Tar sands recovery process

In a process for the recovery of bitumen from tar sand, wherein the bitumen recovery is conducted in a single vessel containing immiscible liquids, the improvement of:

• a. conducting the bitumen recovery in a vessel containing a top liquid phase and a bottom liquid phase, wherein the top liquid phase is an organic phase which consists of a water immiscible hydrocarbon solvent capable of dissolving the bitumen, and wherein the bottom liquid phase is an aqueous phase;
• b. conditioning the tar sand with an aqueous medium having a pH of 6-10, at a temperature of 25.degree. C to 100.degree. C, using less than one part by weight water per part tar sand, such that the tar sand is broken into distinct particles of bitumen and sand, said tar sand being conditioned prior to its introduction into the vessel;
• c. processing the tar sand of step (b) by introducing the tar sand into said hydrocarbon solvent, at a temperature of 110.degree. C to 150.degree. C, wherein the bitumen from the tar sand is dissolved, with the spent tar sand then proceeding to the aqueous phase.