Measurements of specific heat,thermal conductivity and thermal diffusivity of Utah tar sands

A constant applied heat flux method has been used to measure the specific heat and thermal conductivity of large samples of Utah (North-west Asphalt Ridge) tar sands as a function of temperature. Independent measurements of density allowed for the calculation of thermal diffusivity. Constituent analysis of the tar sand samples also permitted the calculation of bitumen and sand specific heats. Specific heat of the bitumen was found to increase with temperature from 1.85 to 3.9 kJ kg^?1 K^?1 for temperatures between 300 and 480 K. Specific heat of the sand matrix increased only slightly, from 0.85 to 1.0 kJ kg^?1 K^? for the same range of temperature. Corresponding thermal diffusivities for tar sand were found to decrease with temperature, and had a range of 5 · 10^?7–9 · 10^?7 m² s^?1 over the measured temperatures. It was concluded that the latent heat of both bitumen and water have a strong influence on the apparent overall specific heat of tar sand.     

Stability of some coal and tar sands syncrude fractions

Three fractions from a SRC-II coal liquefaction process, two naphthas from Illinois No. 6 coal and Wyodak coal using the Exxon Donor Solvent liquefaction process, and three fractions from tar sands extract were characterized for physical and chemical properties. Selected samples of syncrudes were stored at 43 °C for 32 weeks in air. The tar sands materials more closely resembled the properties of present petroleum-based materials, whereas the coal-derived liquids from the SRC-II process demonstrated the need for considerable upgrading. Heavier fractions seemed to undergo polymerization to produce gums, whereas lighter fractions deteriorated via oxidation.     

Kinetics of the pyrolysis of utah tar sands

Utah tar sands have been pyrolyzed experimentally in a tubular furnace into a stream of nitrogen. Various condensate products have been collected and analyzed, and the pyrolyzed sands have been analyzed for coke and unreacted bitumen. The kinetics of the pyrolysis appeared to be second order under conditions of approximately constant temperature and in experiments with continuously changing temperatures. A lighter product with less sulfur, nitrogen, and arsenic was produced when more rapid heating rates were used. Other characteristics of the reaction and products are presented.     

Bitumen Recovery with Oily Air Bubbles

Air‐kerosene bubbles were used in a novel laboratory scale pipeline loop to assess the extraction performance of poor processing oil sand ores. The addition of kerosene to air, whereby producing oily bubbles, substantially enhanced bitumen recovery from poor processing oil sand ores. The oily bubbles were added in a pipeline loop during bitumen liberation from the sand grains. The bitumen recovery from poor processing ores with the addition of the oily bubbles to the conditioning slurry becomes comparable to that of good processing ores. The present findings can be of substantial benefit to the oil sands industry.     

印尼特细油砂的基本性质和加工路线研究

印尼特细油砂是一种原产于印度尼西亚的稠油资源,常见有黄色和黑色两种。通过甲苯溶剂抽提法和减压蒸馏法可得到油砂沥青和细砂粒,得到的油砂沥青和砂粒用于油砂基本性质的测定。并简单探讨了该油砂适宜的加工路线。印尼油砂具有含油率高,含硫量高的特点,并且适合采用热解法进行后续加工成轻质油。     

Decontamination of petroleum sludges by hot water extraction

The process of hot water extraction of tar sand was modified and adapted for removal of heavy oil from bottom tank petroleum sludges, and was submitted to a laboratory feasibility study. This process can also be utilized to clean beach sands contaminated by accidental heavy oil spills. In the case of oil contaminated sands, a single stage extraction has yielded a 99% recovery of hydrocarbons and clean sands (containing less than 0.1% of hydrocarbons) which are thus safe to be returned to the environment. In the case of petroleum bottom tank sludge, it was necessary to proceed with a double stage extraction with the addition of a wetting agent. A dosage of a Na₂ Si O₃ aqueous solution of 1% by weight has proven efficient, allowing an 82% recovery of hydrocarbons, with only 0.5% of hydrocarbons content in the solid residues.     

