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| Chemical treatment is one way to deal with MRF that
can no longer be used. Click for other disposal
options. |
What is chemical treatment?
Treatment by this method uses various chemicals to destabilize, de-emulsify, or absorb
into the oil phase of a metal removal fluid, thereby allowing the water and oil phases to
separate. Click for more details about the different methods
of chemical treatment.
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| At a minimum, one storage tank, one processing tank, and one oil-sludge tank are
necessary. A processing tank should be large enough to handle at least one average day of
flow. If the system is being set up for continuous flow, a series of cascading tanks with
at least a half- hour retention time per tank is necessary. |
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| A small laboratory bench with a dedicated pH meter and calibrating buffer solutions, a
magnetic stirring mixer, chemicals used within the process and pipettes for measuring
chemical additions are all good to have on site. |
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| Truck spill containment may be required for oil hauling pump-outs by a contract
service. |
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What are the advantages and disadvantages of chemical
treatment?
Advantages:
 | Energy consumption is low. |
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| Diluted solutions are easier to separate. |
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| Separation times can be very rapid (30 minutes). |
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Disadvantages:
| Corrosive chemicals are required for use (sulfuric acid, sodium hydroxide). |
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| Chemical treatment is very sensitive to changes in emulsifier (surfactant) chemistry. |
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| Specialized instruments are required (pH meter). |
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| Instruments require frequent calibration (pH meter). |
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| Chemical changes and/or meter malfunctions can result in poor water quality without
notice. |
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| Balancing chemical reactions, at times, can be more an art than a science. |
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| Synthetic fluids cannot be effectively treated by this method. |
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| The basic concepts of this method are abstract and are not easily understood by persons
without some chemistry background. |
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Contact Chris Roman, 