Tar sands extraction methods
Tar sands take 3 barrels of water to process every barrel of oil extracted. Ninety percent of this water becomes so toxic that it must be stored in tailing ponds. A method for extracting bitumen from crushed mined tar sands comprising contacting the mined tar sands with a solvent in the presence of sonic energy in the frequency range of 0.5 to 2.0 kHz. (PhysOrg.com) -- A new, more environmentally friendly method of separating oil from tar sands has been developed by a team of researchers at Penn State. This method, which utilizes ionic liquids Although there are vast amounts of past research information available, and new drilling, bitumen extraction, and upgrading techniques may provide the necessary ingredients for the successful and sustainable development of Utah’s oil sand deposits, factors such as site accessibility, adequate infrastructure, water availability, environmental concerns, land access and permitting, and the heterogeneity of reservoir sands must be resolved before economically viable oil sand development will OIl Sands (called Tar sands by its detractors) is made up of natural deposits of sand, clay and bitumen ( this is a heavy black viscous oil) and are mined using strip mining in open pit mines or by thermal extraction using steam assisted gravity drainage (SAGD) technology.
31 Jan 2019 The process of mining and extraction of bitumen from the oil sands requires giant open pit mines and consumes large amounts of energy and
Extracting bitumen from tar sands—and refining it into products like gasoline—is significantly costlier and more difficult than extracting and refining liquid oil. Common extraction methods include surface mining—where the extraction site is excavated—and “in-situ” mining, where steam is used to liquefy bitumen deep underground. The extraction of bitumen-derived crude oil follows several steps. The first step is the extraction of the heavy oil from the rock. Tar sands (7% bitumen by weight from the tar sands) and oil shale contain relatively low concentrations of hydrocarbons. Some loss (< 10% of bitumen) occurs in the primary extraction process. Tar Sands to Oil. There are two ways in which we can obtain the tar sands in order to create oil. One way is by mining on the surface (less than 100 meters deep). The second way is to heat the Bitumen causing the viscosity to decrease allowing it to flow into a well, which is then accessible to the oil and gas company. A hot water extraction process for extracting bitumen from tar sands is taught wherein the tar sand is conditioned using an alkali metal bicarbonate, an alkali metal carbonate and a liquid hydrocarbon. A source of calcium and/or magnesium ions can also be added. 7. Methods of extraction which do not involve strip mining are even worse for the environment. ConocoPhilips uses a heating method to extract bitumen from tar sands. They expose the bitumen to steam so the product is softened and this allows it to be pumped to the processor. Then the water is recycled so it can be used for steam again. The oil product extracted from Canada's tar sands isn't like conventional crude. Known as bitumen, it's sticky and so thick, it can't flow down a pipeline without extensive processing. There are two methods for getting bitumen out of the ground and turning it into usable products. The method used to extract bitumen from the oil sands depends on the depth of the deposit. If the deposit is near the surface, the oil sands is mined and sent to a bitumen processing plant. For deposits that are deep below the surface, bitumen is extracted in-situ (or in place).
Oil Sands Recovery, Extraction and Upgrading. Recovery. Two methods are used to recover oil sands deposits: surface mining, and in-situ. Surface mining collects
Recovery methods are based either on mining combined with some further processing or operation on the oil sands in situ. The mining methods are applicable An additional 250 billion barrels could potentially be recovered with more favourable economic conditions or new technology to extract and process. Extracting and refining this hydrocarbon, however, is “the most polluting and carbon intensive oil process on earth, draining wetlands, diverting rivers and stripping Extraction Methods. Oil sands extraction occurs through two major approaches: surface mining and deep drilling called in Alan Taylor writing for The Atlantic magazine describes tar sands mining like this: “Most of the current extraction process takes place in open-pit mines, with 29 Dec 2018 The process of oil sands basically consists of extraction (either by open-pit mining or in-situ), upgrading and refining. The processing and This extraction method requires large amounts of water and energy. • Because tar sands are so thick, they will not flow through pipelines without processing. A.
22 May 2012 In situ technology may actually cause less environmental devastation than traditional strip mining techniques for oil sand extraction, but is this
Currently, 20% of oil sands reserves are accessible via mining techniques. Large shovels scoop the oil sand into trucks which then move it to crushers where the large clumps of earth are processed. Once the oil sand is crushed, hot water is added so it can be pumped to the extraction plant. Vapor Extraction (VAPEX) Several methods use solvents, instead of steam, to separate bitumen from sand. Some solvent extraction methods may work better in in situ production and other in mining. Solvent can be beneficial if it produces more oil while requiring less energy to produce steam. The truth is that any method of oil extraction produces quite a bit of waste, pollution, and other problems. Tar sands have become particularly problematic in this area, producing a lot of waste and pollution for relatively small gains compared to traditional wells. Basically, you have all of the worst combined in one area. Extraction of oil from tar sands effects the following: The oil sands can be extracted using open mining at the surface. New methods of the 1990's improved the efficiency of the mining which reduces the cost. The systems use large hydraulic and electrically powered shovels to dig the sands up and load them into gigantic dump trucks. The trucks carry up to 320 tons of tar sand per load. NARRATOR: 10-20 years may pass before this method can be put into practice. The technology necessary to solve all the oil sands industry's worries is still in its infancy. In an adjoining lab, researchers are working to reduce the industry's hight water consumption through better recycling. Tar sands take 3 barrels of water to process every barrel of oil extracted. Ninety percent of this water becomes so toxic that it must be stored in tailing ponds. A method for extracting bitumen from crushed mined tar sands comprising contacting the mined tar sands with a solvent in the presence of sonic energy in the frequency range of 0.5 to 2.0 kHz.
There used to be plenty of jobs in the extraction process, with high oil prices sustaining them for a long time. A dying business. However, with the price of oil having
12 Jan 2017 If all the oil sands were extracted in Alberta, the emissions would be Fracking is a method of drilling that allowed energy companies to access 24 Aug 2018 Utah is known for its large reserves of oil. Until now however, mining was a difficult process. Petroteq believes it can remedy this situation. The 6 Sep 2009 Extracting the oil mixed into the sand of Canada is expensive, the process amounts to the most capital-intensive method for extracting oil. 2 Feb 2016 Mining. In this research, mining refers to the process of surface mining of oil sands ore, then separating out the bitumen through a number of Canada's oil sands is called bitumen. Bitumen is very viscous – it doesn't flow like conventional crude oil — and therefore requires special extraction methods 24 Dec 2015 Since 2003 Shell has been mining oil sand oil in Athabasca, wetland systems, we influenced the mining process before it commencement. 24 Jan 2017 Keep scrolling to see an updated version of Johnson's photo essay, which shows Canadian oil mining — a process in which tar-laden sand is
The oil product extracted from Canada's tar sands isn't like conventional crude. Known as bitumen, it's sticky and so thick, it can't flow down a pipeline without extensive processing. There are two methods for getting bitumen out of the ground and turning it into usable products. The method used to extract bitumen from the oil sands depends on the depth of the deposit. If the deposit is near the surface, the oil sands is mined and sent to a bitumen processing plant. For deposits that are deep below the surface, bitumen is extracted in-situ (or in place).