TUV SUD NEL addresses oil-in-water measurement knowledge gap

Flow measurement research and development specialist TUV SUD NEL has announced the launch of a joint industry project (JIP) to address the knowledge gap in the oil and gas industry’s use of online oil-in-water analysers.

According to the company, the JIP will create a set of regulatory requirements for subsea produced water dischargers, in addition to guidelines for the acceptance of using online oil-in-water analysers for both subsea and unmanned applications.

A new set of validation criteria will also be created for the use of oil-in-water analysers for reporting purposes, which will help operators optimise production processes.

“With an ever increasing emphasis on maximising oil and gas recovery and cost effective production, there is a growing interest in the development of unmanned and subsea separation systems,” said Dr Ming Yang, environmental consultancy services manager at TUV SUD NEL.

“However, produced water discharge would not be possible without reliable online oil-in-water analysers, and no industry-wide reporting and compliance guidance currently exists. This JIP already has the support of three major operators as it will fill that knowledge gap, update existing guidance, and make the use of these produced water discharge analysers for reporting purposes a reality for the industry.”

The work done by the JIP will enable existing online oil-in-water analyser guidance (from OSPAR, BEIS and Norsk Olje & Gas 085) to be updated.