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Oil Skimmers for Hydraulic Fracturing (Fracking)

Reduce Oil in Fracking Wastewater to Improve Treatment Efficiency

Hydraulic fracturing generates large volumes of flowback and produced water containing trace hydrocarbons that must be treated before disposal or reuse.

Abanaki oil skimmers continuously remove floating oil from fracking wastewater, helping operators reduce environmental risk, lower treatment costs, and improve water management efficiency.

High-Volume Flowback Creates Continuous Contamination Risk

Fracking Wastewater Is a Growing Treatment Challenge

Hydraulic fracturing uses millions of gallons of water per well, typically:

  • 98–99.5% water and sand
  • Small percentages of chemical additives
  • Significant flowback containing hydrocarbons and contaminants

As flowback returns to the surface:

  • Oil and hydrocarbons separate and float
  • Wastewater becomes harder to treat
  • Disposal and reuse requirements increase

➡️ Result: higher treatment costs, environmental exposure, and regulatory pressure

Flowback Water Requires Reliable Hydrocarbon Removal

Without Continuous Separation, Costs Increase Rapidly

In fracking operations, untreated or partially treated flowback can lead to:

  • Increased wastewater hauling and disposal costs
  • Overloaded filtration and treatment systems
  • Reduced water reuse efficiency
  • Higher risk of EPA or municipal non-compliance

👉 Even small amounts of floating oil significantly impact downstream treatment performance

Why Traditional Treatment Alone Is Not Enough

Secondary Systems Can Be Overloaded by Free-Phase Oil

Common treatment methods include:

  • Filtration systems
  • Chemical treatment processes
  • Coalescing separators
  • Settling tanks

However, these systems:

  • Are not optimized for free-floating oil removal
  • Require higher energy and chemical input when overloaded
  • Become less efficient without upstream separation
  • Increase sludge and maintenance requirements

➡️ Result: higher operating cost and reduced treatment efficiency

The Abanaki Advantage

Continuous Oil Removal from Fracking Wastewater

Abanaki oil skimmers provide continuous removal of floating hydrocarbons from flowback and produced water using proven oleophilic separation technology.

How It Works

  • A belt or tube moves across the wastewater surface
  • Hydrocarbons adhere due to surface tension differences
  • A wiping system removes oil into a collection container

This process runs continuously with minimal oversight and no chemical additives.

👉 Outcome: improved water quality, reduced treatment load, and increased hydrocarbon recovery efficiency

Hydraulic Fracturing System Solutions

Engineered for Flowback, Produced Water, and Treatment Facilities

Oil Grabber® Model 8 (High-Capacity Flowback Systems)

  • Most widely used Abanaki oil skimmer
  • Removes up to 40 gallons of oil per hour
  • Handles light sheens to heavy oil layers
  • Operates effectively in deep applications up to 100 feet

👉 Ideal for:

  • Flowback water pits
  • Produced water storage tanks
  • Centralized treatment systems

👉 Benefit impact: maximizes hydrocarbon removal before downstream treatment

Solar-Powered Model 8 (Remote Fracking Sites)

  • Same performance as Model 8
  • Operates where electricity is limited or unavailable
  • Removes up to 40 GPH

👉 Ideal for:

  • Remote drilling sites
  • Off-grid water treatment systems

👉 Benefit impact: enables hydrocarbon recovery in isolated operations without infrastructure constraints

Model MB Oil Skimmer (High-Purity Water Treatment)

  • Effective removal for water-based solutions
  • Can reduce oil content to less than 5 ppm depending on conditions
  • Used as pretreatment or in combination with filtration systems

👉 Ideal for:

  • Advanced treatment facilities
  • Water reuse applications
  • Regulatory discharge polishing systems

👉 Benefit impact: improves discharge quality and reduces downstream system load

Oil Grabber® Model 4 (Wastewater Treatment Plants)

  • Heavy-duty continuous belt skimmer
  • Common solution for wastewater treatment plants
  • Works effectively with Oil Concentrator option

