Water extraction methods inject hot water into the sand mixture, which is then agitated for a period of time. A typical oil sands deposit in alberta contains on average about 10% bitumen, 5% water and 85% solids, mostly in the form of coarse silica sand. Dry tailings are also produced which can be disposed of in a manner which permits reconservation of the mined out area and which eliminates environmental pollution impact on. Direct hot water production for an oil sands mining.
Lenders would be justifiably loth to advance financing based on novel technologies that to some degree remain. In order to extract the fuel, producers inject steam, solvents, or hot air into the sands. Many innovative chemical and engineering aspects have been incorporated into the process to achieve over 98% of bitumen extraction from the oil sands, and a greater than 99. Oil sands slurry produced in the slurry preparation plant spp contains about 5055% sand and less than 10% bitumen. Method of utilization and disposal of sludge from tar sands. The athabasca oil sands first came to the attention of european fur traders in 1719 when wapasu, a cree trader, brought a sample of bituminous sands to the hudsons bay company post at york factory on hudson bay where henry kelsey was the manager. The extraction of heavy oil from trinidad tar sands using. Without this water envelope, the oil and the sand could not be separated by the waterbased extraction methods that are currently used.
Unlike conventional ils, these eutectics are relatively cheap and environmentally friendly. Conditioning starts the process of separating sand and bitumen and breaks apart any large pieces of oil sands. Oil sands discovery centre facts 1 oil sands overview 3 albertas vast resource the biggest known oil reserve in the world. Oil sands extraction can affect the land when the bitumen is initially mined, water resources by its requirement for large quantities of water during separation of the oil and sand, and the air due to the release of carbon dioxide and other emissions. Large volumes of oil sands processaffected water ospw are produced by the oil sands surface mining industry during alkaline hot.
Advances in distinguishing groundwater influenced by oil. In the vessel, the slurry separates into three distinct layers. This process causes the bitumen to separate out from the sand and water, where it attaches to air bubbles because bitumen is hydrophobic, or. Oil sands are actually found all over the world, and are sometimes referred to as tar sands or bituminous sands. Oil sands, also known as tar sands, are sediments or sedimentary rocks composed of sand, clay minerals, water, and bitumen. Effects of salt interactions in oil sands process waters on. The dispersant disperses the ultrafine less than 300 nm particles, to reduce the formation of flocs and sludge in the tailings pond.
In this work, the dewatering behaviors of tailings suspensions generated on a pilot scale from standard chwe and from hbe are studied. These individual ostp compartments are described briefly below. Oil sand is mixed with hot water to form a slurry a very thick liquid. Operating cost parameters in solvent extraction of bitumen from oil.
Oil sands hot water extraction process clarke, thomas p. The byproduct of this extraction, known as oil sands processa. About 7 to 10 m 3 of water per m 3 of bitumen are needed in order. When mixed with hot water, the oil sands separates into layers, with the most densethe sandsinking to the bottom, and the. The means to recover bitumen from the mixture of water, bitumen, and solids froth produced in hot water extraction in miningbased recovery. Biofiltration of oil sands process water in fixedbed.
Screening of genotoxicity and mutagenicity in extractable. Impact of a novel bitumen extraction process on mined oil. The oil is in the form of bitumen, a very heavy liquid or sticky black solid with a low melting temperature. When mixed with hot water, the oil sands separates into layers, with the most densethe sandsinking to the bottom, and the least densethe water rising to the top. First, at the slurry preparation plant water is added to the mined oil sands ore to obtain a slurry with a density of 1500 kg m. The remaining sand, fines and water combine to produce tailings. Bitumen product must meet 300 ppmw solids spec on a dry bitumen basis. Pdf characterization of an oil sand ore and process streams.
A mechanism for the hot water extraction process is proposed based on new. Insitu extraction methods are used to recover bitumen that lies too deep. Industry and governments continue to develop ways to further reduce the amount of water used in the extraction process. Beside the chweprocess, direct coking of the oil sands1 is. Oil sands extraction and processing natural resources canada.
A mechanism for the hot water extraction process is proposed based on new results from extraction tests using model oil sand. Tailings are an important component of oil sands operations and must be properly managed to minimize environmental impacts and operational cost. The purpose of extraction is to recover the bitumen portion, while rejecting the heavy solids. The heavy oil is called bitumen, which is defined as oil that is too heavy or thick to flow or be pumped without being diluted or heated. Jan 19, 2010 oil is extracted from surfacemined oil sands by use of the clark hot 7993 c water process that uses caustic soda to separate bitumen from other constituents such as clay, sand, dissolved metals, and organic compounds, including pahs and naphthenic acids nas. Sfe in the extraction of the heavy oil from the tar sands located in the parrylands district of trinidad. This is achieved through a simple waterbased gravity separation process, most of which. Facts related to the oil sands mining sector estimates of the oil contained in. This is achieved through a simple water based gravity separation process, most of which.
