Water Tanker Cleaning (SOP)

A standard operating procedure to clean the water tankers to ensure water quality

Introduction

Water is an essential resource in the oil and gas industry, used in drilling and hydraulic fracturing, well stimulation, and other field operations. The effectiveness and operations safety are affected by the quality of water used in these processes. Polluted water can cause equipment damage, well integrity issues, and environmental damage. So, one needs to make sure that tankers which are used for transportation are clean. Standard Operating Procedure(SOP) for cleaning of all water tankers to ensure high water quality.

This article is a complete step by step S.O.P guide to the water tanker cleaning procedure.

SOP for Cleaning Water Tanker (Step by Step)

1. Preparation and Application of Citric Acid

✔Water tanker cleaning process steps On the first step citric acid powder is applied. Citric acid is a great cleaning agent because it assists in breaking down contaminants, scale buildup, bacteria inside the tanker.

✔At the water loading site, 25 lbs. of citric acid powder is dumped into each truck's tank by the driver.

✔In case of multiple compartments in the truck, the citric acid should be equally mix for an organized cleaning.

✔The first load will have a well serviced representative with it to ensure citric acid is applied correctly and that safety protocols are being followed

2. Filling the Tank with Water

✔The next step: fill the tanker with water after adding the citric acid (Well that has been pre-tested for quality by a representative).

✔The use of clean water ensures no additional contaminants are introduced into the tanker while cleaning.

3. Mixing and Transportation to the Well Site

✔The mixing of citric acid and water in the tanker should be done well for effective cleaning.

✔The truck goes to the designated well site location, the movement mixes the citric acid solution throughout the tank.

✔This ensures that the entire inner surface of the tanker is in contact with the cleaning solution and effectively removes residuals and contaminants.

4. Leaching Solution Drainage at the Well Site

✔When the truck gets to the well site, the cleaning solution has to be disposed of correctly.

✔This solution is drained into an auxiliary pit on site to ensure that no residual contaminants enter the wellbore or surrounding soil.

✔This measure can reduce the environmental threats and ensure waste management.

5. Flushing the Tanker

✔This is followed by flushing further to get rid of any remaining traces of citric acid.

✔Two extensive rinses using fresh water from the same tested well are run through each tanker.

✔This guarantees that there’s no residual citric acid (or any contaminants) left over inside the tanker, making it suitable for the next usage.

6. Filling Up and How to Prevent Rust

✔Then, to prevent rust formation, the last filling step is also carried out to keep the tanker clean.

✔After flushing, each tanker is water charged and left in a loaded condition until used for operations.

✔Filling the tanker with water helps prevents oxidation and ensures that it is in a ready-to-use state.

✔They have a on-site rep during the entire process to ensure compliance to quality.

✔Complementary Water Tanker Cleaning Considerations

✔Crude must be hot pre-load washed with caustic lye detergent — Tankers need a full wash before hauling these water and brine for oil and gas jobs.

✔Tankers previously used for hauling oil based muds must be steam cleaned to remove all hydrocarbon-rich contaminants.

✔A standard operating procedure(SOP) training for consistently controlling and maintaining water tankers.

✔Documentation Set to validate adherence to SOPs and for future reference in audits or inspections

✔Role of Oil & Gas Sector in Water Tanker Cleaning

Preventing Contaminants

✔Dirty tankers can contaminate water sources, resulting in well functionality issues and further contaminating the environment.

Operational Efficiency

✔Clean water improves equipment efficiency, meaning less downtime and fewer expensive repairs.

Regulatory Compliance

✔Avoiding fines/keeping an environmentalist attitude: Compliance with water quality regulations

Safety Enhancement

✔Viable clean tankers eliminate the risk resulting in corrosion, scaling and bacterial growth, leading to operational failures.

​​Waste Disposal: 

✔Proper disposal and cleaning techniques help reduce environmental impact, ensuring responsible water management.

Conclusion

This SOP serves as a valuable tool to ensure compliance with best practices for cleaning and maintaining water tankers, and can be adapted and expanded upon to suit the specific needs of your organization. These protocols lead to good quality of water, protect the equipment and meet with controls. Operation Efficiency and Care. Regular inspection, cleaning, and maintenance of tankers play a crucial role in responsible water management.

Since water is an integral part of drilling and completion operations, it is very important to use and adhere to the SOP for water tanker cleaning. This proactive approach allows for risk mitigation, performance enhancement, and industry compliance, which in turn drives sustainable oil and gas operations.