Gulf Coast Center of Excellence · Research
Integrated Process Design and Energy Optimization for Mineral Recovery from Oilfield Brines
Coordinating evaporation, crystallization, and selective separation into practical, energy-efficient systems that support resource recovery and water reuse.
Researcher
Mineral Recovery from Oilfield Brines
Research Conducted by: Maryam Roshanaei
This research focuses on recovering valuable minerals from oilfield brines through evaporation, crystallization, and selective separation. It examines how process design and integration can coordinate these operations, with energy optimization aimed at developing practical, efficient systems that support resource recovery and water reuse.
This research is just getting started
The project began in January 2026 and is currently in its beginning phases. Methods, results, and findings will be shared on this page as the work progresses — check back for updates.
Focus Area 01
Evaporation, Crystallization & Selective Separation
Oilfield brines carry a high load of dissolved salts and minerals. This work looks at the core unit operations used to pull those minerals out of solution — concentrating the brine through evaporation, recovering solids through crystallization, and using selective separation to isolate the minerals of greatest value.
Focus Area 02
Process Design & Integration
Rather than treating each step on its own, the research examines how these operations can be designed and integrated as one coordinated system, so that each stage is sized and sequenced to support the next.
Focus Area 03
Energy Optimization
Evaporation and crystallization are energy-intensive. A central goal of the project is optimizing energy use across the integrated process, aiming for systems that are efficient enough to be practical at real-world scale.
Focus Area 04
Resource Recovery & Water Reuse
The broader aim is turning a waste stream into a resource: recovering marketable minerals while also producing water that can be put back to use.
🔔 Updates Coming Soon
Progress, results, and any publications from this project will be posted here as the research develops.