TECHNICAL PROGRAMME | Energy Infrastructure – Future Pathways
Water Management in the Energy Industry: Innovations for Sustainability & Efficiency
Forum 12 | Hall 5 Digital Poster Plaza 2
30
April
12:00
14:00
UTC+3
As the petroleum industry focuses on sustainable and efficient operations, effective water management remains a critical priority. This forum will explore the latest technologies and strategies for handling produced water, with the aim of minimising environmental impact and optimising water usage in extraction and refining processes. Key topics will include advanced water treatment, reuse, and disposal methods, as well as regulatory compliance. Industry experts will discuss innovative solutions for reducing the water footprint, presenting case studies and best practices to provide valuable insights into the current state of water management and the future advancements essential for sustainable operations.
Oily wastewater produced from the oil and gas industry is increasingly recognized as a pressing challenge in wastewater treatment due to their harmful impacts on aquatic life and human health. Membrane technology offers a sustainable approach for emulsion separation; however, conventional MXene-based membranes suffer from limited mass transport, caused by their narrow interlayer spacing, and poor long-term stability due to oxidation. In this study, we developed a high-performing MXene membrane with enlarged interlayer spacing and improved structural integrity for efficient oil–water separation. By intercalating Si-based species during ultrasonication-assisted exfoliation, we obtained a modified MXene membrane (U-MX-Si) with a d-spacing of 11 Å and enhanced surface energy (41 mJ·m–2). These modifications reduced structural defects, promoted uniform self-assembly of exfoliated sheets on the membrane support, and resulted in outstanding separation efficiency (99%) alongside a stable permeate flux during operation. The ability to maintain both high selectivity and stable performance highlights the practical potential of U-MX-Si membranes for wastewater treatment. This work demonstrates a viable pathway for advancing MXene-based membrane technologies toward real-world applications in the oil and gas industry.
Water produced in oil wells poses significant challenges, including increased operational costs and environmental risks. Accurate identification of associated water sources is critical for optimizing reservoir management and reducing operational costs. Traditional methods, which rely on single-variable analysis or isotopic measurements, are often complex, computationally intensive, region-specific, or ineffective for mixed-water scenarios. This study addresses these gaps by proposing a scalable scoring system that integrates nine key ionic parameters (e.g., Na⁺, Cl⁻, Mg²⁺, Ca²⁺, SO₄²⁻) and assigns dynamic weights to each parameter based on its diagnostic relevance. This study introduces a systematic scoring-based methodology to classify water origins into four categories: (1) in-situ formation water, (2) adjacent (neighboring) formation water, (3) drilling fluid contamination, and (4) acidizing operation fluids. Using ion-specific criteria and weighted scoring matrices, the method proposed a quantitative approach to interpreting water analysis data and translating into actionable decisions. Application of the method to three water samples from one of the Middle Eastern carbonate reservoirs revealed a transition from stimulation fluid dominance (score: 89.1) in the initial sample to formation water dominance (score:83.2) in the final sample. This highlights the methodology’s capability to differentiate fluid sources across samples with clear numerical support. The approach is practical, low cost and suitable for real-time field application without the need for advanced laboratory techniques.
Co-author/s:
Esmaeil Hamidpour, Senior Reservoir Engineer, National Iranian South Oil Company.
Co-author/s:
Esmaeil Hamidpour, Senior Reservoir Engineer, National Iranian South Oil Company.
The global petroleum industry confronts a monumental and persistent environmental challenge: the management of produced water. This wastewater, a byproduct extracted alongside oil and gas, constitutes one of the industry's largest waste streams. It is a highly complex and challenging mixture, containing toxic emulsified oils, dissolved hydrocarbons, heavy metals, radioactive elements, and high concentrations of salts. Conventional treatment methods, such as chemical coagulation, air flotation, and membrane filtration, are often chemically intensive, energy-consuming, and inefficient against stable emulsions. They can also generate secondary waste streams, leading to high operational costs and a significant environmental footprint, particularly in remote or arid oilfields.
Addressing this critical need, this research from Saudi Arabia presents the development and testing of a novel, high-efficiency plasma-based purification system engineered specifically for the rigorous demands of produced water. Plasma, often termed the fourth state of matter, is an ionized gas capable of generating a powerful cocktail of reactive species—including ozone, hydroxyl radicals, and ultraviolet radiation—within the water matrix. The technology leverages these advanced non-thermal plasma processes to initiate a rapid and comprehensive degradation of pollutants. It effectively cracks emulsified oils, mineralizes persistent organic compounds, and achieves potent disinfection by destroying harmful microbes, all without the dependency on chemical additives.
Our comprehensive study systematically focuses on optimizing the system's core operational parameters to achieve maximum treatment efficacy. This involves evaluating different carrier gases (e.g., air, oxygen, argon) and varying power inputs to determine the most energy-efficient configuration for treating both synthetic and real-world produced water samples obtained from oilfields. The ultimate performance target is to achieve full compliance with the most stringent regulatory standards for safe discharge or beneficial reuse in agriculture or industrial processes.
A key operational advantage of this modular technology is its strong potential for decentralized, on-site treatment. This capability can drastically reduce the logistical burdens, transportation costs, and safety hazards associated with moving large volumes of wastewater or handling dangerous treatment chemicals. An initial techno-economic assessment indicates a substantial potential for reducing long-term operational expenditures (OPEX) and the overall environmental footprint when compared to incumbent traditional methods.
This innovation directly aligns with the ambitious water conservation and environmental stewardship goals of Saudi Vision 2030. It offers the petroleum sector a robust, chemical-free, and sustainable technological solution for closing the water loop. By transforming a costly waste product into a valuable resource, this plasma-based system promises to dramatically enhance water recycling rates, minimize ecological impact, and significantly improve the overall sustainability and social license of oil and gas operations worldwide.
Addressing this critical need, this research from Saudi Arabia presents the development and testing of a novel, high-efficiency plasma-based purification system engineered specifically for the rigorous demands of produced water. Plasma, often termed the fourth state of matter, is an ionized gas capable of generating a powerful cocktail of reactive species—including ozone, hydroxyl radicals, and ultraviolet radiation—within the water matrix. The technology leverages these advanced non-thermal plasma processes to initiate a rapid and comprehensive degradation of pollutants. It effectively cracks emulsified oils, mineralizes persistent organic compounds, and achieves potent disinfection by destroying harmful microbes, all without the dependency on chemical additives.