A SAPONIFICATION CYCLE FOR SOLVENT RECOVERY FROM SAND SURFACES FOLLOWING BITUMEN EXTRACTION

A saponification cycle utilizing a fatty acid/heptane solvent blend was studied as a method for removing solvated bitumen from sand surfaces in a tar sands processing unit prior to disposal of the tailings. In this process, the fatty acid portion of the solvated bitumen was saponiffied with caustic resulting in an in-situ soap which aided in washing the organics off the sand surfaces. The wash liquid was then desaponified with hydrochloric acid to reconstitute the fatty acid, which went into the organic phase with the bitumen and heptane. This solvated bitumen stream was processed by an amphiphilic phase shift reaction to separate out the bitumen and recover the solvent for recycling back to the contactor. The aqueous phase from the desaponifier is brine and must be discarded. The saponification/desaponification kinetics and the phase behavior of this cycle were investigated as they apply to this process. Saponification cycle experiments showed that the fatty acid portion of the solvent could by fully recovered and used repeatedly. Bench-scale washing experiments showed that this saponification cycle promoted the removal of the viscous, solvated bitumen from sand surfaces.     

Microwave applications to oil sands and petroleum: A review

This review provides a general overview of microwave applications in oil sands bitumen or shale oil production in petroleum upgrading. The vast oil reserves in the oil sands of Alberta will become a major source of petroleum products in the near future and a number of alternative technologies have been explored for the production and upgrading of oil sands and heavy oil. This study is based primarily on the unique selective heating capacity associated with exposure of materials to microwaves. Of particular interest are applications of microwaves for bitumen extraction, upgrading heavy oils, removing heteroatoms, and the underground heating of oil sands to reduce bitumen viscosity and allow it to be pumped to the surface. The fundamentally different method of transferring energy from the source to the sample is the main advantage of utilizing microwave energy. By directly delivering energy to microwave-absorbing materials, conventional issues such as long heating periods and energy loses can be minimized. Microwave energy was shown to be effective in some applications; however, it is not used commercially at the present time.     

Gewinnung von Öl durch Schwelen von Ölschiefer und Teersand als Beitrag zur Energieversorgung

The contribution to energy supply of oil recovered by distillation of oil shale and tar sands . Following a world-wide survey of the most important deposits of oil shale and tar sands, the current activities in the USSR, China and Canada in the field of the industrial recovery of shale oil and bitumen from tar sand are described in broad terms. Thereafter, the current large-scale projects for the production of synthesis oil from these feedstocks are dealt with. The operating method and development status of modern processes for distilling oil shale are covered, as is the working principle of the hot water extraction of tar sand which is already commercially in application. The LR-Process method of operation and its especial feature of circulating the distilled residue as solid heat carrier are discussed in more detail. This is followed by information on the throughput potential of this process. The characteristic reactions influencing the quality of the LR products (oil, gas, residue, flue gas) are handled. Typical quality data for oil and gas obtained from oil shale and tar sands are given. A route is indicated for further processing of the condensate streams from the Lurgi-Ruhrgas Process. This consists of precipitation of solids, distillative separations and one hydrogenation step for the naphtha and oil fraction. These process steps produce a ?syncrude”? which can be further processed together with crude oil in conventional refineries. Examples are given for the independent further processing of syncrude to end-products customary on the market.     

Effect of Operating Temperature on Water‐Based Oil Sands Processing

Operating temperature is one of the most important controlling parameters in oil sands processing. Considering the massive energy consumption and green house gas emission, lowering the processing temperature is highly desirable. To achieve such an ambitious goal requires a comprehensive understanding on the role of temperature in oil sands processing. This paper provides an overview of major findings from existing studies related to oil sands processing temperature. The relation between temperature and bitumen recovery is discussed. The effect of temperature on the physiochemical properties of oil sand components, such as bitumen viscosity, bitumen surface tension and surface potentials of bitumen and solids, is analyzed. The interactions between bitumen and solids and between bitumen and gas bubbles as a function of temperature are recounted. Also discussed is the role of chemical additives in oil sand processing. It has been found that temperature affects nearly all properties of oil sands among which bitumen viscosity and bitumen‐solids adhesion impose a prominent impact on bitumen recovery. The use of selected chemical additives can reduce bitumen viscosity and/or the bitumen‐solids adhesion, and thus provide a possible way to process oil sands at a low temperature while maintaining a high bitumen recovery.     

