Syncrude Canada Ltd.

Syncrude Canada Ltd. in Trust for the Owners of the Syncrude Project As Such Owners Exist Now and in the Future

Aec Oil Sands, L.p.

Murphy Oil Company Ltd.

Mocal Energy Limited

Imperial Oil Resources

Nexen Corporation

Canadian Oil Sands Limited

Petro-canada Oil and Gas

Canadian Oil Sands Commercial Trust

Comocophillips Oilsands Partnershipii

Conocophillips Oilsands Partnership Ii

Barry Bara

Jonathan Spence

Randy Mikula

Jim Lorentz

Daniel John Bulbuc

Clara Gomez

Darwin Edward Kiel

Sujit Bhattacharya

Kevin Reid

Yin Ming Samson Ng

Craig A McKnight

James Lorentz

Trevor Lloyd Hilderman

Wayne Brown

Warren Zubot

Adedeji Dunmola

Alan Ferre

Chris Mooney

Chad Larson

John Diep

Sean Delfel

Darwin Kiel

Rodney K Ridley

Jun Long

George Cymerman

Craig McKnight

Darcy Daugela

Samson Ng

Waldemar Maciejewski

Robert Siy

Simon Yuan

Richard Paproski

Mark Polak

Nan Wang

Shane Hoskins

Robert William Skwarok

Chadwick Robert Larson

Pat Dougan

Ron Siman

Eric Leneve

Michael Lipsett

Fran King

Michelle Portwood

Sukhamoy Sarkar

Rodney Denton

Michael Wagner

Jiwon Lee

Richard Daniel Lahaie

Chadwich Robert Larson

Robert Cameron

Brent Hilscher

Mohammad Reza Shariati

Clara Cecilia Gomez

John Khai Diep

A process for dewatering tailings having a solids content in the range of about 10 wt % to about 70 wt % is provided comprising fully flocculating the tailings by adding an effective amount of a polymeric flocculant to the tailings and mixing the polymeric flocculant and tailings in a mixing device to form fully flocculated tailings having a minimized capillary suction time (CST) and discharging the fully flocculated tailings into a deposition area at a discharge velocity of substantially zero to minimize further mixing.

Deposition of flocculated tailings

A process for extracting bitumen from mined oil sand is provided, comprising: preparing an oil sand slurry comprising oil sand and water; conditioning the oil sand slurry by pumping the oil sand slurry through a hydrotransport pipeline under shear conditions that reduce the formation of water-in-bitumen emulsions in the conditioned oil sand slurry and increase the size of bitumen-air aggregates; and subjecting the conditioned oil sand slurry to gravity separation to produce a bitumen froth having enhanced bitumen recovery and reduced water-in-bitumen emulsions, a middlings layer and sand tailings.

Bitumen extraction using reduced shear conditions

A method for recovering hydrocarbon diluent from tailings comprising bitumen, particulate solids, hydrocarbon diluent and water, is provided comprising introducing the tailings into a high pressure stripping vessel operating at a pressure greater than 100 kPa; and introducing a stripping gas into the high pressure stripping vessel to strip the hydrocarbon diluent and water from the tailings and form a stripped tailings pool at the bottom of the vessel.

Recovery of hydrocarbon diluent from tailings

A process for operating multiple oil sand mine sites for extracting bitumen from oil sand is disclosed, comprising preparing a first conditioned oil sand slurry at a first location using a first oil sand slurry preparation and slurry conditioning process; preparing a second conditioned oil sand slurry at a second location using a second oil sand slurry preparation and slurry conditioning process; combining the first conditioned oil sand slurry and the second conditioned oil sand slurry in at least one slurry distributor to produce a combined oil sand slurry; and distributing the combined oil sand slurry to at least one separation vessel to produce bitumen froth.

Bitumen production from single or multiple oil sand mines

A process for dewatering oil sands tailings is provided, comprising providing a tailings feed having a solids content in the range of about 10 wt % to about 45 wt %; adding a flocculant to the tailings feed and mixing the tailings feed and flocculant to form flocs; and centrifuging the flocculated tailings feed to produce a centrate having a solids content of less than about 3 wt % and a cake having a solids content of at least about 50 wt %.

Centrifuge process for dewatering oil sands tailings

A system for characterizing a slurry in a slurry process includes a flow tube, a camera, and a computer. The system is suitable for use with an oil sands extraction slurry processed or treated by an oil sands extraction slurry process. The slurry is diverted from the slurry process into the flow tube. The camera images the slurry as it flows through a transparent portion of the flow tube to produce a digital image of the slurry. The computer analyzes the digital image to determine a slurry characteristic. Based on the determined slurry characteristic, the computer may predict a performance metric of the slurry process and adjust an operating parameter of the slurry process to optimize the slurry process towards a target performance metric. Multiple systems may be used to continuously monitor slurry characteristics at upstream and downstream steps of the slurry process, and determine correlations between those characteristics.

System and method for image-based analysis of a slurry and control of a slurry process

A feedwell for a gravity separation vessel for introducing a feed stream such as oil sand slurry to the gravity separation vessel is provided comprising a walled member having an upper perimeter edge, a lower perimeter edge and a substantially continuous wall extending from the upper perimeter edge to the lower perimeter edge; an inlet for introducing the feed stream into the walled member positioned adjacent the substantially continuous wall; and a bottom floor having an opening and extending generally beneath the lower perimeter edge; whereby a perimeter of the opening is less than a perimeter of the walled member.

Feedwell for a gravity separation vessel

A process of dewatering tailings is provided comprising mixing the tailings with a sufficient amount of an additive or a mixture thereof; depositing the resulting mixture into a disposal area; pumping water from the deposit to one or more sumps, and allowing the deposit to reach a sufficient strength; and removing remaining deposit water and rainfall through one or more of a network of ditches, a decant tower, or a plurality of dike drainage structures to yield a non-segregating deposit for reclamation.

Oil sands fluid fine tailings dewatering using rim ditching

An aqueous aerated oil sand slurry is conditioned in a pipeline and then spun within an elongate vessel of circular cross-section, to cause bitumen droplets in the slurry to coalesce. This increases the probability that the droplets will become aerated by contact with air bubbles. The slurry is then subjected to separation of the sand and bitumen.

Apparatus and process for coalescing bitumen in an oil sand slurry

A method for recovery of hydrocarbon diluent from tailings produced in a bitumen froth treatment plant comprises introducing the tailings into a steam stripping vessel maintained at near atmospheric pressure, said vessel having a plurality of interior, vertically spaced shed decks, and distributing the tailings over said shed decks. Steam is introduced below the shed decks for vaporizing the major portion of the contained diluent and some water.

Method for recovery of hydrocarbon diluent from tailing

A process for recovery of hydrocarbon diluent from tailings produced in a bitumen froth treatment plant comprises introducing the tailings into a vacuum flash vessel maintained at a sufficiently low sub-atmospheric pressure to vaporize the major portion of the contained diluent and some water. The residual then pool near the bottom of the flash vessel. Steam is then introduced into the tailings pool for vaporizing residual diluent and some water.

Process for recovery of hydrocarbon from tailings

Growing community of inventors

Edmonton, Canada

Barry Bara