Seawater Deaerators

Secondary recovery by means of water injection is frequently an essential feature of crude oil production. It is often a crucial factor in achieving and sustaining economically viable production rates.

The source of the water is dependant on the location of the production facility and could be from a subsurface source such as produced water or an aquifer, or from a surface source such as the sea or a river.

The latter two sources, as with most surface waters, normally contain substantial levels of dissolved oxygen. In order to control corrosion rates in downstream plant and to inhibit bacterial growth this oxygen must be removed before the water is used for injection.

Edwards is able to provide extensively proven deaeration technology to facilitate the removal of this oxygen to levels such that the remaining residual may be economically removed by the addition of a chemical scavenger.

The following options are available:

• Spray/pack deaerators

• Packed column deaerators

• Trace gas stripping deaerators

Edwards is able to offer field proven designs for water injection deaerators, which are required to operate upstream of sulphate removal systems. Such installations require that the deaerator must operate without antifoam agents since the use of such agents in incompatible with the membranes used in the sulphate removal system.

Edwards has considerable experience in the supply of deaeration packages for use on floating production vessels, including installations on FPSO's, semi-submersibles and on tension leg platforms.