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US 2015/0090457 A1Published application
Selective Removal of Silica From Silica Containing Brines
AssigneeSimbol Inc.
InventorStephen Harrison
Life of this patent
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Abstract
This invention relates to a method for selective removal of silica and silicon containing compounds from solutions that include silica and silicon containing compounds, including geothermal brines.
Claims14
A method for preventing silica scale in geothermal brine reinjection wells by selectively removing silica from a geothermal brine solution, the method comprising the steps of:
- obtaining a geothermal brine solution comprising silica from a geothermal well;
- maintaining the pH of the geothermal brine solution at an adjusted pH of between 4 and 7;
- contacting the geothermal brine solution at adjusted pH silica with activated alumina, such that silica present in the geothermal brine solution selectively binds to the activated alumina;
- recovering an aqueous brine product stream from the contacting step, said aqueous product stream having a reduced silica concentration relative to the geothermal brine solution;
- and
- injecting the aqueous brine product stream into the geothermal well.
3 more elements
A method for preventing silica scale in geothermal brine reinjection wells by selectively removing silica from a geothermal brine solution, the method comprising the steps of
- obtaining a geothermal brine solution from a geothermal well that comprises silica and an iron (II) salt;
- oxidizing the iron (II) salt to iron (III) hydroxide;
- maintaining the pH of the geothermal brine solution at an adjusted pH of between 4.5 and 6;
- contacting the silica and the iron (III) hydroxide at the adjusted pH for a time sufficient for the silica to attach to the iron (III) hydroxide and form a solid fraction comprising a silica/iron precipitate and a liquid fraction, wherein the liquid fraction comprises a geothermal brine product stream having a decreased concentration of silica and iron relative to the geothermal brine;
- separating the silica/iron precipitate from the liquid fraction;
- and
- injecting the liquid fraction into the geothermal well.
4 more elements
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.