Experimental Evaluation of some Physicochemical Properties of Produced Water from Niger Delta Treated with Activated Coconut Shell carbon

Due to the high demands for crude oil production, hence, the production of huge waste, which are mainly Petroleum produced water (ppw), but are undesirable as a result of hazardous impact on the environment. The treatment of ppw before discharge has been made a legal requirement by Department of Petroleum Resources (DPR) in Nigeria. In literature, demulsification techniques and Reverse Osmosis units have been mainly used for PPW treatments with a lot of limitations, but in this study, activated carbon from coconut shells was used to treat its physiochemical properties. Experimental method was adopted for this study. Locally prepared activated carbons from coconut shells were applied for the treatment of some of PPW physicochemical properties namely: Salinity (S) Total Dissolved Solids (TDS) pH, Turbidity (TU), Electrical Conductivity (EC) etc. The sample of the PPW used was obtained from two different fields in the Niger Delta of Nigeria. Zinc chloride (ZnCl2) solution was used to activate the carbon in coconut shells. A fixed volume of PPW was treated with the activated carbon adsorbent. Chemical analyses of PPW were performed and determined before and after contact with the activated carbon. The physicochemical properties of the treated PPW analyzed met the DPR standard for disposal. The Salinity showed a substantial decrease from 7140mg/l to 1160mg/l, showing ~83.75% reduction for sample A while sample B from 4850mg/l to 1280mg/l, ~73.61% reduction. The Turbidity reduced from 18.0 NTU to 0.2NTU, having ~98.89% reduction for A while B from 17.0NTU to 6.0NTU, having ~54.54% reduction. In conclusion, this study has revealed the usefulness and effectiveness of granular activated carbons produced from local agricultural residues which advances existing knowledge in the use of activated carbon for the treatment of PPW before discharge.