오일샌드 테일링의 방류 예정 소식은 찬반 논쟁을 이끌고 있다. 노천광 채굴연계 비투멘 추출공 정은 폐수의 발생이 필연적이며, 테일링 인공호수에 저장된다. 현재, 방치된 테일링 인공호수의 규모는 갈 수록 그 양이 커지고 있다. 테일링 처리가 매우 어려운 원인으로, 테일링 내의 MFT(mature fine tailings) 층의 생성과 연관이 깊다. 테일링 처리를 위해서는, MFT내에 분산된 미립자를 효과적으로 응집시켜 고체 와 액체를 분리하는 핵심 공정이 필요하다. 본 논문에서는 먼저 채굴연계 비투멘 추출공정을 소개하였고, 이를 통해 테일링의 구성 성분과 MFT 특성에 대해서 정리하였다. 또한, MFT 처리공정에 대해 살펴보았 다. 향후, 효과적인 고분자 응집제의 선정과 효율적인 탈수공정의 연계성으로 MFT 처리가 성공적으로 진 행되기를 기대한다.

Heavy bitumen scattered in the underground sedimentary layer is a kind of unconventional energy source, and by extracting it, a production well is excavated in the sedimentary layer and high-temperature and high-pressure steam is injected to reduce the viscosity of bitumen and recover it to the ground steam assisted method is applied. As a recovery method that uses the steam effect of the dilution effect of solvent injection, it is a recovery method that can increase thermal efficiency. In this study, the process system of the central processing facility(CPF) of the hybrid steam-solvent recovery method that injects solvent into the existing steam assisted method was analyzed, and the core facilities for each process were identified, and hybrid steam-solvent recovery compared to the existing steam assisted method. In the case of the method, it was evaluated that the amount of steam supply and all utility costs decreased according to the solvent injection.

The purpose of this study is to use the hybrid steam-solvent process, because it is created in the form of water, bitumen, and water/bitumen emulsion by hot steam, so effective separation is required. Methods for separating the emulsion include a chemical separation method by adding a chemical, a separation method using an electrostatic property, a separation method using a membrane, a separation method using a microwave, and the like. Among them, the most used method is the separation method using a chemical, and it is reported that the separation efficiency of the emulsion is the best. In this study, a method for efficiently separating bitumen emulsions using a chemical separation method adding an emulsifier was investigated. In particular, technological trends in oil sand oil treatment technology were analyzed based on patent analysis.

In this study, for the treatment efficiency of the IGF process for the treatment of produced water (PW) discharged from the oil sands plant, the bench-scale oil sands plant PWT package was designed, manufactured and evaluated to verify the efficiency of the process. The microbubble generation efficiency and microbubble size change according to the circulation pump pressure were observed, and the correlation between influent concentration and temperature, residence time and oil-water separation performance was analyzed.

캐나다 Alberta 지역의 Oil Sands는 bitumen과 crude oil을 대량 포함하고 있어 석유자원의 한정성을 대체할 수 있는 천연자원으로써 최근 Shale Gas와 함께 관심이 높아지는 추세이다. Oil Sands의 개발을 위해서는 extraction과 purification을 포함한 SAGD(steam-assisted gravity drainage) process를 거쳐야 하는데 이 과정에서 많은 양의 오염물을 포함하고 있는 OSPW(oil sands process-affected water)가 대량 발생하게 된다. 이를 위하여 캐나다 및 Alberta 주정부에서는 현재 다각적인 수처리 공정을 시도 하고 있으며, 그 중 분리막을 활용한 연구 내용 및 결과에 대해 소개하고자 한다.

The oil sands are loose sand or partially consolidated sandstone containing naturally occurring mixtures of sand, clay, and water, saturated with a dense and viscous from of bitumen. Natural bitumen deposits are found in large quantities in Alberta and Utah area. Nevertheless of its environmental issues, a large-scale commercial oil sands industry is expected to increase in coming decades.(1) The present paper focuses on physico-chemical analysis of two different types of bitumens. These bitumen samples were chosen based on: the original source (oil sand and crude petroleum), and mode of process. The aim of this study is to determine both the manufacturing effect on chemical species and the chemical organization as a function of the type of bitumen sample. In order to obtain information on bitumen chemistry, elemental analysis (C, H, N, S, and O), heavy metal (Ni, V) concentrations, IATROSCAN chromatography (thin layer chromatography-flame ionization detection), FTIR spectroscopy, and NMR spectroscopy (1H NMR,13C NMR)haveallbeenused.The characterization includes information about the major compound types (saturates, aromatics, resins and asphaltenes) which can be compared with similar data for other bitumens, more importantly, can be correlated with data from petroleum samples for which refining characteristics are known. Examination of oil sand asphalt showed that it differed significantly from representative petroleum residues, principally in their nonhydrocarbon content and aromatic compounds. When possible, properties and composition were related to recovery and refining processes. This information is important because of the effects that composition has on recovery and processing reactions.