油砂萃取技术研究进展

油砂属非常规能源,其储量较大,与传统石油能源相比其开采成本较高,随着石油资源争夺日益激烈,油砂开采与分离技术越来越受到人们的重视,国内大多数油田对油砂采用溶剂萃取法、热解干馏法、水剂处理等技术进行分离。介绍了近年来国内油砂萃取技术研究现状,包括有机溶剂萃取法,超声波辅助萃取法,油砂分离剂萃取法,汽提萃取法,离子液体萃取法,无机热碱水提取法,水洗分离油砂法,对各种方法进行了评价和比较,并对油砂萃取技术今后研究方向提出了建议。     

热分解气氛对流化床煤热解制油的影响

在循环流化床锅炉上耦合流化床热解反应器既可提供电力又副产热解油,明显提高煤的利用价值。在这个过程中,热解反应器通常利用自身产生的热解气作为流化介质。本文考察了模拟热解气反应气氛对流化床煤热解拔头制取热解油产率的影响,并利用TG-FTIR分析了焦油官能团组成及随TG温度的变化。针对锅炉用烟煤的实验结果表明：采用热解气作为反应气氛时焦油产率最大,相对无水无灰基煤达13%。反应气氛中H₂和CO₂的存在不利于焦油生成,但CO 和CH₄的加入提高了焦油产率;H₂的加入有利于焦油中酚羟基、羧基类化合物生成,同时也促进了脂肪族化合物的裂解;CH₄的存在可以提高焦油中单环芳烃、脂肪族及酚羟基类化合物的含量。     

Some chemistry of organosulphur compound types occurring in heavy oil sands: 2. Influence of pH on the high temperature hydrolysis of tetrahydrothiophene and thiophene

The hydrolysis of thiophene at high temperatures and pressures has been examined in relation to the steam-stimulated recovery of high-sulphur tar sands and heavy oils. The influence of pH has been examined in the hydrolysis of both thiophene and tetrahydrothiophene considered to be reasonable models for organosulphur molecular types in heavy oils. Mechanisms are proposed to account for the products observed under acidic, neutral and basic conditions.     

离子液体促进溶剂萃取油砂沥青

传统水洗法和溶剂萃取法萃取油砂沥青时,存在沥青中含有沙土和残沙中含有油等缺点。为解决上述缺点,本文采用不同比例的乙酸甲酯/正庚烷复合溶剂萃取油砂沥青,研究了离子液体（1-丁基-3-甲基咪唑四氟硼酸盐,[Emim]BF4）对该溶剂萃取体系的萃取率和分离洁净程度的影响。采用红外光谱仪和扫描电镜对萃取后的残沙和沥青的洁净程度进行了定性分析,并结合元素分析仪和电感耦合等离子体发射光谱仪获得萃取后残沙和沥青的洁净程度的定量结果。实验结果表明：当复合溶剂体积比为2∶3时,[Emim]BF4促使沥青回收率达到最大值94.20%,比单纯复合溶剂萃取体系的最大萃取率高7.92%;通过上述测试方法的定性和定量分析,证明了[Emim]BF4能有效解决沥青夹带沙土和残沙中含油的问题。     

Authigenic pyrite: evidence for a microbial origin of tar sand

The formation of tar sand has long been related to two origins: breached deposits and biodegradation. The identification of authigenic pyrite in a complex of interfingering lacustrine, deltaic and fluviatile sediments is evidence to support a microbial origin of the PR Spring tar sand deposit in Utah. Pyrite was formed when migrating petroleum, in association with soluble Fe, was invaded by water carrying microorganisms and underwent biodegradation by specialized groups of chemoorganotrophic sulphate-reducing bacteria. These microorganisms, probably similar to Desulfovibrio and Desulfococcus, perform sulphate reduction, transforming liquid petroleum into tar sand while generating pyrite.     

