Large quantities of oil sludgeare generated during crude oil production, storage and transportation, refining, and other industrial operations.
Oil sludge is not simply a mixture of “oil + solids.” It is a complex multiphase system composed of crude oil, water, solid particles, and various organic constituents. During prolonged production and handling, chemical additives, mechanical shear, and other factors promote the formation of stable associations among the oil, water, and solids. Consequently, oil sludgeis one of the more challenging solid wastes encountered in industrial environmental management.
