New Treatment Technologies and Programs to Reduce, Reuse, and Recycle Drilling Waste

New waste treatment and disposal practices are being used in Texas to Reduce, Reuse and Recycle (R3) Oil and Gas Exploration & Production waste. Technologies and programs were developed to convert drilling muds and associated cuttings to beneficial and environmentally friendly road base material to help minimize or eliminate E&P operator liability. A variety of techniques and methods are used to treat and dispose these wastes with the materials either land applied, injected or landfilled. At one landfill facility, the waste treatment process includes removing the water which decreases the soluble salt content and reducing the oil concentration by recovery or degradation. With the R3 process, the landfill containing the clean treated waste solids can be mined converting it into a repository of aggregate or “reuse” material to be utilized in the manufacture of road base recyclable products. Laboratory tests of the new road base recyclable product conducted in Texas prove that it meets or exceeds the engineering and environmental criteria required by the regulatory agencies and the road construction industry. Rule changes by the Railroad Commission of Texas to reclassify treated cuttings as reuse material will allow the industry to convert drilling waste into a recyclable product. Environmental recycling projects will not succeed without market sustainability. The R3 Process is based on an “Engineering First” principle. By following sound business management procedures, complying with stringent regulatory criteria, and maintaining client relations, then recycling oil field waste can be a beneficial path forward to the current waste management practices.

• Corporate Authors:

  Transportation Research Board

  500 Fifth Street, NW
  Washington, DC  United States  20001
• Authors:
  • Gonzalez, Manuel F
  • Crawley, Wayne
  • Patton, Dennis
• Conference:
  • Transportation Research Board 87th Annual Meeting
  • Location: Washington DC, United States
  • Date: 2008-1-13 to 2008-1-17
• Date: 2008

Language

• English

Media Info

• Media Type: DVD
• Features: References; Tables;
• Pagination: 12p
• Monograph Title: TRB 87th Annual Meeting Compendium of Papers DVD

Subject/Index Terms

• TRT Terms: Base course (Pavements); Drilling; Landfills; Oils; Recycled materials; Waste disposal facilities; Waste products (Cargo); Wastes; Water by salt content
• Uncontrolled Terms: Reuse
• Geographic Terms: Texas
• Subject Areas: Energy; Environment; Highways; Terminals and Facilities; I15: Environment;

Filing Info

• Accession Number: 01088634
• Record Type: Publication
• Report/Paper Numbers: 08-1129
• Files: TRIS, TRB
• Created Date: Feb 25 2008 2:33PM