Bechtel procures waste water treatment technology from Chevron

Bechtel has procured Chevron’s waste water treatment (WWT) technology, a process aimed at improving the efficiency of petroleum refineries in treating water.

WWT technology comprises a two-stage sour water stripping process designed to separate ammonia and hydrogen sulfide streams from sour waters generated by process units of the refinery.

Capable of reducing the new sulfur units cost, especially in refineries that process high nitrogen crudes, Chevron’s technology is also used for debottlenecking of sulfur plants.

Bechtel’s Onshore Oil and Gas / Downstream division vice president and general manager Scott Johnson said the technology will improve the company’s ability to provide high-quality, technologically-superior water and sulfur processing units to customers, more efficiently and cost-effectively.

"This acquisition complements our current suite of refinery technologies and continues our long-standing practice of making sure we have the right resources to help our customers meet their needs," Johnson added.

Chevron-developed WWT Process also enables higher purity separation and recovery of ammonia from sour water streams, as well as reduces the sulfur plant’s size requirements.

Managed by Bechtel Hydrocarbon Technology Solutions, the WWT process technology can also remove operating problems associated with ammonia salts in sulfur units.

The final stripped water will be either reused or discharged through downstream treating facilities.

The separated ammonia may be used for commercial sale, internal use, or separately incinerated while the high purity hydrogen sulphide serves as a premium feed to conventional sulfur recovery units or sulfuric acid plants.