Truehybrid process oil sands pretreatedwith solvent viscosity reduction, followed by water extraction process. Hybrid bitumen extraction hbe at ambient conditions has potential, as an alternative to the commercially used modi. Effects of salt interactions in oil sands process waters. Hybrid bitumen extraction hbe at ambient conditions has potential, as an alternative to the commercially used modified clark hot water extraction chwe for mined oil sands.
Oil sands also contain fine solids and clays, typically in the range of 10 to 30% by weight. A dispersant, such as sodium silicate, is added to the process water of the hot water extraction process which recovers bitumen from oil sands. This process creates slurry that is piped, extracted, agitated and then skimmed for oil. Dec 16, 2016 bitumen is extracted from mined oil sands using a water intensive process known as hot water extraction clark, 1944. Oil sands water chemistry modelling we build computer models to predict the changing water chemistry of oil sands process water. Oil sands water treatment we look at the effect of using water treatment on overall efficiency of oil sands operations.
When mixed with hot water, the oil sands separates into layers, with the most densethe sandsinking to the bottom, and the least densethe waterrising to the top. The extraction of bitumen from oil sands requires a large amount of water, and thus water use is a concern when looking at oil sands extraction. In this work, the dewatering behaviors of tailings suspensions generated on a. It was found that bitumen can be completely liberated from the oil sand matrix and forms aerated droplets during slurrying with water without adding process aids.
Bitumen is separated from oil sand using the clark hot water extraction process. This slurry is agitated to incorporate air bubbles. Petroleum products are produced from the oil sands through 3 basic steps. In the solvent extraction process, oil sand from surface mining is dissolved in an appropriate solvent. Here, the slurry is put through a separation process where sand sinks to the bottom and impure bitumen froth rises to the. Apr 03, 1985 the method of claim 1 wherein the bitumen andor oil containing sludges or tailings comprises the sludges from harbour maintenance dredging operation, or the middlings or primary tailings from a tar sands hot water extraction process, or sludge from the sludge zone of a tails pond produced in the tar sands hot water extraction process, or.
Extraction of oil from oil sands using thermoresponsive. These oil sands, hosted primarily in the mcmurray formation, consist of a mixture of crude bitumen a semisolid rocklike form of crude oil, silica sand, clay minerals, and water. Comparing venezuelan and canadian heavy oil and tar sands. Extraction of the bitumen from the oil sands, where the solids and water are removed upgrading of the heavy bitumen to a lighter, intermediate crude oil product refining of the crude oil into final products such as gasoline, lubricants and diluents traditionally, a majority of the bitumen produced. Oil sands mining and extraction processes require large amounts of hot water in two separate streams. The alberta oil sands deposit in canada is the thirdlargest proven oil reserve in the world, comprising 142000 km21,2. Because it does not flow like conventional crude oil, it must be mined or heated underground before it can be processed. Currently this hot water is produced indirectly through contact with steam produced in natural gas fired boilers. Us5492628a process for reducing sludge accumulation in the. See this video tutorial from syncrude on producing oil from oil sands. By using a hot water extraction process, bitumen can be separated from the oil sands. A generic flow diagram of oil sand mining to bitumen. The effect of oil sands bitumen extraction conditions on froth.
Most of the freshwater imported by oil sands mines is used in hot water extraction, a flotation process that separates bitumen from sand and clay. The oil sand is mixed with warm water called a slurry and transported by pipeline to an extraction facility. Abstract process economics program report 266 heavy oil. Pdf the effect of oil sands bitumen extraction conditions on. In a hot water extraction process for removing bitumen from oil sands, the efficiency is improved by filtering the wet tailings to recover hot water. Once the oil sand is crushed, hot water is added so it can be pumped to the.
Environmental impacts of oil sands energy education. Bitumen is extracted from mined oil sands using a water intensive process known as hot water extraction clark, 1944. Although the overall upgrading process flow diagram varies from. The athabasca oil sands, also known as the athabasca tar sands, are large deposits of bitumen or extremely heavy crude oil, located in northeastern alberta, canada roughly centred on the boomtown of fort mcmurray. The resulting products of oil sands mining are a profitable synthetic crude oil along with oil sands process water ospw, tailings, and other remains. It is demonstrated that bitumen can be separated from waterwet alberta oil sands and oilwet utah oil sands using a socalled analogue ionic liquid il based on deep eutectic mixtures of choline chloride and urea chclu together with a diluent such as naphtha. Water management in oil sands natural resources canada. A slurry process that transports water and oilsand through a pipeline to primary separation vessels.
