main reactor tank, the inlet of said main reactor tank fluidly connected to an inlet manifold contained within said main reactor tank, said manifold configured to cause hydrodynamic cavitations within the main reactor tank, said main reactor further including ultrasonic transducers to create acoustic cavitations with said main reactor tank, said main reactor tank further including at least one electrically charged anode and at least one cathode within said main reaction tank configured to provide DC current to the flowback water within said tank.

2. The mobile flowback water treatment system of claim 1 wherein said main reactor tank has an outlet fluidly connected to at least one centrifuge to separate solids out of said flowback water suspended solids are removed from the flowback water at said at least one centrifuge.

3. The mobile flowback water treatment system of claim 2 wherein an outlet of said at least one centrifuge is fluidly connected to a plurality of the media tanks, said plurality of media tanks having a flowback fluid outlet, whereby the flowback fluid is polished and any remaining heavy metals as removed and any remaining ozone is converted to oxygen.

4. The mobile flowback water treatment system of claim 3 wherein the outlet of said plurality of media tanks is fluidly connected to a plurality of micron sized filters capable of filtering solids of one micron, said filters having a fluid outlet.

5. The mobile flowback water treatment system of claim 4 wherein the fluid outlet of said plurality of micron sized filters is fluidly connected to a plurality of reverse osmosis pumps, each pump increasing the fluid pressure of the flowback water, the fluid output from each pump is then introduced into a filtering chamber containing a reverse osmosis membrane thereby forcing the flowback water through a reverse osmosis membrane, said filtering chambers having a first and second outlet, the first outlet containing clean flowback water for subsequent storage and distribution and a second outlet containing concentrated waste to return to a reject water tank for reinjection or other suitable disposal.

6. The mobile flowback water treatment system of claim 1 wherein an ozone booster pump is connected between the outlet of said backwash filter and the first inlet of said ozone injector device.

7. The mobile flowback water treatment system of claim 1 wherein a feed pump moves said source of aluminum sulfate to said second inlet of said inline static mixer.

8. The mobile flowback treatment system of claim 1 wherein said main reactor tank is operated under a pressure greater than atmospheric pressure.

9. The mobile flowback treatment system of claim 1 wherein said source of ozone is an ozone generator which is in fluid communication with said injector.

10. The mobile flowback treatment system of claim 1 wherein said treatment system is mounted within a standard truck trailer that is capable of transport by truck, rail or ship.

11. The mobile flowback treatment system of claim 1, said transducers include at least one pair of ultrasonic transducers operating at approximately 16 KHz and at least one pair of ultrasonic transducers operating at approximately 20 KHz.