13 Suspensions in the Hot Water Flotation Process for Canadian Oil Sands Robert C. Shaw , Laurier L. Schramm* , and Jan Czarnecki 1
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Edmonton Research Centre, Syncrude Canada Ltd., 9421 17th Avenue, Edmonton, Alberta T6N 1H4, Canada Petroleum Recovery Institute 100, 3512 33rd Street N.W., Calgary, Alberta T2L 2A6, Canada
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Suspensions are created and must be processed during the application of the hot water flotation process to Canada's Athabasca oil sands, a large-scale commercial application of mined oil sands technology. These suspensions are more than just two-phase dispersions, being comprised of not only solids and water but also dispersed oil and gas. As such, they form interesting petroleum industry suspensions. A review of the hot water flotation process is presented with an emphasis on the occurrence, nature, and properties of suspensions.
Oil Sands O i l sands are unconsolidated sandstone deposits of a very heavy hydro carbon: bitumen. B i t u m e n is chemically similar to conventional o i l but has comparatively high density (low gravity per A m e r i c a n Petroleum Institute standards) and high viscosity. Based on U n i t e d Nations Institute for Training and Research discussions aimed at establishing definitions for heavy crude oil and oil (tar) sands (1-3), bitumen can be placed in the context of other crude oils as shown i n Table I. O i l sand deposits are present i n many locations around the w o r l d and appear to be similar in many respects (4-6), occurring along the rim of major sedimentary basins, mainly in either fluviatile or deltaic environments containing sands of high porosity and permeability. R e views are available for most locations worldwide (4, 6-13). A l t h o u g h superficially similar, not all deposits are the same when subjected to a detailed examination. T h e r e are significant variations in composition * Corresponding author. 0065-2393/96/0251-0639$16.25/0 © 1996 A m e r i c a n C h e m i c a l Society
In Suspensions: Fundamentals and Applications in the Petroleum Industry; Schramm, L.; Advances in Chemistry; American Chemical Society: Washington, DC, 1996.
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SUSPENSIONS: FUNDAMENTALS & APPLICATIONS I N PETROLEUM INDUSTRY
Table I. Hydrocarbon Definitions Hydrocarbon C r u d e oils
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H e a v y crude oil E x t r a heavy crude Bitumen/tar
Viscosity Range (mPa · s at deposit temperature)
