Methods for retrieving, reclaiming, or recycling petroleum-based products and byproducts

A method to remove, retrieve, or recover a petroleum product or a petroleum byproduct from a petroleum-containing mixture, wherein the petroleum-containing mixture is composed of a petroleum-based material or a petroleum-containing material, and an inorganic material or mineral, the method comprising:

• providing the petroleum-containing mixture;
• wherein the petroleum product or petroleum byproduct is contained in any of the petroleum-based material or the petroleum-containing material, and is in a solid state at ambient temperature;
• submerging the petroleum-containing mixture in a liquid oil-based solution that is heated and maintained at a temperature higher than a phase-change or melting temperature of the petroleum product or the petroleum byproduct;
• upon submerging the petroleum-containing mixture in the heated liquid oil-based solution, the heated liquid oil-based solution provides an environmental seal to the petroleum product or petroleum byproduct, so that the environmental seal prevents the sealed petroleum product or petroleum byproduct from degrading or burning, which allows the environmentally sealed petroleum product or petroleum byproduct to achieve phase-change from the solid state to a liquid state;
• and
• wherein the liquified petroleum product or petroleum byproduct dissolves into the heated liquid oil-based solution, to create a liquid composition of oil-based solution and of petroleum product or petroleum byproduct;
• and substantially removing, retrieving, or recovering the petroleum product or petroleum byproduct from the petroleum-containing mixture.