Table 8.1 Characteristics of effluents from different refinery units
Unit operation
Characteristic
of wastewater
Concentration
(mg/L)
Total
effluents
(kg/L)
References
Desalter
Suspended
solids
50–100
0.05–0.1
Speight (2014), Central
Pollution Control Board,
India (2018), and International Petroleum Industry
Environmental Conservation Association (2010)
Dissolved
hydrocarbons
50–300
Phenol
5–30
Benzene
30–100
Biochemical
oxygen
demand
300–600
Chemical oxygen demand
500–2000
Nitrogen
compounds
15–30
Sulphur
compound
Up to 50
Atmospheric
distillation
Mercaptan
50–100
0.01–0.6
Speight (2014), Central
Pollution Control Board,
India (2018), International
Petroleum Industry Environmental Conservation
Association (2010), and
Malakar et al. (2015)
Hydrogen
sulphide
Up to 50
Chlorides
730
Chemical oxygen demand
400–1000
Suspended
hydrocarbons
Up to 1000
Vacuum
distillation
Phenol
0.35
0.004–0.01
Speight (2014), Central
Pollution Control Board,
India (2018), International
Petroleum Industry Environmental Conservation
Association (2010), and
Malakar et al. (2015)
Cracking
Biochemical
oxygen
demand
240–570
0.024–0.35
Speight (2014), Central
Pollution Control Board,
India (2018), International
Petroleum Industry Environmental Conservation
Association (2010), and
Malakar et al. (2015)
Chemical oxygen demand
400–1400
Suspended
solids (fine
cokes)
500
Phenol
10–50
o,m,p-cresol
11–16.5
Ammonia
Up to 100
Oily sour water Up to 250
Hydrogen
cyanide
10–20
(continued)
8 Treatment of Petroleum Hydrocarbon Pollutants in Water
237