不同有机溶剂对新疆油砂沥青的组成性质影响

油砂作为一种非常规石油资源,越来越受到人们的重视。油砂沥青的含量和性质对其开发有着重要的影响。有机溶剂抽提可以测定油砂沥青的含量。本文研究了3种溶剂对新疆油砂的抽提能力,并对不同溶剂抽提得到的新疆油砂沥青进行了性质分析。结果表明,新疆油砂含油率（甲苯测）为11.75%,属于中品位油砂矿;甲苯、氯仿和石油醚3种不同溶剂对新疆油砂沥青进行抽提,发现3种溶剂抽提能力的大小关系为氯仿＞甲苯＞石油醚;抽提过程中,氯仿表现出对胶质和沥青质较强的萃取能力,而石油醚对沥青质的萃取能力几乎为0,采用氯仿可以更准确地测定油砂沥青的含量。氯仿抽提得到新疆油砂沥青及其组分的杂原子含量和分子量高于甲苯和石油醚抽提的。由红外谱图发现,氯仿抽提得到的油砂沥青的含氧、含硫官能团的吸收峰强度大于甲苯和石油醚抽提的,表明氯仿对油砂沥青中极性物质的抽提能力更强。     

物质对油砂热解特性的影响

油砂的开采和提炼是解决当前能源紧缺的重要途径。采用X射线衍射技术（XRD）和热重分析仪（TGA）分别对油砂酸洗前后样品的矿物质组分及其热解特性进行了研究,结果表明：油砂内在矿物质主要为方解石、石英、黄铁矿和黏土矿物等。经HCl/HF酸洗后,能够脱除油砂大部分内在矿物质组分;油砂热解过程可分为两个阶段,即脱水阶段和热裂解阶段;采用Coast-Redfern积分法求解出了油砂热解过程主要阶段的动力学参数活化能和指前因子,发现酸洗后油砂样品的活化能有着不同程度的增加。研究结果为油砂的工业化提供了一定的理论基础。     

基于回收理念的生物质燃气焦油脱除研究进展

生物质气化是重要的可再生能源方式。焦油是生物质气化过程大规模工业化的主要障碍之一。为了提高生物质燃气用于内燃机和燃气轮机发电以及甲醇合成的效率,燃气中的焦油必须深度脱除至低于20 mg/m3。本文简述了焦油污染和堵塞燃气下游设备的危害,介绍了焦油的特征和分类,分析了基于回收过程的焦油脱除方法优势,评述了回收法焦油脱除的研究进展,阐述了水洗和油洗回收脱焦的典型应用实例。指出了以油洗回收法为基础,将焦油和微孔材料的孔径进行匹配,高集成度的吸附和膜分离多级耦合焦油深度脱除工艺,将成为脱除生物质燃气焦油的主要发展方向。     

Conical filtering centrifuge for separation of solvent-diluted bitumen from oil sand mineral particles

The development of a continuous process for the separation of solvent-diluted bitumen from mineral particles is an important step for the development of solvent-based extraction technology of bitumen from mined oil sands. In this work, a custom-made conical filtering centrifuge is used to separate toluene-diluted bitumen from oil sand mineral particles. Compositions of wet granular samples are analyzed before and after centrifugation for three different oil sand ores. Results suggest that conical filtering centrifuges could be used for continuous separation of solvent-diluted bitumen from oil sand ores with relatively coarse particles.     

Hot water process development for Utah tar sands

The hot water process for Utah tar sands differs significantly from that used for Canadian tar sands due to the inherent differences in the respective bitumen viscosities and the nature of sand-bitumen association. Specifically, the high viscosity of Utah bitumen and the direct bonding to sand particles necessitates phase disengagement by hot water digestion in a high shear force field under appropriate conditions of pulp density and solution alkalinity. Interestingly, phase separation is accompanied by a modified froth flotation technique inasmuch as the dispersed bitumen droplets which are collected in the froth phase are not hydrophobic but, nevertheless, entrap air bubbles and are recovered in the bitumen concentrate.