Tar sands extraction methods

16 Aug 2012 Infographic: Explaining the process of processing / refining tar sands into oil. Source: Energy Information Administration, Government of 

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  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 

Extraction Methods. Oil sands extraction occurs through two major approaches: surface mining and deep drilling called in 

There are two primary extraction methods for tar sands: 2 Mining: Open-pit mining is the most common form of tar sands extraction. In-situ: This method is used when bitumen deposits are buried too deep for mining to be economical. 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.

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 

Photograph of tar sands mining, Alberta, Canada. Tar sands (also called oil sands) are a mixture of sand, clay, water, and bitumen. Bitumen is a thick, sticky,   Giving all oil-based fuel a single value will not encourage the use of cleaner fuels , nor incentivise improvements in extraction and refining methods for the dirtier  10 Dec 2012 Thus far, the majority of bitumen production has been via mining but, this year, in situ surpassed it as the primary production method—a trend 

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.

Tar sand recovery using sodium silicate and sonication represents a new extraction process. 2. The bitumen recovered is low in ash, virtually free of metal and  19 Feb 2013 But tar sands oil is in a category all its own. Tar sands retrieved by surface mining has an EROI of only about 5:1, according to research released  11 Jul 2018 The traditional oil sands extraction methods are considered the dirtiest production method on the planet… and the most expensive, with  22 May 2012 In situ technology may actually cause less environmental devastation than traditional strip mining techniques for oil sand extraction, but is this  In surface mining, companies use trucks and shovels to scoop up oil sands from the ground. The oil sands are then transported to extraction plants, where bitumen  17 Jan 2008 demonstrate mining of and in-situ production from U.S. oil sand and began production in 1967, using the hot water extraction method 

The process was patented in 1928 and still forms the basis of oil sands mining extraction. At the same time a Nova Scotia entrepreneur began construction of a  

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. Tar sand recovery using sodium silicate and sonication represents a new extraction process. 2. The bitumen recovered is low in ash, virtually free of metal and  19 Feb 2013 But tar sands oil is in a category all its own. Tar sands retrieved by surface mining has an EROI of only about 5:1, according to research released  11 Jul 2018 The traditional oil sands extraction methods are considered the dirtiest production method on the planet… and the most expensive, with 

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. (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