Research Area Details

Sulfate Free Seawater for Oil and Gas Industry

Huge volumes of seawater are injected worldwide to maintain the pressure in oilfields. However, the presence of sparingly soluble sulfate salts of metals such as calcium, strontium and barium, result in undesirable effects e.g. scale deposition and reservoir souring. Due to their lower operational pressures and less energy requirement, using nanofiltration membranes for the removal of sulfate ions is an attractive and feasible preventive option. Researchers from the center are actively involved in the fabrication of high-performance NF membranes for the efficient removal of sulfate and other divalent ions.