Crude Oil Storage Tank Cleaning Methods

By Harriett Crosby


The process of Crude Oil Storage Tank Cleaning is somewhat a challenge to many. It is a comprehensive activity involving the removal of the bottom crude oil sludge, treating the oil sludge and washing the receptacle . There is the conventional method of washing it and several scientific methods that come up every day as research goes on.

In the conventional method, the sludge is removed from storage chamber's bottom, a process that can take between 90 to 120 days. This is done with experienced personnel and machines and with more operators, the stage can take less like 2 to 3 months. And when using receptacle cleaning machines that are remotely operated will take double the time as compared to human operators.

The removed sludge is then treated in the second step. It is separated into oil, solid wastes and water. The process is done right in the storage chamber before pumping it out of system.

After removing and separating the sludge the tank will then be washed in the third stage. It involves the use of high pressure cleaners that washes the walls, roof and floors of the storage chamber. This process includes de-rusting by the use of sand blasting and may take between 40 to 60days. For two teams working concurrently, this may take around 30 days to complete. The external walls of the storage chamber also require another thirty (30) to sixty (60) days to de-ruts and de-paint. However if ultra-high pressure cleaner is used, this process can take very few days though it is more expensive.

There is also a one step tank cleaning technology in use. It is more efficient than the conventional method and takes relatively less time. Here, nozzles are fitted on top the storage chamber and diesel is pumped through them into the sludge. This washes the sludge after which the mixture of diesel and sludge is pumped out of the receptacle.

Even though this method is more efficient than the conventional one, some sludge will still remain solid and stuck to the tank base. This may take up to four months to dissolve then the mixture is pumped out into another tank. This means that an extra receptacle is required to store the mixture before it I separated.

Other than these methods, there is a two step procedure. It is quite advanced and cleans tanks in a matter of weeks compared to the months it takes to clean with the other methods. In the first step, a submerged rotary jet mixer violently and thoroughly mixes the sludge dissolving it into a suspended mixture, a process referred to as re-suspension. Here, about 90% of the oil is recovered for recycling and use. This only requires 7 days to set up the machine and 3 days to do the mixing.

This is followed by removing the remaining 10% sludge that is then very soft in comparison to the hard crust in the other methods. Given the violent mixing it has undergone, the sludge will not be a hard task to remove. This method of Crude Oil Storage Tank Cleaning is the most efficient and very time saving comparing 6 months for other methods and 10 days it uses.




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