Our comprehensive study systematically focuses on optimizing the system's core operational parameters to achieve maximum treatment efficacy. This involves evaluating different carrier gases (e.g., air, oxygen, argon) and varying power inputs to determine the most energy-efficient configuration for treating both synthetic and real-world produced water samples obtained from oilfields. The ultimate performance target is to achieve full compliance with the most stringent regulatory standards for safe discharge or beneficial reuse in agriculture or industrial processes.
A key operational advantage of this modular technology is its strong potential for decentralized, on-site treatment. This capability can drastically reduce the logistical burdens, transportation costs, and safety hazards associated with moving large volumes of wastewater or handling dangerous treatment chemicals. An initial techno-economic assessment indicates a substantial potential for reducing long-term operational expenditures (OPEX) and the overall environmental footprint when compared to incumbent traditional methods.
This innovation directly aligns with the ambitious water conservation and environmental stewardship goals of Saudi Vision 2030. It offers the petroleum sector a robust, chemical-free, and sustainable technological solution for closing the water loop. By transforming a costly waste product into a valuable resource, this plasma-based system promises to dramatically enhance water recycling rates, minimize ecological impact, and significantly improve the overall sustainability and social license of oil and gas operations worldwide.
Water scarcity poses a critical global challenge, especially in arid and semi-arid regions where freshwater resources are extremely limited. Addressing this issue requires innovative and sustainable wastewater treatment technologies. This study introduces a solar-powered Zero Liquid Discharge (ZDD) system for industrial wastewater treatment. It integrates physico-chemical pretreatment to remove suspended solids and hardness-causing compounds, followed by multi-stage solar evaporation ponds enhanced with nanostructured absorbers to maximize heat conversion. Microfluidic channels ensure uniform flow and double evaporation rates. Thermal energy stored in phase-change materials enables continuous operation, including nighttime. The condensed vapor produces high-quality freshwater, while valuable salts and minerals are recovered. This low-energy, membrane-free system offers a sustainable solution for wastewater valorization and water resource management.
Co-author/s:
Sajjad Khodayar, Senior Operations Operator, Gachsaran Oil and Gas Production Company, National Iranian South Oil.
Vahid Shariati Far, Senior Employee of Oil Operations, Shiraz Oil Refining Company.
Eng. Alireza Heydari, Researcher, Petro Boom Technologists Hamid Park Science and Technology.
Co-author/s:
Sajjad Khodayar, Senior Operations Operator, Gachsaran Oil and Gas Production Company, National Iranian South Oil.
Vahid Shariati Far, Senior Employee of Oil Operations, Shiraz Oil Refining Company.
Eng. Alireza Heydari, Researcher, Petro Boom Technologists Hamid Park Science and Technology.
In order to reach sustainable and environmentally friendly operations; it is critical to have an effective management of produced water in oil production wells. In this research, compatibility of re-injection of produced water (PWRI) into an offshore reservoir for the purpose of reducing injectivity loss caused by inorganic scaling deposition is examined. The study compares results from both laboratory compatibility tests and geochemical simulators - Oli ScaleChem and PHREEQC- under reservoir conditions to check their predictability for scaling deposition tendency.
The research is conducted on a south-west Iranian mature oil field with water production of almost 7,000 barrels per day. The produced water and formation brine were mixed in various ratios and re-injected into another reservoir. Compatibility tests were performed by conducting equilibrium experiments, scale separation and SEM-EDX analysis. The total scale measured in experimental study was 134 mg/L and the main minerals identified were Sodium Chloride, Iron Oxide and Silicon Oxide. On another hand, the geochemical simulators predicted precipitation of different types and amounts of scales with high deviation from laboratory experiments for Iron Oxide, Calcium Chloride and Sodium Chloride scales.
The research concludes that although the simulations are quick and cheap, they only consider super-saturation as the main and only reason for scale formation without considering nucleation and crystal growth processes and the predictive geochemical simulators need deep refinements. On another hand, even though laboratory experiments are generally time-consuming and expensive, they give more accurate and elaborate information regarding the scale formation. Accordingly, the combination of experimental methods with advanced simulations may better optimize water management strategies, reduce environmental impact and increase hydrocarbon production sustainability.
The research is conducted on a south-west Iranian mature oil field with water production of almost 7,000 barrels per day. The produced water and formation brine were mixed in various ratios and re-injected into another reservoir. Compatibility tests were performed by conducting equilibrium experiments, scale separation and SEM-EDX analysis. The total scale measured in experimental study was 134 mg/L and the main minerals identified were Sodium Chloride, Iron Oxide and Silicon Oxide. On another hand, the geochemical simulators predicted precipitation of different types and amounts of scales with high deviation from laboratory experiments for Iron Oxide, Calcium Chloride and Sodium Chloride scales.
The research concludes that although the simulations are quick and cheap, they only consider super-saturation as the main and only reason for scale formation without considering nucleation and crystal growth processes and the predictive geochemical simulators need deep refinements. On another hand, even though laboratory experiments are generally time-consuming and expensive, they give more accurate and elaborate information regarding the scale formation. Accordingly, the combination of experimental methods with advanced simulations may better optimize water management strategies, reduce environmental impact and increase hydrocarbon production sustainability.
