"The emphasis throughout is to link the fundamentals of the molecules through to the economic drivers for the industry, because this combination determines the technology used for processing."-From the Introduction The high demand for quality petroleum products necessitates ongoing innovation in the science and engineering underlying oilsands extraction and upgrading. Beginning with a thorough grounding in the composition, fluid properties, reaction behaviour, and economics of bitumen and heavy oil, Murray Gray then delves into current processing technologies, particularly those used at full commercial scale. The tables of data on composition, yield, and behaviour of oilsands bitumen and heavy oil fractions are extensive. Though the focus is on bitumen from Alberta's oilsands-the largest resource in the world-the science applies to upgrading of heavy oil and petroleum residue feeds worldwide. Upgrading Oilsands Bitumen and Heavy Oil lays out the current best practice for engineers and scientists in the oilsands and refining industries, government personnel, academics, and students.

State-of-the-art oilsands processing technologies, from laboratory to full commercial scale.

Unconventional reservoirs of oil and gas represent a huge additional global source of fossil fuels. However, there is much still to be done to improve techniques for their processing to make recovery and refining of these particular energy sources more cost-effective. Brief but readable, Heavy and Extra-heavy Oil Upgrading Technologies provide readers with a strategy for future production (the up-stream) and upgrading (the down-stream). The book provides the reader with an understandable overview of the chemistry and engineering behind the latest developments and technologies in the industry as well as the various environmental regulations.Clear and rigorous, Heavy and Extra-heavy Oil Upgrading Technologies will prove tool for those scientists and engineers already engaged in fossil fuel science and technology as well as scientists, non-scientists, engineers, and non-engineers who wish to gain a general overview or update of the science and technology of unconventional fossil fuels in general and upgrading technologies in particular. The use of microorganisms and a number of physical methods, such as ultrasound, median microwave, cold plasma, electrokinetic and monocrystalline intermetallics, etc., will be discussed for the first time. - Overview of the chemistry, engineering, and technology of oil sands - Microorganisms and a number of physical methods such as ultrasound, median microwave, cold plasma, electrokinetic and monocrystalline intermetallics - Evolving and new environmental regulations regarding oil sands production processes

Heavy crude oils and bitumen represent more than 50% of all hydrocarbons available on the planet. These feedstocks have a low amount of distillable material and high level of contaminants that make their production, transportation, and refining difficult and costly by conventional technologies. Subsurface Upgrading of Heavy Crude Oils and Bitumen is of interest to the petroleum industry mainly because of the advantages compared to aboveground counterparts. The author presents an in-depth account and a critical review of the progress of industry and academia in underground or In-Situ upgrading of heavy, extra-heavy oils and bitumen, as reported in the patent and open literature. This work is aimed to be a standalone monograph, so three chapters are dedicated to the composition of petroleum and fundamentals of crude oil production and refining. Key Features: Offers a multidisciplinary scope that will appeal to chemists, geologists, biologists, chemical engineers, and petroleum engineers Presents the advantages and disadvantages of the technologies considered Discusses economic and environmental considerations for all the routes evaluated and offers perspectives from experts in the field working with highlighted technologies

Heavy oils, extra-heavy oils and tar sands are major players for the future of energy.They represent a massive world resource, at least the size of conventional oils. They are found all over the world but Canada and Venezuela together account, by themselves, for more than half of world deposits. They share the same origin as the lighter conventional oils, but their geological fate drove them into thick, viscous tar-like crude oils. Most of them result from alteration processes mediated by microbial degradation. They are characterized by a low content of lighter cuts and a high content of impurities such as sulfur and nitrogen compounds and metals ; so, their production is difficult and deployment of specific processes is required in order to enhance their transportability and to upgrade them into valuable products meeting market needs, and honouring environmental requirements.Although these resources are increasingly becoming commercially producible, less than 1% of total heavy crude oil deposits worldwide are under active development. The voluntarily wide scope of this volume encompasses geology, production, transportation, upgrading, economics and environmental issues of heavy oils. It does not pretend to be exhaustive, but to provide an authoritative view of this very important energy resource.

