Aside from the normal frac usage for which the tanks were designed, frac tanks are now being utilized extensively in the oil and gas industry for a variety of purposes. Here are some of the top alternative uses for frac tanks.
Produced Water Containment
The United States currently generates 15-20 billion barrels of produced water annually from energy exploration and extraction activities. The U.S. Department of Energy reports that every barrel of oil generated globally produces an average of three barrels of water. When an oil & gas project produces water, one option for storage is to create a fixed storage tank. This choice has economic and environmental implications as these tanks are both expensive to build and subject to local and federal regulations. Energy companies today pay anywhere from $3-$12 to dispose of each barrel of produced water, and frac tanks can ensure that a company’s costs are on the lower end of the spectrum.
Advanced Filtration Applications
In the oil and gas industry, having an efficient filtration system is crucial to the performance and reliability of the systems that process the site’s petroleum products. An optimized filtration and separation system can help a company increase their process performance, lower maintenance costs, reduce downtime, and improve overall operating efficiencies
Frac tanks that are properly configured can deliver advanced filtration services on site with several benefits. The tanks are mobile, so site operators can quickly move them to where they are most needed. Cost savings from using frac tanks can help operators maximize profitability while also reducing the carbon footprint from the operation. Good filtration technology combined with a frac tank can also allow a company to reduce materials handling and maintenance, increase project uptime, retain more valuable product, and improve site safety.
Filtration of Flowback and Produced Water
Well owners want to maximize their profits while running a safe operation that also adheres to all health, safety, and environmental regulations. Nearly any type of good operation is going to produce flowback and produced water. A frac tank can be turned into an integrated treatment system for flowback that separates solids from waste streams. The process uses targeted chemicals to pull oils and solids (TSS) out of suspension and then a mechanism that removes those solids from the flowback and produced water.
A frac tank treatment system consists of several components: one to apply chemicals to the flowback, and another to physically separate solids from the remaining liquid. One of these mobile systems is the smartest way to manage the filtration of flowback and produced water at any oil and gas work site.