Throughout this settling period oil sands processaffected water ospw is expressed from pore spaces and accumulates at the pond surface fig. Once mined, bitumen is separated from the sand using a hot water extraction process that was patented in the 1920s by dr. The extraction of heavy oil from trinidad tar sands using supercritical carbon dioxide. This is consistent with the results on the same deposit as reported by kuarsingh and maharaj 1991. Water extraction the clark hot water extraction process is used by the mineable oil sands sector. New extraction technique could replace sdse for bitumen. Extraction of bitumen from oil sands with hot water and. With billions of barrels of recoverable bitumen deposit, the athabasca region in northern alberta, canada contains the majority of canadas oil reserves teare et al. The method of claim 1 wherein the bitumen andor oil containing sludges or tailings comprises the sludges from harbour maintenance dredging operation, or the middlings or primary tailings from a tar sands hot water extraction process, or sludge from the sludge zone of a tails pond produced in the tar sands hot water extraction process, or. Process water treatment in canadas oil sands industry. Understanding waterbased bitumen extraction from athabasca oil sands article pdf available in the canadian journal of chemical engineering 824.
Hot water extraction process mechanism using model oil sands. Required caustics and other reagents adversely impact handling and disposal of byproducts of the process. Oil sands are geologic formations that contain a mixture of thick, heavy oil, water and sand. Oil sands mining and extraction processes require large amounts of hot. Petroteqs oil sands extraction process has been designed utilizing good engineering practices and confirmed chemical and physical principles. Mcgaw et al the extraction of heavy oil from trinidad tar sands using supercritical carbon dioxide. Mine reference facility, which includes energy and material flow. Abstract process economics program report 266 heavy oil from. Pdf understanding waterbased bitumen extraction from.
Effects of salt interactions in oil sands process waters on ceriodaphnia dubia using an isobolographic approach toxicology 480. Historical overview of the fort mcmurray area and oil. The hot water separation process oil sands albertas. Mainly two types early hybrid process oil sands processed with solvent and water. Following this work, bell proposed that it would be feasible to extract the bitumen from the oil sands by using a hot water extraction process, and that a pipeline could be. Hot water extraction of bitumen from oil sands has been commercially applied for decades. While different estimating bases can give different absolute values, one conclusion is. The production of bitumen from oil sands via the hot water extraction process consumes a significant amount of water and produces a significant amount of mineral wastes. Environmental consequences of oil production from oil sands.
Extraction and tailings flow sheet for bitumen extraction redrawn. It is well documented that the acid extractable organics aeos in ospw, a highly complex mixture of acidic and polar neutral substances, are acutely toxic. Method of utilization and disposal of sludge from tar. In a hot water extraction process for removing bitumen from oil sands, the efficiency is improved by filtering the wet tailings to recover hot water, bitumen and diluent which are returned and recovered in the process. For instance, canadas oil sands innovation alliance cosia an alliance of oil sands producers formed to improve environmental performance in the oil sands is developing several technologies to reduce water use. The volume of the pond is such that the retention time of process water is sufficiently short less than 6 weeks when. Our oil sands business recovers bitumen through surface mining and steam injection technologies and upgrades it into refineryready crude oil products. Hot water volumes will differ between operations, but generally would be in the. Most often, the modified clarke hot water extraction process is used to separate out the profitable oil from the sand. Oil sand is mixed with hot water to form a slurry a very thick liquid, which is pipelined to a separation vessel.
Dec 23, 1980 referring to the drawing, the conventional process including known improvements is indicated above the chain line and consists generally of feeding oil sands from a mining area into a hot water extraction unit 1. Product cleaning and partial upgrading research topics include bitumen froth treatment, cleaning of bitumen generated from nae, and partial upgrading of bitumen. Bitumen extraction is a process unique to the oil sands industry and refers to a process that separates the bitumen from the sand. Understanding water based bitumen extraction from athabasca oil sands article pdf available in the canadian journal of chemical engineering 824.
Us5492628a process for reducing sludge accumulation in. Extraction of bitumen from oil sands using deep eutectic. Water used in the oil sands can be recycled, but only small amounts of this water are returned to the natural cycle. The difference is that the accelerated solvent extraction technique introduces a pressure component which, when combined with heat, enables the extraction process to occur in about onetenth the time and thus shows potential to replace sdse as the industry standard for bitumen extraction from oil sands. The hot water and oil sands are mixed and then transported as a pulp to a primary separation unit 2 where the major separation of oil. Karl clarks work for the research council of alberta concentrated on developing the hot water method of separating the oil sands into its component parts. Two different methods are used to produce oil from the oil sands surface.
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