During the extraction of oil and natural gas, a huge amount of the brine wastewater is produced. This wastewater, which termed as produced water, contains different impurities, such as salts, heavy metals, inorganic ions and hydrocarbons. By effective management of produced water, its environmental impacts can be minimized. The gas hydrate-based treatment technology has been introduced as a novel technique to treat produced water and eliminate its impurities for industrial applications. Due to the complexity of wastewater treatment processes and the limitation of traditional models, artificial intelligence-based techniques have been proposed in the recent years to simulate the treatment process of wastewaters. In the present study, experimental measurements and modeling technique were performed to study the hydrated-based desalination process of produced water. For this purpose, hydrate formation experiments of carbon dioxide and compressed natural gas were carried out. The experimental setup used in this research, contains a 300 cm3 reactor that is placed in a cooling medium to control the reactor temperature. A computer system, which equipped with an appropriate data gathering software, was applied to record and collect experimental data during hydrate formation period. After collecting required empirical data, an artificial intelligence-based technique was utilized to simulate hydrate-based desalination process. For this purpose, a boosting tree ensemble model was successfully developed to predict the desalination efficiency of produced water as target value by considering initial salinity and gas equilibrium pressure as input parameters. After model development, wide varieties of graphical and statistical error analysis techniques were applied to assess the smart model performance. The coefficient of determination (R2) and mean absolute percentage error (MAPE) of the proposed model for all experimental data were 0.9938 and 0.71%, respectively, which indicate the excellent agreement between model predictions and experimental data. Based on the obtained results, it can be concluded that the developed tree-based model can be applied by high accuracy in predicting desalination efficiency of produced water through the hydrate-based desalination process. Furthermore, the measured data reveal that the CO2 gas hydrate has a higher average desalination efficiency compared to compressed natural gas. This phenomenon can be attributed to the well-packed structure of CO2 hydrate in contrast to the spongy form of natural gas hydrate. In fact, in a well-packed hydrate structure, less salt was trapped between the hydrate crystals, therefore, the water obtained after hydrate dissociation has a lower salinity.
Co-author/s:
Hamid Ganji, Head of Gas Research Division, Research Institute of Petroleum Industry.
Hajar Fakharian, Researcher, Amir Kabir University of Technology.
Co-author/s:
Hamid Ganji, Head of Gas Research Division, Research Institute of Petroleum Industry.
Hajar Fakharian, Researcher, Amir Kabir University of Technology.
Introduction:
Water disposal in giant offshore fields presents significant challenges. This paper outlines a comprehensive, data-driven approach to sustainable water disposal management in a major offshore field in Qatar, integrating geosciences and production technology to achieve zero overboarding. The integrated approach to water disposal management in this field has proven to be a game-changer, achieving zero overboarding and ensuring sustainability. This paper underscores the value of combining geoscience expertise with production technology to address complex reservoir challenges and enhance operational efficiency.
Method:
The integrated approach started from subsurface modeling and involves systematic monitoring and technology to manage water disposal effectively. Key components include an integrated subsurface static and dynamic model constrained by seismic attributes and geological understanding, utilizing advanced sensors and real-time data analytics to monitor reservoir conditions and water disposal processes continuously, implementing timely solutions to tackle schmoo build-up, which can deteriorate water injectivity and disposal efficiency, and employing acid wash procedures to restore injectivity in wells affected by schmoo build-up, ensuring sustained disposal capacity.
Practical Application:
The implementation of this integrated approach has led to significant improvements in water disposal management. Enhanced monitoring capabilities have enabled precise monitoring of reservoir conditions, leading to more informed decision-making and optimized disposal processes. Acid wash techniques have successfully restored injectivity in affected wells, maintaining efficient water disposal operations. Through systematic monitoring and innovative management practices, zero overboarding has been achieved, ensuring environmental sustainability and compliance with regulatory standards.
Conclusion:
The success of this approach demonstrates the importance of integrating geosciences and production technology in managing complex offshore reservoirs. By leveraging data-driven insights and advanced technologies, operators can overcome significant challenges and achieve sustainable water disposal practices. This case study highlights the potential for similar approaches to be applied in other offshore fields facing water disposal challenges.
Co-author/s:
Aldhyt Sukapradja, Senior Geologist, North Oil Company.
Arjun Kutty, Senior Production Technologist, North Oil Company.
Boualem Marir, Manager, North Oil Company.
Water disposal in giant offshore fields presents significant challenges. This paper outlines a comprehensive, data-driven approach to sustainable water disposal management in a major offshore field in Qatar, integrating geosciences and production technology to achieve zero overboarding. The integrated approach to water disposal management in this field has proven to be a game-changer, achieving zero overboarding and ensuring sustainability. This paper underscores the value of combining geoscience expertise with production technology to address complex reservoir challenges and enhance operational efficiency.
Method:
The integrated approach started from subsurface modeling and involves systematic monitoring and technology to manage water disposal effectively. Key components include an integrated subsurface static and dynamic model constrained by seismic attributes and geological understanding, utilizing advanced sensors and real-time data analytics to monitor reservoir conditions and water disposal processes continuously, implementing timely solutions to tackle schmoo build-up, which can deteriorate water injectivity and disposal efficiency, and employing acid wash procedures to restore injectivity in wells affected by schmoo build-up, ensuring sustained disposal capacity.
Practical Application:
The implementation of this integrated approach has led to significant improvements in water disposal management. Enhanced monitoring capabilities have enabled precise monitoring of reservoir conditions, leading to more informed decision-making and optimized disposal processes. Acid wash techniques have successfully restored injectivity in affected wells, maintaining efficient water disposal operations. Through systematic monitoring and innovative management practices, zero overboarding has been achieved, ensuring environmental sustainability and compliance with regulatory standards.
Conclusion:
The success of this approach demonstrates the importance of integrating geosciences and production technology in managing complex offshore reservoirs. By leveraging data-driven insights and advanced technologies, operators can overcome significant challenges and achieve sustainable water disposal practices. This case study highlights the potential for similar approaches to be applied in other offshore fields facing water disposal challenges.
Co-author/s:
Aldhyt Sukapradja, Senior Geologist, North Oil Company.
Arjun Kutty, Senior Production Technologist, North Oil Company.
Boualem Marir, Manager, North Oil Company.
Objective & Scope:
Produced water (PW) from hydrocarbon operations, rich in divalent cations, offers an untapped route for permanent CO₂ storage through rapid carbonate precipitation. This review synthesises the past decade of laboratory, pilot and techno-environmental studies to chart how PW mineralisation can be integrated with existing water-handling infrastructure and linked to enhanced-oil-recovery schemes. Emphasis is placed on reaction chemistry, process intensification and life-cycle performance rather than economics.
Methods & Approach:
Hundreds of peer-reviewed papers and conference proceedings were screened with PRISMA protocols, and global PW chemistry databases were mined for ion-composition trends. Reaction-rate data were normalised for temperature, alkalinity source and nucleation promoter. Life-cycle models then compared greenhouse-gas abatement, freshwater displacement and residue liabilities across representative process trains, accounting for energy used in mixing, separation and sludge conditioning.
