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This extraction process is several orders of magnitude less costly than any would-be process employing organic solvents
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This is essentially a washing method for extracting bitumen from oil sands. A benign surfactant is used to strip the hydrocarbons from the intimately-mixed sand, and are then readily separated from the solution. This extraction process is several orders of magnitude less costly than any would-be process employing organic solvents, which are highly efficient though impractical due to their high associated costs, volatility and hazardous nature. We have identified two areas of application: (1) as an addition to the hot water and flotation process, to enhance bitumen extraction efficiency (a 1% increase in extraction efficiency represents a $1m/month increase in revenues for a 40kt/day bitumen plant) (2) to strip the wastewater of its oily contaminants in a matter of hours, removing a significant bottleneck and eliminating tailings ponds A patent application covering this technology has been filed. We are looking to license the patent and associated IP to a commercial partner who can fully exploit the technology. When contacting us, please quote reference number 4728.