Correlation of Natural Surfactant Partitioning and Bitumen Recovery in Oil Sands Extraction
The role of natural surfactants in bitumen extraction from oil sands has been extensively researched, but these studies have focused primarily on surfactants that are soluble in the water phase. Recent work at CETC-Devon has shown strong correlations between bitumen weathering or oxidation and poor recoveries. The reason for the poor recoveries has been shown to be an increase of surfactant concentration in the hydrocarbon phase. With oxidized ores, this hydrocarbon-phase surfactant concentration increases, resulting in a stronger association between the mineral and bitumen components in the ore. This association between the mineral and bitumen components results in a decrease in bitumen recovery, poorer froth quality, or both. Quantification of the surfactant partitioning between the hydrocarbon and water phases has been related to bitumen recovery for a variety of naturally occurring oxidized ores, as well as for ores that were oxidized under controlled laboratory conditions. Optimal recoveries were correlated directly to surfactant concentration in the water phase and inversely to surfactant concentration in the bitumen.
R.J. Mikula V.A. Munoz O. Omotoso K. Peru J. Headley
Natural Resources Canada, CANMET Energy Technology Centre-Devon,Advanced Separation Technologies Lab Natural Resources Canada, CANMET Energy Technology Centre-Devon, Advanced Separation Technologies La Environment Canada, Northern Waters Research Institute, Saskatoon, Saskatchewan
国际会议
首届世界重油大会(The Technical Sessions of the First World Heavy Oil Conference)
北京
英文
962-972
2006-11-12（万方平台首次上网日期，不代表论文的发表时间）