Low-temperature alternative to carbonization in the synthesis of carbon materials from oil sands process streams

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In oil sand mining operations, bitumen separation from water and solids is achieved via paraffinic froth treatment. The rejected stream contains 75% water, 20% minerals, and 5% carbonaceous material and is disposed of in tailing ponds. Conversion of this stream into value-added products (VAP) would be beneficial both from the environmental and economic perspectives and constitutes the objective of the proposed research project. Potential VAPs of market value are carbon black, graphitic carbon, and other solid carbon-based products. The high-temperature (> 430 oC) approach is well known for carbonization and graphitization but is undesirable because of high energy consumption and thus high GHG emissions. The main objective of the proposed project is to develop a low-temperature process to convert components of the rejected tailings into carbon-rich VAPs. The benefits to Canada include diversification of our economy with "Beyond-Fuel" oil sands-derived products, as well as volume reduction and improvement of quality of rejected streams contributing to tailing ponds. The project can be classified as one of the Waste-to-Value efforts pursued in Canada for environmental and economic benefits.