Simulation of produced water treatment technology into clean water at Oil Field X

Industrial Engineering Department, BINUS Graduate Program – Master of Industrial Engineering, Bina Nusantara University, Jakarta, 11480, Indonesia

^* Corresponding author: taufik@binus.edu

Abstract

Produced water is the main waste byproduct of oil and gas production activities, which is typically discharged into the environment or reinjected into underground formations. However, with increasing awareness of water conservation and sustainability, utilizing produced water as a source of clean water has become a potential solution. This study aims to simulate the treatment process of produced water into clean water at Oil Field X, which generates approximately 0.7 million barrels per day for surface discharge. The research approach includes initial water quality characterization, selection of an optimal reverse osmosis (RO) membrane technology, and simulation using WAVE and Aspen HYSYS software. Simulation results show that the RO system can reduce total dissolved solids (TDS) from 2,330 mg/L to 79.58 mg/L with a recovery rate of 53%, producing 827.2 m³/day of permeate water. Further processing using an air cooler in HYSYS successfully reduces the permeate temperature from 42°C to 32°C, in accordance with clean water standards. The final water quality meets the requirements of Indonesia’s Ministry of Health Regulation No. 2 of 2023 for hygiene and sanitation purposes. These results demonstrate that produce water treatment into clean water was technically feasible and offers added value in water resource management within the oil and gas industry.