Sustainable In-Situ Heavy Oil and Bitumen Recovery: Techniques, Case Studies, and Environmental Considerations delivers a critical reference for today's energy engineers who want to gain an accurate understanding of anticipated GHG emissions in heavy oil recovery. Structured to break down every method with introductions, case studies, technical limitations and summaries, this reference gives engineers a look at the latest hybrid approaches needed to tackle heavy oil recoveries while calculating carbon footprints. Starting from basic definitions and rounding out with future challenges, this book will help energy engineers collectively evolve heavy oil recovery with sustainability applications in mind. - Explains environmental footprint considerations within each recovery method - Includes the latest hybrid methods such as Hybrid of Air-CO2N2 and Cyclic Steam Stimulation (CSS) - Bridges practical knowledge through case studies, summaries and remaining technical challenges

Hydrothermal and Supercritical Water Processes presents an overview on the properties and applications of water at elevated temperatures and pressures. It combines fundamentals with production process aspects. Water is an extraordinary substance. At elevated temperatures (and pressures) its properties change dramatically due to the modifications of the molecular structure of bulk water that varies from a stable three-dimensional network, formed by hydrogen bonds at low and moderate temperatures, to an assembly of separated polar water molecules at high and supercritical temperatures. With varying pressure and temperature, water is turned from a solvent for ionic species to a solvent for polar and non-polar substances. This variability and an enhanced reactivity of water have led to many practical applications and to even more research activities, related to such areas as energy transfer, extraction of functional molecules, unique chemical reactions, biomass conversion and fuel materials processing, destruction of dangerous compounds and recycling of useful ones, growth of monolithic crystals, and preparation of metallic nanoparticles. This book provides an introduction into the wide range of activities that are possible in aqueous mixtures. It is organized to facilitate understanding of the main features, outlines the main applications, and gives access to further information - Summarizes fundamental properties of water for engineering applications - Compares process and reactor designs - Evaluates processes from thermodynamic, economic, and social impact viewpoints

"This useful reference offers in-depth coverage of current techniques for converting heavy oils and residues into more valuable distillates.Examines the chemistry of heavy hydrocarbon feeds and their properties important to engineering design, including phase behavior, reaction kinetics, and thermodynamic and transport characteristics!"

Diluted bitumen has been transported by pipeline in the United States for more than 40 years, with the amount increasing recently as a result of improved extraction technologies and resulting increases in production and exportation of Canadian diluted bitumen. The increased importation of Canadian diluted bitumen to the United States has strained the existing pipeline capacity and contributed to the expansion of pipeline mileage over the past 5 years. Although rising North American crude oil production has resulted in greater transport of crude oil by rail or tanker, oil pipelines continue to deliver the vast majority of crude oil supplies to U.S. refineries. Spills of Diluted Bitumen from Pipelines examines the current state of knowledge and identifies the relevant properties and characteristics of the transport, fate, and effects of diluted bitumen and commonly transported crude oils when spilled in the environment. This report assesses whether the differences between properties of diluted bitumen and those of other commonly transported crude oils warrant modifications to the regulations governing spill response plans and cleanup. Given the nature of pipeline operations, response planning, and the oil industry, the recommendations outlined in this study are broadly applicable to other modes of transportation as well.

Tar Sands critically examines the frenzied development in the Canadian tar sands and the far-reaching implications for all of North America. Bitumen, the sticky stuff that ancients used to glue the Tower of Babel together, is the world’s most expensive hydrocarbon. This difficult-to-find resource has made Canada the number-one supplier of oil to the United States, and every major oil company now owns a lease in the Alberta tar sands. The region has become a global Deadwood, complete with rapturous engineers, cut-throat cocaine dealers, Muslim extremists, and a huge population of homeless individuals. In this award-winning book, a Canadian bestseller, journalist Andrew Nikiforuk exposes the disastrous environmental, social, and political costs of the tar sands, arguing forcefully for change. This updated edition includes new chapters on the most energy-inefficient tar sands projects (the steam plants), as well as new material on the controversial carbon cemeteries and nuclear proposals to accelerate bitumen production.