About the Integrated Treatment System (ITS)
The patented ITS platform is founded on a basic wastewater treatment process that has long been used to separate solids from waste streams - Dissolved Air Flotation (DAF). The process employs targeted chemicals to precipitate oils and solids out of suspension, and a physical mechanism to remove those solids from the water.
The ITS consists of three main units: one to control chemical dosing, another to mix the chemicals into the water, and a third to perform the physical separation of solids. Unlike many technologies being applied to the oilfields, the ITS has a flexible process that can be adapted to the specific needs of the formation and to driller preferences.
The ITS is sized to process 900gpm (31,000bbl) of frac water per day, all from the three trailer set-up. Alternative treatment technologies often require fleets of trailers and still are not able to process as much water on a day to day basis.
System Features
- Standard frac tank chassis
- Integrated chemical feed and mixing
- High-rate Dissolved Air Flotation system
- Removes 99% of TSS/FOG
- Prepares flowback/produced water for reuse
- Rapid deployment and set-up
Top Issues Surrounding Fracking
Water Sourcing
Fracking one well can require anywhere between 1-5 million gallons of water. Current practice is to pull this water from fresh water resources, like rivers, lakes, and aquifers.
Road Wear, Noise, Traffic
Moving water for one well can require upwards of 1500 two-way truck trips. This movement is causing major damage to rural roads that were not built for this kind of heavy traffic.
Frac Water Disposal
The current practice is to dispose of water that flows back out of a well. In 2012, this activity amounted to 730 billion gallons of water completely removed from the water cycle.
Why Drillers Don't Recycle Frac Water
Too Expensive
Drillers have been reluctant to recycle frac water because disposing of it has proven much more economic, even when they're paying to haul it over long distances.
Too Inflexible
Drillers understand that every well is different. Recycling technologies have to prove capable enough to handle the variance in flowback composition.
Too Many Roadblocks
Many states have laws that make it difficult for drillers to obtain the various permits required to treat wastewater. Often times they're still in the permitting phase for water treatment long after the well has been completed.
Why the ITS Works
The most direct way to address the environmental concerns and give drillers a reason to recycle frac water is to put a solution in place that makes sense for everyone. That's the role of the ITS.
The ITS provides these major benefits:
- On-site treatment
- Eliminates need for fresh water withdrawal
- Reduces truck traffic and shortens hauling distances
- Generates reusable water from waste, eliminating need for disposal