Invention Grant
- Patent Title: Dispersion and conditioning techniques for thick fine tailings dewatering operations
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Application No.: US14408695Application Date: 2013-06-21
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Publication No.: US09708206B2Publication Date: 2017-07-18
- Inventor: Trevor Bugg , Ana Sanchez , Adrian Revington , James Patrick Macaulay
- Applicant: SUNCOR ENERGY INC.
- Applicant Address: CA Calgary, Alberta
- Assignee: SUNCOR ENERGY INC.
- Current Assignee: SUNCOR ENERGY INC.
- Current Assignee Address: CA Calgary, Alberta
- Agency: Baker & Hostetler LLP
- International Application: PCT/CA2013/050491 WO 20130621
- International Announcement: WO2013/188986 WO 20131227
- Main IPC: C02F1/56
- IPC: C02F1/56 ; B01D12/00 ; C10G7/04 ; C02F1/52 ; C10G1/04 ; C02F103/10

Abstract:
Techniques are described that relate to enhancing flocculation and dewatering of thick fine tailings, for example by reducing process oscillations. One example method includes dispersing a flocculant into thick fine tailings having a turbulent flow regime to produce turbulent flocculating tailings; subjecting the turbulent flocculating tailings to shear to build up flocs and increase yield stress, to produce a flocculated material having a non-turbulent flow regime; and shear conditioning the flocculated material to decrease the yield stress and produce conditioned flocculated tailings within a water release zone; and dewatering the conditioned flocculated tailings, for example by employing sub-aerial deposition. The thick fine tailings may have a Bingham Reynolds Number of at least 40,000 upon flocculant addition. Inhibiting process oscillations may include providing turbulent tailings feed, configuring a downstream pipeline assembly to reduce backpressure fluctuations and/or reducing air content in the flocculant solution, for example.
Public/Granted literature
- US20150144571A1 DISPERSION AND CONDITIONING TECHNIQUES FOR THICK FINE TAILINGS DEWATERING OPERATIONS Public/Granted day:2015-05-28
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