Results & Insights:
Brines typical of mature carbonate reservoirs consistently achieve carbonate yields equivalent to roughly one-quarter to nearly one-half of their theoretical capacity within a few hours at moderate reservoir temperatures, provided alkalinity is sufficiently elevated. Hybrid smart-water workflows can recycle a significant share of precipitated solids for conformance-control duties, trimming disposal requirements by multiple factors. Life-cycle analysis indicates that, when existing heat-recovery loops and separators are leveraged, mineralisation imposes only a modest incremental cost on PW management, with overall climate benefit highly sensitive to sludge logistics and alkali sourcing. Recent policy drafts offering credits for treated-PW sequestration could further strengthen the business case.
Novel / Additive Value:
This is the first study to weave together mineralisation chemistry, field water-management practice and life-cycle performance into a single design envelope. The resulting phase diagrams and decision trees enable operators to transform PW from an environmental liability into a dual asset—secure CO₂ storage and reduced disposal burden—advancing the conference goal of marrying energy production with stewardship.
Co-author/s:
Hassan Alqahtani, Lead Petroleum Scientist, Saudi Aramco.
Produced water (PW) from hydrocarbon operations, rich in divalent cations, offers an untapped route for permanent CO₂ storage through rapid carbonate precipitation. This review synthesises the past decade of laboratory, pilot and techno-environmental studies to chart how PW mineralisation can be integrated with existing water-handling infrastructure and linked to enhanced-oil-recovery schemes. Emphasis is placed on reaction chemistry, process intensification and life-cycle performance rather than economics.
Methods & Approach:
Hundreds of peer-reviewed papers and conference proceedings were screened with PRISMA protocols, and global PW chemistry databases were mined for ion-composition trends. Reaction-rate data were normalised for temperature, alkalinity source and nucleation promoter. Life-cycle models then compared greenhouse-gas abatement, freshwater displacement and residue liabilities across representative process trains, accounting for energy used in mixing, separation and sludge conditioning.
Results & Insights:
Brines typical of mature carbonate reservoirs consistently achieve carbonate yields equivalent to roughly one-quarter to nearly one-half of their theoretical capacity within a few hours at moderate reservoir temperatures, provided alkalinity is sufficiently elevated. Hybrid smart-water workflows can recycle a significant share of precipitated solids for conformance-control duties, trimming disposal requirements by multiple factors. Life-cycle analysis indicates that, when existing heat-recovery loops and separators are leveraged, mineralisation imposes only a modest incremental cost on PW management, with overall climate benefit highly sensitive to sludge logistics and alkali sourcing. Recent policy drafts offering credits for treated-PW sequestration could further strengthen the business case.
Novel / Additive Value:
This is the first study to weave together mineralisation chemistry, field water-management practice and life-cycle performance into a single design envelope. The resulting phase diagrams and decision trees enable operators to transform PW from an environmental liability into a dual asset—secure CO₂ storage and reduced disposal burden—advancing the conference goal of marrying energy production with stewardship.
Co-author/s:
Hassan Alqahtani, Lead Petroleum Scientist, Saudi Aramco.
Maintaining efficient oil production from horizontal wells with varying reservoir properties is a significant challenge. In such scenarios, water breakthroughs can occur prematurely, hindering hydrocarbon recovery. Traditional completion techniques often lack the ability to effectively address this heterogeneity and achieve optimal water control.
Autonomous Inflow Control Devices (AICDs) offer an innovative solution for mitigating water influx in horizontal wells. This downhole device automatically regulates fluid flow based on predefined parameters, enabling proactive water control and improved sweep efficiency. This paper presents a successful field case study utilizing RCP AICDs to control water production in a low-viscosity oil reservoir (1.47 cP) offshore China.
The paper explores not only the optimal design workflow and value justification for AICDs but also the challenges that led operators to embrace this technology. This paper also emphasizes that to achieve the best results from the use of such technologies, it is essential not only to ensure optimal design but also to operate the wells under conditions that allow the AICD to perform at its highest efficiency. Notably, when AICDs were operated under optimum conditions in this study, the water cut exhibited a continuous declining trend since then, indicating sustained and greater water control effectiveness.
This case study demonstrates the effectiveness of AICD technology in controlling water production as water cut reduction was observed at both the mid and later production stages in edge and bottom water reservoirs with low-viscosity crude oil. The well with AICD completion has managed, so far, to deliver 310% increase in cumulative oil production from the well compared to basecase/analogue wells while also extending the well life twice as much than expected. The well's actual cumulative oil production significantly surpassed pre-drilling predictions, reaching over 63,500 m³ and continuing.
The implemented RCP AICDs played a crucial role in enhancing water control, improved reservoir management and oil production throughout the well's lifecycle. By effectively controlling water influx in a reservoir with exceptionally low oil viscosity, this pushes the boundaries of AICD applicability. This study offers valuable insights into how these devices can improve field development strategies by mitigating water production and reducing operating costs for lifting, processing and disposal of water plus greenhouse gas emission and energy consumption associated with the operations.
Autonomous Inflow Control Devices (AICDs) offer an innovative solution for mitigating water influx in horizontal wells. This downhole device automatically regulates fluid flow based on predefined parameters, enabling proactive water control and improved sweep efficiency. This paper presents a successful field case study utilizing RCP AICDs to control water production in a low-viscosity oil reservoir (1.47 cP) offshore China.
The paper explores not only the optimal design workflow and value justification for AICDs but also the challenges that led operators to embrace this technology. This paper also emphasizes that to achieve the best results from the use of such technologies, it is essential not only to ensure optimal design but also to operate the wells under conditions that allow the AICD to perform at its highest efficiency. Notably, when AICDs were operated under optimum conditions in this study, the water cut exhibited a continuous declining trend since then, indicating sustained and greater water control effectiveness.
This case study demonstrates the effectiveness of AICD technology in controlling water production as water cut reduction was observed at both the mid and later production stages in edge and bottom water reservoirs with low-viscosity crude oil. The well with AICD completion has managed, so far, to deliver 310% increase in cumulative oil production from the well compared to basecase/analogue wells while also extending the well life twice as much than expected. The well's actual cumulative oil production significantly surpassed pre-drilling predictions, reaching over 63,500 m³ and continuing.
The implemented RCP AICDs played a crucial role in enhancing water control, improved reservoir management and oil production throughout the well's lifecycle. By effectively controlling water influx in a reservoir with exceptionally low oil viscosity, this pushes the boundaries of AICD applicability. This study offers valuable insights into how these devices can improve field development strategies by mitigating water production and reducing operating costs for lifting, processing and disposal of water plus greenhouse gas emission and energy consumption associated with the operations.
