Methods and compositions for clarifying produced waters for boiler feed waters

A method of treating a water source, the method comprising:

• (i) combining a water source and a softening agent to make a softened water having a temperature of from about 45° C. to about 80° C. and a pH of about 9.5 to about 11, the softening agent selected from calcium hydroxide, calcium oxide, sodium carbonate, potassium carbonate, or any combination thereof, wherein the softened water comprises a colloidal calcium carbonate, a colloidal magnesium hydroxide, or a combination thereof;
• (ii) coagulating the colloidal calcium carbonate, the colloidal magnesium hydroxide, or the combination thereof, wherein the coagulating consists of combining the softened water with
• (a) a DADMAC/acrylamide copolymer having a number average molecular weight from about 1,000,000 daltons to about 10,000,000 daltons and a cationic mole charge of about 10% to about 30%,
• (b) an epichlorohydrin/dimethylamine copolymer having a number average molecular weight of about 10,000 daltons to about 25,000 daltons, wherein the weight ratio of the DADMAC/acrylamide copolymer to the epichlorohydrin/dimethylamine copolymer is about 1:1.4,
• (c) optionally water, and
• (d) optionally ammonium sulfate
• to make a coagulated water;
• and
• (iii) flocculating the coagulated water, wherein the flocculating consists of combining a one or more flocculating agents and optionally water with the coagulated water to form a flocculated water comprising a floc, wherein the one or more flocculating agents is selected from the group consisting of homopolymers and copolymers comprising the residues of monomers selected from N-vinyl pyrrolidone, N-vinyl formamide, N,N dimethylacrylamide, N-vinyl acetamide, N-vinylpyridine, N-vinylimidazole, isopropyl acrylamide, acrylic acid, a salt of acrylic acid, methacrylic acid, a salt of methacrylic acid, ethylene glycol methacrylate, 2-acrylamido-2-methylpropane sulfonic acid, a salt of 2-acrylamido-2-methylpropane sulfonic acid, dimethylaminoethyl acrylate, dimethylaminoethyl methacrylate, dimethydiallylammonium chloride, acrylamido propyltrimethyl ammonium chloride, methacrylamido propyltrimethyl ammonium chloride, and any combination of the residues, oxyalkylated alcohols, polyacrylamide, acrylamide copolymers bearing a negative molecular charge, polysaccharides, poly(methacrylamide), anionic polymers, and any combination thereof,
• wherein the water source comprises calcium ions, magnesium ions, bicarbonate ions, or any combination thereof.