Integrated sludge handling and dewatering systems for petroleum refineries, treating API separator bottoms, DAF float, biological sludge, and tank residues to minimise disposal requirements and recover oil.
Treat drilling muds, cuttings wash water and site runoff. Solid-liquid separation and water recycling for drilling operations.
Refinery wastewater treatment including API separators, DAF, advanced biological treatment and polishing for strict discharge.
Oil and gas wastewater treatment for produced water treatment.
Sour water and desalter effluent treatment for petroleum refineries.
Managing Refinery Sludge Streams
Petroleum refineries generate significant quantities of oily sludge from API separators, dissolved air flotation units, advanced biological treatment systems, and tank cleaning operations. These sludges are classified as hazardous waste in most jurisdictions and represent a major operating requirement. Our integrated sludge management approach combines thickening, mechanical dewatering, and oil recovery to reduce disposal requirements by 60-80% while maximising hydrocarbon recovery. Thickening, centrifuge or filter-press dewatering and oil recovery shrink hazardous-sludge volumes while returning hydrocarbons to the process. This cuts disposal cost and liability while improving the refinery’s overall mass balance.
Primary sludge containing high oil content and settleable solids from crude unit runoff and process drainage.
Emulsified oil and chemical floc recovered from DAF systems with high solids and low shear sensitivity.
Waste activated sludge and biofilm from MBBR or SBR systems with bound water requiring conditioning.
Recovered oil from sludge dewatering can be returned to the crude unit or slop oil system for reprocessing.
Refinery Sludge Sources
Primary gravity separator sludge with high free oil content, sand, and settleable solids from process area runoff.
Oil-rich float from dissolved air flotation with chemical precipitates and emulsified hydrocarbons.
High-viscosity sludge from crude and product tank cleaning with concentrated solids and heavy hydrocarbons.
Excess biomass from activated sludge, MBBR, or SBR systems requiring stabilisation and dewatering.
Metal hydroxide and phosphate sludges from chemical conditioning and treatment of sour water and desalter effluent.
Reclamation of saleable oil from pooled sludges through separation, heating, and centrifugation.
Integrated Sludge Management Train
Gravity thickening or gravity belt thickeners increase solids content before mechanical dewatering.
Polyelectrolyte dosing and thermal conditioning improve dewaterability of oily and biological sludges.
Cake solids are routed to thermal treatment, landfill, or beneficial reuse depending on oil and metals content.
Products for Refinery Sludge Management
Continuous dewatering of oily and biological sludges with low operating requirement and minimal operator attention.
Benefit: 18-25% dry solids
High-G force separation for API sludge and tank bottoms with three-phase oil-water-solids recovery.
Benefit: 3-phase separation
Low-energy pre-thickening of dilute biological sludge to reduce downstream dewatering capacity.
Benefit: 4-6% solids feed
Automated polymer make-up and dosing systems for sludge conditioning and improved cake dryness.
Benefit: Precise dosing
Reliable transport of dewatered cake and screenings from refinery wastewater treatment units.
Benefit: ATEX options
Blending and surge capacity for efficient sludge dewatering operations operations with heated options for high-oil sludge.
Benefit: Flow balancing
Why Choose Reynolds & Bauhm
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View PageRefinery wastewater treatment including API separators, DAF, advanced biological treatment and polishing for strict discharge.
View PageRefinery sludges contain valuable hydrocarbon. Recovery feasibility often justify the dewatering Capital expenditure.
API skim sludge (40–60% oil, 30–40% water, 10–20% solids); DAF float (5–15% solids); biological excess sludge (2–5% solids); tank bottoms (sticky asphaltenes).
Horizontal scroll centrifuge separates oil / water / solids in one pass. Oil recovery to slop or feedstock; solids cake 35–50% DS; water back to head of works.
Pre-heating to 70–90°C reduces oil viscosity and breaks emulsions before centrifuge. Steam-injection or heat-exchanger; project benefits typically <2 yrs.
Polyelectrolyte (cationic, 0.4–0.8% w/w as dry polymer) optimises floc structure for centrifuge dewatering. Sometimes combined with ferric for stable emulsions.
Oil-recovered cake to delayed coker as feedstock (preferred); to cement kiln co-processing; to incineration; to engineered landfill as last resort. Waste-shipment compliance.
Recovered oil at –500/t and reduced disposal at –300/t typically justify Capital expenditure of 1–5 yr project benefits for a dewatering unit on a medium refinery.
Stokes’-law sizing, API Publication 421 design methodology, rectangular API / CPI / TPI configurations and refinery-train integration.
Sizing, components, types, materials, codes & compliance — the full engineering reference for gravity oil-water separation.
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CFD EngineeringContact our experts to reduce your refinery sludge disposal requirements.
Our expertise spans multiple industries with sector-specific water treatment solutions.