Oily wastewater produced from the oil and gas industry is increasingly recognized as a pressing challenge in wastewater treatment due to their harmful impacts on aquatic life and human health. Membrane technology offers a sustainable approach for emulsion separation; however, conventional MXene-based membranes suffer from limited mass transport, caused by their narrow interlayer spacing, and poor long-term stability due to oxidation. In this study, we developed a high-performing MXene membrane with enlarged interlayer spacing and improved structural integrity for efficient oil–water separation. By intercalating Si-based species during ultrasonication-assisted exfoliation, we obtained a modified MXene membrane (U-MX-Si) with a d-spacing of 11 Å and enhanced surface energy (41 mJ·m–2). These modifications reduced structural defects, promoted uniform self-assembly of exfoliated sheets on the membrane support, and resulted in outstanding separation efficiency (99%) alongside a stable permeate flux during operation. The ability to maintain both high selectivity and stable performance highlights the practical potential of U-MX-Si membranes for wastewater treatment. This work demonstrates a viable pathway for advancing MXene-based membrane technologies toward real-world applications in the oil and gas industry.
Objective & Scope:
Produced water (PW) from hydrocarbon operations, rich in divalent cations, offers an untapped route for permanent CO₂ storage through rapid carbonate precipitation. This review synthesises the past decade of laboratory, pilot and techno-environmental studies to chart how PW mineralisation can be integrated with existing water-handling infrastructure and linked to enhanced-oil-recovery schemes. Emphasis is placed on reaction chemistry, process intensification and life-cycle performance rather than economics.
Methods & Approach:
Hundreds of peer-reviewed papers and conference proceedings were screened with PRISMA protocols, and global PW chemistry databases were mined for ion-composition trends. Reaction-rate data were normalised for temperature, alkalinity source and nucleation promoter. Life-cycle models then compared greenhouse-gas abatement, freshwater displacement and residue liabilities across representative process trains, accounting for energy used in mixing, separation and sludge conditioning.
Results & Insights:
Brines typical of mature carbonate reservoirs consistently achieve carbonate yields equivalent to roughly one-quarter to nearly one-half of their theoretical capacity within a few hours at moderate reservoir temperatures, provided alkalinity is sufficiently elevated. Hybrid smart-water workflows can recycle a significant share of precipitated solids for conformance-control duties, trimming disposal requirements by multiple factors. Life-cycle analysis indicates that, when existing heat-recovery loops and separators are leveraged, mineralisation imposes only a modest incremental cost on PW management, with overall climate benefit highly sensitive to sludge logistics and alkali sourcing. Recent policy drafts offering credits for treated-PW sequestration could further strengthen the business case.
Novel / Additive Value:
This is the first study to weave together mineralisation chemistry, field water-management practice and life-cycle performance into a single design envelope. The resulting phase diagrams and decision trees enable operators to transform PW from an environmental liability into a dual asset—secure CO₂ storage and reduced disposal burden—advancing the conference goal of marrying energy production with stewardship.
Co-author/s:
Hassan Alqahtani, Lead Petroleum Scientist, Saudi Aramco.
Produced water (PW) from hydrocarbon operations, rich in divalent cations, offers an untapped route for permanent CO₂ storage through rapid carbonate precipitation. This review synthesises the past decade of laboratory, pilot and techno-environmental studies to chart how PW mineralisation can be integrated with existing water-handling infrastructure and linked to enhanced-oil-recovery schemes. Emphasis is placed on reaction chemistry, process intensification and life-cycle performance rather than economics.
Methods & Approach:
Hundreds of peer-reviewed papers and conference proceedings were screened with PRISMA protocols, and global PW chemistry databases were mined for ion-composition trends. Reaction-rate data were normalised for temperature, alkalinity source and nucleation promoter. Life-cycle models then compared greenhouse-gas abatement, freshwater displacement and residue liabilities across representative process trains, accounting for energy used in mixing, separation and sludge conditioning.
Results & Insights:
Brines typical of mature carbonate reservoirs consistently achieve carbonate yields equivalent to roughly one-quarter to nearly one-half of their theoretical capacity within a few hours at moderate reservoir temperatures, provided alkalinity is sufficiently elevated. Hybrid smart-water workflows can recycle a significant share of precipitated solids for conformance-control duties, trimming disposal requirements by multiple factors. Life-cycle analysis indicates that, when existing heat-recovery loops and separators are leveraged, mineralisation imposes only a modest incremental cost on PW management, with overall climate benefit highly sensitive to sludge logistics and alkali sourcing. Recent policy drafts offering credits for treated-PW sequestration could further strengthen the business case.
Novel / Additive Value:
This is the first study to weave together mineralisation chemistry, field water-management practice and life-cycle performance into a single design envelope. The resulting phase diagrams and decision trees enable operators to transform PW from an environmental liability into a dual asset—secure CO₂ storage and reduced disposal burden—advancing the conference goal of marrying energy production with stewardship.
Co-author/s:
Hassan Alqahtani, Lead Petroleum Scientist, Saudi Aramco.
Water produced in oil wells poses significant challenges, including increased operational costs and environmental risks. Accurate identification of associated water sources is critical for optimizing reservoir management and reducing operational costs. Traditional methods, which rely on single-variable analysis or isotopic measurements, are often complex, computationally intensive, region-specific, or ineffective for mixed-water scenarios. This study addresses these gaps by proposing a scalable scoring system that integrates nine key ionic parameters (e.g., Na⁺, Cl⁻, Mg²⁺, Ca²⁺, SO₄²⁻) and assigns dynamic weights to each parameter based on its diagnostic relevance. This study introduces a systematic scoring-based methodology to classify water origins into four categories: (1) in-situ formation water, (2) adjacent (neighboring) formation water, (3) drilling fluid contamination, and (4) acidizing operation fluids. Using ion-specific criteria and weighted scoring matrices, the method proposed a quantitative approach to interpreting water analysis data and translating into actionable decisions. Application of the method to three water samples from one of the Middle Eastern carbonate reservoirs revealed a transition from stimulation fluid dominance (score: 89.1) in the initial sample to formation water dominance (score:83.2) in the final sample. This highlights the methodology’s capability to differentiate fluid sources across samples with clear numerical support. The approach is practical, low cost and suitable for real-time field application without the need for advanced laboratory techniques.
