Ms Sian Davies

BP

Biography:

Sian Davies is an analytical chemist working for 4 and half years in the Petrochemicals Industry at BP Chemicals Hull specialising in chromatography and associated techniques to investigate industrial problems and provide specification testing for plants. She gained a BSc in Chemistry from the University of Leeds and is a member of the Royal Society of Chemistry. Most recently, Sian has gained experience in high resolution mass spectrometry investigating the characteristics of complex by product materials from petrochemical processes, with particular interest in waste water streams.

Short description about presentation:

A changing regulatory environment creates a fantastic opportunity for innovation and discovery in waste water processing in the oil and gas industry. As lower limits are introduced in jurisdictions across the world, the challenge to improve water quality necessitates a more fundamental understanding of the residual components that remain in discharged water.

This presentation describes examples of analytical work carried out in BP labs to understand the composition of waste water discharge from upstream and downstream production facilities that will feed into modelling and routine water monitoring. High resolution mass spectrometry (HRMS) was used for targeted and untargeted analysis of waste streams in freshwater and marine matrices in partnership with a range of supporting techniques. The analytical challenge of working with different effluent matrices, answering diverse technical questions and working at different concentration levels (percent to parts per trillion) required a tailored approach to sample preparation, experimental design and data processing; all of which will be discussed in this presentation.

The detailed compositional understanding provided by HRMS feeds into improved waste water modelling algorithms allowing more accurate prediction and reporting of waste streams; it identifies recalcitrant components that resist breakdown using current management processes; and it fingerprints complex chemical systems allowing the comparison of production facilities and the impact of process changes to be highlighted. As regulatory limits change, typically reducing, HRMS provides an excellent tool to understand the complex nature of waste streams and ultimately how to further reduce toxicity, maintain a viable cost base and maintain regulatory compliance for emissions now and into the future.