Recycle Of Produced And Flowback Water In Eagle Ford Shale Texas Picks Up Momentum With Omni Water Solutions And Dow Water & Process Solutions

Dow technology ins​ide Omni Water Solutions HIPPO mobile units critical to treat water used in hydraulic fracturing operations for reuse, avoids water disposal

Dow Water & Process Solutions (DW&PS), a business unit of The Dow Chemical Company, and Omni Water Solutions have treated more than 245,000 barrels of flowback and produced water from Texas’ Eagle Ford shale hydraulic fracturing operations.

Already in operation in Karnes County since June, Omni’s HIPPO mobile water treatment unit – which includes both Dow ultrafiltration and DOW FILMTEC Reverse Osmosis (RO) membrane technologies – is being used by another leading operator in Gonzales County to reduce water hardness and boron, and enable reuse of the cleaned water for drilling and hydraulic fracturing operations.

The Gonzales County Operator has been using Omni’s HIPPO mobile treatment unit in a water recycling project to convert produced water into freshwater, brine, and hydro-carbon streams. The project’s goal is to reduce boron levels from 90 parts per million to less than 5 parts per million in the fresh water stream, so it is compatible with gel frac formulations, and can be reused in subsequent well operations without having to blend in additional fresh water.

“Dow technologies serve a critical purpose in our HIPPO mobile units, which deliver cost-effective and sustainable water management solutions for our customers in hydraulic fracturing operations,” notes Warren Sumner, CEO of Omni Water Solutions. “By working together, we’ve extended what can be done with chemistry and membrane technology, applying solutions in unique ways to deliver advanced performance at an affordable price.”

The reuse of produced and flowback water is of high significance to oil and gas operators, particularly due to local water shortages and historically dry conditions in the region.  Water reuse allows operators to minimize the use and cost of freshwater resources, while reducing complexities surrounding local wastewater disposal and onsite wastewater trucking.

“We are applying advanced technology from other vertical markets where we have decades of experience to the constantly evolving oil and gas industry,” remarks Snehal Desai, global business director of Dow Water & Process Solutions. “Our innovations and solutions help operators improve shale oil and gas recovery, while minimizing environmental impact to facilitate sustainable water management throughout the hydraulic fracturing process.”

After the process, fracturing fluids return to the surface and must be effectively cleaned with advanced treatment solutions to remove high levels of solids, organics, and other impurities.  Over the longer term, produced water is brought to the surface contaminated with rapidly changing and difficult-to-remove elements such as calcium and boron from the formation rock.  By applying an integrated set of advanced treatment technologies with an automated control system, Omni is able to deliver consistent water quality so operators can reuse produced water with superior results.

About Dow Water & Process Solutions
The global leader in sustainable separation and purification technology, Dow Water & Process Solutions is making a clear impact in the world. We’re helping to make water safer and more accessible, food taste better, pharmaceuticals more effective and industries more efficient and spearheading the development of sustainable technologies that integrate water and energy requirements. Dow Water & Process Solutions offers a broad portfolio of ion exchange resins, reverse osmosis membranes, ultrafiltration membranes, fine particle filters and electrodeionization products, with strong positions in a number of major application areas, including industrial and municipal water, industrial processes, pharmaceuticals, power, residential water and waste and water reuse. For more information, visit www.dowwaterandprocess.com.

About Dow
Dow  combines the power of science and technology to passionately innovate what is essential to human progress. The Company connects chemistry and innovation with the principles of sustainability to help address many of the world’s most challenging problems such as the need for clean water, renewable energy generation and conservation, and increasing agricultural productivity. Dow’s diversified industry-leading portfolio of specialty chemical, advanced materials, agrosciences and plastics businesses delivers a broad range of technology-based products and solutions to customers in approximately 160 countries and in high growth sectors such as electronics, water, energy, coatings and agriculture. In 2012, Dow had annual sales of approximately $57B and employed approximately 54,000 people worldwide. The Company’s more than 5,000 products are manufactured at 188 sites in 36 countries across the globe. References to “Dow” or the “Company” mean The Dow Chemical Company and its consolidated subsidiaries unless otherwise expressly noted. For more information, visit www.dow.com.

About Omni Water Solutions
Omni Water Solutions is a provider of highly efficient and automated mobile systems for water treatment and re-use. Through its patented OctoZone technology, the Omni HIPPO is able to sense and respond to constantly changing fluid conditions in the field. The result is consistent-quality output at a cost that makes re-use affordable. Omni provides operators with better drilling and completion fluids for better performance. The company is based in Austin, Texas. For more information, visit omniwatersolutions.com.