Co-author/s:
Esmaeil Hamidpour, Senior Reservoir Engineer, National Iranian South Oil Company.
Co-author/s:
Esmaeil Hamidpour, Senior Reservoir Engineer, National Iranian South Oil Company.
Elham Heydari
Speaker
PhD Candidate in Chemical Engineering
Islamic Azad University, Yazd Branch
Iran
Water scarcity poses a critical global challenge, especially in arid and semi-arid regions where freshwater resources are extremely limited. Addressing this issue requires innovative and sustainable wastewater treatment technologies. This study introduces a solar-powered Zero Liquid Discharge (ZDD) system for industrial wastewater treatment. It integrates physico-chemical pretreatment to remove suspended solids and hardness-causing compounds, followed by multi-stage solar evaporation ponds enhanced with nanostructured absorbers to maximize heat conversion. Microfluidic channels ensure uniform flow and double evaporation rates. Thermal energy stored in phase-change materials enables continuous operation, including nighttime. The condensed vapor produces high-quality freshwater, while valuable salts and minerals are recovered. This low-energy, membrane-free system offers a sustainable solution for wastewater valorization and water resource management.
Co-author/s:
Sajjad Khodayar, Senior Operations Operator, Gachsaran Oil and Gas Production Company, National Iranian South Oil.
Vahid Shariati Far, Senior Employee of Oil Operations, Shiraz Oil Refining Company.
Eng. Alireza Heydari, Researcher, Petro Boom Technologists Hamid Park Science and Technology.
Co-author/s:
Sajjad Khodayar, Senior Operations Operator, Gachsaran Oil and Gas Production Company, National Iranian South Oil.
Vahid Shariati Far, Senior Employee of Oil Operations, Shiraz Oil Refining Company.
Eng. Alireza Heydari, Researcher, Petro Boom Technologists Hamid Park Science and Technology.
Maintaining efficient oil production from horizontal wells with varying reservoir properties is a significant challenge. In such scenarios, water breakthroughs can occur prematurely, hindering hydrocarbon recovery. Traditional completion techniques often lack the ability to effectively address this heterogeneity and achieve optimal water control.
Autonomous Inflow Control Devices (AICDs) offer an innovative solution for mitigating water influx in horizontal wells. This downhole device automatically regulates fluid flow based on predefined parameters, enabling proactive water control and improved sweep efficiency. This paper presents a successful field case study utilizing RCP AICDs to control water production in a low-viscosity oil reservoir (1.47 cP) offshore China.
The paper explores not only the optimal design workflow and value justification for AICDs but also the challenges that led operators to embrace this technology. This paper also emphasizes that to achieve the best results from the use of such technologies, it is essential not only to ensure optimal design but also to operate the wells under conditions that allow the AICD to perform at its highest efficiency. Notably, when AICDs were operated under optimum conditions in this study, the water cut exhibited a continuous declining trend since then, indicating sustained and greater water control effectiveness.
This case study demonstrates the effectiveness of AICD technology in controlling water production as water cut reduction was observed at both the mid and later production stages in edge and bottom water reservoirs with low-viscosity crude oil. The well with AICD completion has managed, so far, to deliver 310% increase in cumulative oil production from the well compared to basecase/analogue wells while also extending the well life twice as much than expected. The well's actual cumulative oil production significantly surpassed pre-drilling predictions, reaching over 63,500 m³ and continuing.
The implemented RCP AICDs played a crucial role in enhancing water control, improved reservoir management and oil production throughout the well's lifecycle. By effectively controlling water influx in a reservoir with exceptionally low oil viscosity, this pushes the boundaries of AICD applicability. This study offers valuable insights into how these devices can improve field development strategies by mitigating water production and reducing operating costs for lifting, processing and disposal of water plus greenhouse gas emission and energy consumption associated with the operations.
Autonomous Inflow Control Devices (AICDs) offer an innovative solution for mitigating water influx in horizontal wells. This downhole device automatically regulates fluid flow based on predefined parameters, enabling proactive water control and improved sweep efficiency. This paper presents a successful field case study utilizing RCP AICDs to control water production in a low-viscosity oil reservoir (1.47 cP) offshore China.
The paper explores not only the optimal design workflow and value justification for AICDs but also the challenges that led operators to embrace this technology. This paper also emphasizes that to achieve the best results from the use of such technologies, it is essential not only to ensure optimal design but also to operate the wells under conditions that allow the AICD to perform at its highest efficiency. Notably, when AICDs were operated under optimum conditions in this study, the water cut exhibited a continuous declining trend since then, indicating sustained and greater water control effectiveness.
This case study demonstrates the effectiveness of AICD technology in controlling water production as water cut reduction was observed at both the mid and later production stages in edge and bottom water reservoirs with low-viscosity crude oil. The well with AICD completion has managed, so far, to deliver 310% increase in cumulative oil production from the well compared to basecase/analogue wells while also extending the well life twice as much than expected. The well's actual cumulative oil production significantly surpassed pre-drilling predictions, reaching over 63,500 m³ and continuing.
The implemented RCP AICDs played a crucial role in enhancing water control, improved reservoir management and oil production throughout the well's lifecycle. By effectively controlling water influx in a reservoir with exceptionally low oil viscosity, this pushes the boundaries of AICD applicability. This study offers valuable insights into how these devices can improve field development strategies by mitigating water production and reducing operating costs for lifting, processing and disposal of water plus greenhouse gas emission and energy consumption associated with the operations.
In order to reach sustainable and environmentally friendly operations; it is critical to have an effective management of produced water in oil production wells. In this research, compatibility of re-injection of produced water (PWRI) into an offshore reservoir for the purpose of reducing injectivity loss caused by inorganic scaling deposition is examined. The study compares results from both laboratory compatibility tests and geochemical simulators - Oli ScaleChem and PHREEQC- under reservoir conditions to check their predictability for scaling deposition tendency.
