FB has delivered a water filtration package for an Offshore Production Platform located in Africa. The compact flotation unit will treat waste water streams on a gas production platform. The treated clean water meets the requirements to return the water safely and without environmental impact to open sea.
As this unit is a replacement of an existing unit, limitations were applicable for transporting the new CFU inside the production platform. During detail design by FB these restrictions were applied and resulted in a compact unit which could easily be dismantled and re-assembled. Special coating has been applied inside the hydro-cyclone vessels for corrosion protection.
How the compact flotation unit works
A compact flotation unit, or CFU, separates dispersed oil and solids from produced water using induced gas flotation combined with hydro-cyclone technology. Fine bubbles attach to oil droplets and suspended particles, carrying them to the surface where they can be skimmed off, while the cleaned water stream flows out for discharge or reuse. This process allows the platform to handle its produced water continuously and consistently, keeping the outlet water quality within the levels required for safe discharge to open sea.
Engineering a like-for-like replacement
Replacing an existing unit on an operating offshore platform brings a different set of constraints than a new build project. The new CFU had to fit through the same access routes and deck openings as the equipment it replaced, without the benefit of extra space that might be available on a newly constructed platform. FB Group’s detail design work translated these transport and access limitations into a compact package that could be broken down for transit and re-assembled once on board, minimizing disruption to the platform during the swap-out.
Corrosion protection for a demanding process
Produced water handling is a corrosive duty, combining salinity, dissolved gases and abrasive solids inside the hydro-cyclone vessels. To protect the equipment over its operating life, a special internal coating was applied to these vessels. This extends the service interval of the unit and helps ensure that separation performance, and therefore the quality of the water returned to the sea, remains stable over time.
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