System and method for the extraction of bitumen from oil sand material
AssigneeVivakor, Inc.
InventorMatt Nicosia
Life of this patent
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Abstract
A system and method for separating bitumen from oil sands material is disclosed. The method may include mixing the oil sands material with a solvent in a mix tank then passing it through a centrifuge. The method may also include drying the clean oil sands material and recovering the vapors through a condenser unit. The system may further include passing the mixture of bitumen and solvent through a flash evaporator to produce pure bitumen or leaving it mixed with the higher API hydrocarbon condensate for the production of crude oil.
Claims48
A system for extracting bitumen from oil sands material, comprising:
- a clay feeder to receive raw material;
- a conveyor belt which receives material from the clay feeder and transports it to a mix tank;
- a mix tank;
- a high powered sand pump which pumps a sand and bitumen/condensate mixture from the mix tank to a centrifuge;
- a centrifuge which receives the sand and bitumen/condensate mixture from the mix tank and separates the sand from the bitumen/condensate mixture;
- a central control panel connected to the system so as to control it;
- and,
- at least one hydrocarbon tank connected to the mix tank so as to introduce hydrocarbons into the mix tank.
A method for extracting bitumen from oil sands material, comprising the following steps:
- excavating oil sand material, pre-processing the material by crushing it and filtering the oil sands material through a screen that removes material which has not been sufficiently crushed;
- mixing the material with a solvent in a mix tank and agitating the mixture of oil sands material and solvent while preventing any airflow into the mix tank, creating a slurry of oil sands material, bitumen, and a condensate of higher API hydrocarbons, where the sands separate from the mixture of condensate and bitumen;
- removing the slurry from the mix tank and processing it in a centrifuge, separating sands that have no more bitumen embedded in them from the liquid combination of bitumen and condensate;
- and,
- removing the mixture of bitumen and condensate liquid from the centrifuge.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.