A New Closed-Loop Relay System for Oil Sand Extraction

Hot water extraction of bitumen from oil sands with variations in operation has been used in Canada for decades. Water-based oil sand extraction is prone to several disadvantages, such as high demand of water, large volume of tailing that are difficult to dewater and disposed of, low extraction efficiency on low-grade oil sands, etc.  Solvent-based oil sand extraction can potentially eliminate these issues yet achieving good bitumen recovery, though some with its own drawbacks. We have developed a new, closed loop method for oil sand extraction. Laboratory experiments show that the closed loop oil sand extraction relay (CLOSER) technology uses a solvent system that inputs only oil sand and outputs only bitumen and clean spent sand.  The technology uses no water, resulting in no water to treat or dispose of while the solvents are completely recycled and reused in the process. At the conference presentation, we will report the operation conditions and extraction results, and discuss the principle that enables this new technique. The technology provides a new, efficient way to develop unconventional fuel, particularly for Utah’s oil sands that present a great challenge for existing methods; the new technique promises a more environmentally sound and sustainable practice of energy development.