👉 Ideal for:

  • Central wastewater treatment systems
  • Fracking water processing facilities
  • Industrial separation systems

👉 Benefit impact: reduces oil loading and improves system efficiency

Oil Viper® Tube Skimmer (Confined or Shallow Systems)

  • 3/4-inch oleophilic continuous loop tube
  • Flexible design for confined or shallow pits
  • Collects floating oils efficiently in irregular systems
  • High recovery rates in compact environments

👉 Ideal for:

  • Shallow flowback pits
  • Confined wastewater tanks
  • Irregular containment systems

👉 Benefit impact: improves recovery efficiency in space-limited treatment areas

Why Fracking Operations Choose Abanaki

Lower Treatment Costs with Higher Water Recovery Efficiency

✔ Reduces hydrocarbon load before treatment systems
✔ Improves wastewater processing efficiency
✔ Lowers chemical and filtration costs
✔ Supports regulatory compliance goals
✔ Enables more effective water reuse strategies

👉 Result: more efficient water management and reduced environmental risk

Real Impact in Hydraulic Fracturing Operations

From Contaminated Flowback to Recoverable Resource Stream

Abanaki oil skimmers help operators:

  • Recover hydrocarbons before disposal or treatment
  • Reduce load on filtration and chemical systems
  • Lower wastewater hauling and disposal costs
  • Improve compliance with environmental regulations
  • Increase efficiency of water reuse systems

👉 Transforms flowback management into a controlled recovery process

Turn Flowback Water Into a Recoverable Resource

Not a Disposal Problem

With Abanaki oil skimmers, hydraulic fracturing operations can:

  • Recover valuable hydrocarbons
  • Reduce wastewater treatment costs
  • Improve environmental compliance
  • Increase water reuse efficiency
  • Lower operating and maintenance burden

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)


Flowback water is the mixture of water, sand, chemicals, and hydrocarbons that returns to the surface after fracturing operations.

It increases treatment costs, reduces water reuse efficiency, and creates environmental compliance risks.

They continuously remove floating hydrocarbons using belts or tubes that attract oil based on surface tension differences.

Yes. In many cases, recovered hydrocarbons can be returned to storage or reused depending on operational conditions.

  • Model 8 → high-capacity flowback systems
  • Solar Model 8 → remote sites
  • Model MB → high-purity discharge
  • Model 4 → wastewater treatment plants
  • Oil Viper → confined or shallow systems

Yes. Continuous removal of hydrocarbons improves wastewater quality and reduces discharge risk.


Hydraulic Fracking System Solutions


The Oil Grabber® Model 8 oil skimmer is the most widely-used Abanaki oil skimmer. Its size and removal capacity make it suitable for most applications. From a mere shimmer of pollutants on top of water to a heavy oil slick, the Model 8 oil skimmer performs efficiently, removing up to 40 gallons of oil per hour.

The new solar-powered version of Abanaki’s popular Model 8 Oil Skimmer is also available. It removes oil at up to 40 gph, where electrical power is unavailable or inconvenient.

The Abanaki Model MB oil skimmer is a dependable and effective means of removing oil from water and water-based solutions. Often, oil skimming by itself will reduce oil to an acceptable level of water purity. Depending on the characteristics of the liquid, it is possible for the Model MB alone to reduce oil content to less than five parts per million in water. The unit can be used as a pre-treatment before filtration, and in conjunction with a coalescing system.

The Oil Grabber Model 4 is the most commonly used solution at wastewater treatment plants. Its heavy-duty construction withstands the harsh environment inherent to the industry. Specially designed belts can collect all of the oil products present in the wash bay; when coupled with the optional Oil Concentrator, they effectively remove the oil without collecting much water.

Abanaki’s Oil Viper tube skimmer has a small footprint but large recovery rate. The tube “snakes” around the pit and can collect oils and greases with ease. It works very well in shallow sumps or confined spaces.