Effects of sour oilfield produced water on direct contact membrane distillation systems.

A fully corrosion-resistant direct contact membrane distillation system has been built to test the viability of desalinating oil field produced water using fluorinated polyoxadiazole (F-POD) hollow fiber membranes. This highly hydrophobic membrane material was designed to endure the harsh conditions of Arabian oil field produced waters. These waters have high salinity, and the presence of dissolved organic compounds and gases - including hydrogen sulfide (H 2 S). The hazards associated with H 2 S require special safety controls. In this paper, the desalination of sour produced water with membrane distillation is compared with Gulf Sea water from the East Coast of Saudi Arabia. The effect of the produced water on the efficiency of the membrane distillation was evaluated in terms of distillation flux and salt rejection. The high salinity, the presence of H 2 S, and volatile organic compounds (VOC) are found to negatively impact the flux and salt rejection. [Display omitted] • Sour oilfield produced water tested in corrosion-proof membrane distillation system. • Comparison between seawater and oilfield membrane distillation performances. • Polymer swelling from volatile organic compounds reduces the distilled water flux. • Decomposition of fluorinated polyoxadiazole due to hydrogen sulfide was detected. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]