Oil sands tailings treatment
AssigneeExtrakt Process Solutions, LLC
InventorsPaul C. Painter, Bruce G. Miller, Aron Lupinsky
Life of this patent
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Abstract
Processes of consolidating oil sands tailings which includes fines and process water are disclosed. The processes include mixing the oil sands tailings with a highly water soluble salt or an aqueous solution thereof to destabilize and consolidate solids in the tailings, e.g., to destabilize and consolidate fines in the tailings and separating the consolidated solids from the process water. A water soluble polymer and coarse particles, e.g., sand, can also be used in the treatment of oil sands tailings.
Claims19
A process of consolidating oil sands tailings which include greater than 2 wt % of fines in process water, the process comprising:
- treating the oil sands tailings, which result from extraction of bitumen from oil sands, with at least one highly water soluble salt, at least one polymer flocculant and sand to form a treated tailings including a consolidated material including fines from the process water;
- and
- separating the process water from the consolidated material, which includes the at least one highly water soluble salt dissolved therein,
- wherein the treated tailings has a salt-tailings concentration of the at least one highly water soluble salt of at least 0.5 wt %, and
- wherein the at least one highly water soluble salt is an alkali halide salt.
A process of consolidating oil sands tailings which include greater than 2 wt % of fines in process water, the process comprising:
- mixing the oil sands tailings, which result from extraction of bitumen from oil sands, with a highly water soluble ammonium based salt and polymer flocculant to consolidate the fines;
- and
- separating the process water from the consolidated fines to produce a solids content of at least 45% by weight, wherein the treated tailings has a salt-tailings concentration of the at least one highly water soluble salt of at least 0.5 wt %,
- wherein the highly water soluble ammonium based salt consist of, as the cation of the salt, a monovalent ammonium cation.
A process of consolidating oil sands tailings, the process comprising:
- combining oil sands tailings, which includes greater than 2 wt % of fines suspended in process water, with at least one highly water soluble salt and at least one polymer flocculant to form a treated tailings including consolidated fines from the process water,
- wherein the treated tailings has a salt-tailings concentration of the at least one highly water soluble salt of at least 0.5 wt %,
- wherein the oil sands tailings result from extraction of bitumen from oil sands, and
- wherein the at least one highly water soluble salt is an alkali halide salt.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.