The research is conducted on a south-west Iranian mature oil field with water production of almost 7,000 barrels per day. The produced water and formation brine were mixed in various ratios and re-injected into another reservoir. Compatibility tests were performed by conducting equilibrium experiments, scale separation and SEM-EDX analysis. The total scale measured in experimental study was 134 mg/L and the main minerals identified were Sodium Chloride, Iron Oxide and Silicon Oxide. On another hand, the geochemical simulators predicted precipitation of different types and amounts of scales with high deviation from laboratory experiments for Iron Oxide, Calcium Chloride and Sodium Chloride scales.
The research concludes that although the simulations are quick and cheap, they only consider super-saturation as the main and only reason for scale formation without considering nucleation and crystal growth processes and the predictive geochemical simulators need deep refinements. On another hand, even though laboratory experiments are generally time-consuming and expensive, they give more accurate and elaborate information regarding the scale formation. Accordingly, the combination of experimental methods with advanced simulations may better optimize water management strategies, reduce environmental impact and increase hydrocarbon production sustainability.
The research is conducted on a south-west Iranian mature oil field with water production of almost 7,000 barrels per day. The produced water and formation brine were mixed in various ratios and re-injected into another reservoir. Compatibility tests were performed by conducting equilibrium experiments, scale separation and SEM-EDX analysis. The total scale measured in experimental study was 134 mg/L and the main minerals identified were Sodium Chloride, Iron Oxide and Silicon Oxide. On another hand, the geochemical simulators predicted precipitation of different types and amounts of scales with high deviation from laboratory experiments for Iron Oxide, Calcium Chloride and Sodium Chloride scales.
The research concludes that although the simulations are quick and cheap, they only consider super-saturation as the main and only reason for scale formation without considering nucleation and crystal growth processes and the predictive geochemical simulators need deep refinements. On another hand, even though laboratory experiments are generally time-consuming and expensive, they give more accurate and elaborate information regarding the scale formation. Accordingly, the combination of experimental methods with advanced simulations may better optimize water management strategies, reduce environmental impact and increase hydrocarbon production sustainability.
Anthony O’Connell
Speaker
Head Reservoir Management & Opportunities
North Oil Company
Qatar
Introduction:
Water disposal in giant offshore fields presents significant challenges. This paper outlines a comprehensive, data-driven approach to sustainable water disposal management in a major offshore field in Qatar, integrating geosciences and production technology to achieve zero overboarding. The integrated approach to water disposal management in this field has proven to be a game-changer, achieving zero overboarding and ensuring sustainability. This paper underscores the value of combining geoscience expertise with production technology to address complex reservoir challenges and enhance operational efficiency.
Method:
The integrated approach started from subsurface modeling and involves systematic monitoring and technology to manage water disposal effectively. Key components include an integrated subsurface static and dynamic model constrained by seismic attributes and geological understanding, utilizing advanced sensors and real-time data analytics to monitor reservoir conditions and water disposal processes continuously, implementing timely solutions to tackle schmoo build-up, which can deteriorate water injectivity and disposal efficiency, and employing acid wash procedures to restore injectivity in wells affected by schmoo build-up, ensuring sustained disposal capacity.
Practical Application:
The implementation of this integrated approach has led to significant improvements in water disposal management. Enhanced monitoring capabilities have enabled precise monitoring of reservoir conditions, leading to more informed decision-making and optimized disposal processes. Acid wash techniques have successfully restored injectivity in affected wells, maintaining efficient water disposal operations. Through systematic monitoring and innovative management practices, zero overboarding has been achieved, ensuring environmental sustainability and compliance with regulatory standards.
Conclusion:
The success of this approach demonstrates the importance of integrating geosciences and production technology in managing complex offshore reservoirs. By leveraging data-driven insights and advanced technologies, operators can overcome significant challenges and achieve sustainable water disposal practices. This case study highlights the potential for similar approaches to be applied in other offshore fields facing water disposal challenges.
Co-author/s:
Aldhyt Sukapradja, Senior Geologist, North Oil Company.
Arjun Kutty, Senior Production Technologist, North Oil Company.
Boualem Marir, Manager, North Oil Company.
Water disposal in giant offshore fields presents significant challenges. This paper outlines a comprehensive, data-driven approach to sustainable water disposal management in a major offshore field in Qatar, integrating geosciences and production technology to achieve zero overboarding. The integrated approach to water disposal management in this field has proven to be a game-changer, achieving zero overboarding and ensuring sustainability. This paper underscores the value of combining geoscience expertise with production technology to address complex reservoir challenges and enhance operational efficiency.
Method:
The integrated approach started from subsurface modeling and involves systematic monitoring and technology to manage water disposal effectively. Key components include an integrated subsurface static and dynamic model constrained by seismic attributes and geological understanding, utilizing advanced sensors and real-time data analytics to monitor reservoir conditions and water disposal processes continuously, implementing timely solutions to tackle schmoo build-up, which can deteriorate water injectivity and disposal efficiency, and employing acid wash procedures to restore injectivity in wells affected by schmoo build-up, ensuring sustained disposal capacity.
Practical Application:
The implementation of this integrated approach has led to significant improvements in water disposal management. Enhanced monitoring capabilities have enabled precise monitoring of reservoir conditions, leading to more informed decision-making and optimized disposal processes. Acid wash techniques have successfully restored injectivity in affected wells, maintaining efficient water disposal operations. Through systematic monitoring and innovative management practices, zero overboarding has been achieved, ensuring environmental sustainability and compliance with regulatory standards.
Conclusion:
The success of this approach demonstrates the importance of integrating geosciences and production technology in managing complex offshore reservoirs. By leveraging data-driven insights and advanced technologies, operators can overcome significant challenges and achieve sustainable water disposal practices. This case study highlights the potential for similar approaches to be applied in other offshore fields facing water disposal challenges.
Co-author/s:
Aldhyt Sukapradja, Senior Geologist, North Oil Company.
Arjun Kutty, Senior Production Technologist, North Oil Company.
Boualem Marir, Manager, North Oil Company.
The global petroleum industry confronts a monumental and persistent environmental challenge: the management of produced water. This wastewater, a byproduct extracted alongside oil and gas, constitutes one of the industry's largest waste streams. It is a highly complex and challenging mixture, containing toxic emulsified oils, dissolved hydrocarbons, heavy metals, radioactive elements, and high concentrations of salts. Conventional treatment methods, such as chemical coagulation, air flotation, and membrane filtration, are often chemically intensive, energy-consuming, and inefficient against stable emulsions. They can also generate secondary waste streams, leading to high operational costs and a significant environmental footprint, particularly in remote or arid oilfields.
Addressing this critical need, this research from Saudi Arabia presents the development and testing of a novel, high-efficiency plasma-based purification system engineered specifically for the rigorous demands of produced water. Plasma, often termed the fourth state of matter, is an ionized gas capable of generating a powerful cocktail of reactive species—including ozone, hydroxyl radicals, and ultraviolet radiation—within the water matrix. The technology leverages these advanced non-thermal plasma processes to initiate a rapid and comprehensive degradation of pollutants. It effectively cracks emulsified oils, mineralizes persistent organic compounds, and achieves potent disinfection by destroying harmful microbes, all without the dependency on chemical additives.
Our comprehensive study systematically focuses on optimizing the system's core operational parameters to achieve maximum treatment efficacy. This involves evaluating different carrier gases (e.g., air, oxygen, argon) and varying power inputs to determine the most energy-efficient configuration for treating both synthetic and real-world produced water samples obtained from oilfields. The ultimate performance target is to achieve full compliance with the most stringent regulatory standards for safe discharge or beneficial reuse in agriculture or industrial processes.
A key operational advantage of this modular technology is its strong potential for decentralized, on-site treatment. This capability can drastically reduce the logistical burdens, transportation costs, and safety hazards associated with moving large volumes of wastewater or handling dangerous treatment chemicals. An initial techno-economic assessment indicates a substantial potential for reducing long-term operational expenditures (OPEX) and the overall environmental footprint when compared to incumbent traditional methods.
This innovation directly aligns with the ambitious water conservation and environmental stewardship goals of Saudi Vision 2030. It offers the petroleum sector a robust, chemical-free, and sustainable technological solution for closing the water loop. By transforming a costly waste product into a valuable resource, this plasma-based system promises to dramatically enhance water recycling rates, minimize ecological impact, and significantly improve the overall sustainability and social license of oil and gas operations worldwide.
Addressing this critical need, this research from Saudi Arabia presents the development and testing of a novel, high-efficiency plasma-based purification system engineered specifically for the rigorous demands of produced water. Plasma, often termed the fourth state of matter, is an ionized gas capable of generating a powerful cocktail of reactive species—including ozone, hydroxyl radicals, and ultraviolet radiation—within the water matrix. The technology leverages these advanced non-thermal plasma processes to initiate a rapid and comprehensive degradation of pollutants. It effectively cracks emulsified oils, mineralizes persistent organic compounds, and achieves potent disinfection by destroying harmful microbes, all without the dependency on chemical additives.
Our comprehensive study systematically focuses on optimizing the system's core operational parameters to achieve maximum treatment efficacy. This involves evaluating different carrier gases (e.g., air, oxygen, argon) and varying power inputs to determine the most energy-efficient configuration for treating both synthetic and real-world produced water samples obtained from oilfields. The ultimate performance target is to achieve full compliance with the most stringent regulatory standards for safe discharge or beneficial reuse in agriculture or industrial processes.
A key operational advantage of this modular technology is its strong potential for decentralized, on-site treatment. This capability can drastically reduce the logistical burdens, transportation costs, and safety hazards associated with moving large volumes of wastewater or handling dangerous treatment chemicals. An initial techno-economic assessment indicates a substantial potential for reducing long-term operational expenditures (OPEX) and the overall environmental footprint when compared to incumbent traditional methods.
This innovation directly aligns with the ambitious water conservation and environmental stewardship goals of Saudi Vision 2030. It offers the petroleum sector a robust, chemical-free, and sustainable technological solution for closing the water loop. By transforming a costly waste product into a valuable resource, this plasma-based system promises to dramatically enhance water recycling rates, minimize ecological impact, and significantly improve the overall sustainability and social license of oil and gas operations worldwide.
Maryam Sadi
Speaker
Associate Professor
Research Institute of Petroleum Industry (RIPI)
Iran
During the extraction of oil and natural gas, a huge amount of the brine wastewater is produced. This wastewater, which termed as produced water, contains different impurities, such as salts, heavy metals, inorganic ions and hydrocarbons. By effective management of produced water, its environmental impacts can be minimized. The gas hydrate-based treatment technology has been introduced as a novel technique to treat produced water and eliminate its impurities for industrial applications. Due to the complexity of wastewater treatment processes and the limitation of traditional models, artificial intelligence-based techniques have been proposed in the recent years to simulate the treatment process of wastewaters. In the present study, experimental measurements and modeling technique were performed to study the hydrated-based desalination process of produced water. For this purpose, hydrate formation experiments of carbon dioxide and compressed natural gas were carried out. The experimental setup used in this research, contains a 300 cm3 reactor that is placed in a cooling medium to control the reactor temperature. A computer system, which equipped with an appropriate data gathering software, was applied to record and collect experimental data during hydrate formation period. After collecting required empirical data, an artificial intelligence-based technique was utilized to simulate hydrate-based desalination process. For this purpose, a boosting tree ensemble model was successfully developed to predict the desalination efficiency of produced water as target value by considering initial salinity and gas equilibrium pressure as input parameters. After model development, wide varieties of graphical and statistical error analysis techniques were applied to assess the smart model performance. The coefficient of determination (R2) and mean absolute percentage error (MAPE) of the proposed model for all experimental data were 0.9938 and 0.71%, respectively, which indicate the excellent agreement between model predictions and experimental data. Based on the obtained results, it can be concluded that the developed tree-based model can be applied by high accuracy in predicting desalination efficiency of produced water through the hydrate-based desalination process. Furthermore, the measured data reveal that the CO2 gas hydrate has a higher average desalination efficiency compared to compressed natural gas. This phenomenon can be attributed to the well-packed structure of CO2 hydrate in contrast to the spongy form of natural gas hydrate. In fact, in a well-packed hydrate structure, less salt was trapped between the hydrate crystals, therefore, the water obtained after hydrate dissociation has a lower salinity.
Co-author/s:
Hamid Ganji, Head of Gas Research Division, Research Institute of Petroleum Industry.
Hajar Fakharian, Researcher, Amir Kabir University of Technology.
Co-author/s:
Hamid Ganji, Head of Gas Research Division, Research Institute of Petroleum Industry.
Hajar Fakharian, Researcher, Amir Kabir University of Technology.
