METHOD OF DEWATERING OF A TAILINGS STREAM

• Main Authors: JUNAID, ABU SALEH MUHAMMAD, FREEMAN, GAVIN KERRY WYLLIE, BROWN, WAYNE, GOMEZ, CLARA, VEENSTRA, CHRISTIAN NEIL, DERAKHSHANDEH, BABAK, WEBSTER, SCOTT ELLIOTT
• Format: Patent
• Language: English; French
• Published: 28.01.2018
• Subjects: CHEMISTRY; CRACKING HYDROCARBON OILS; FUELS; LUBRICANTS; MAGNETIC OR ELECTROSTATIC SEPARATION OF SOLID MATERIALS FROM SOLIDMATERIALS OR FLUIDS; METALLURGY; MINERAL WAXES; PEAT; PERFORMING OPERATIONS; PETROLEUM, GAS OR COKE INDUSTRIES; PHYSICAL OR CHEMICAL PROCESSES OR APPARATUS IN GENERAL; PRODUCTION OF LIQUID HYDROCARBON MIXTURES, e.g. BY DESTRUCTIVEHYDROGENATION, OLIGOMERISATION, POLYMERISATION; RECOVERY OF HYDROCARBON OILS FROM OIL-SHALE, OIL-SAND, ORGASES; REFINING MIXTURES MAINLY CONSISTING OF HYDROCARBONS; REFORMING OF NAPHTHA; SEPARATING SOLID MATERIALS USING LIQUIDS OR USING PNEUMATICTABLES OR JIGS; SEPARATION; SEPARATION BY HIGH-VOLTAGE ELECTRIC FIELDS; SEPARATION OF SOLID MATERIALS USING LIQUIDS OR USING PNEUMATICTABLES OR JIGS; TECHNICAL GASES CONTAINING CARBON MONOXIDE; TRANSPORTING; TREATMENT OF WATER, WASTE WATER, SEWAGE, OR SLUDGE

The present invention provides a method of dewatering of a tailings stream (10), in particular oil sands tailings, the method at least comprising the steps of: (a) providing a tailings stream (10); (b) measuring at least the solids concentration (2), the clay content (3) and the flow rate (4) of the tailings stream (10) provided in step (a); (c) providing a flocculant-containing stream (20); (d) measuring the concentration (5) of flocculant of the flocculant-containing stream (20) as provided in step (c); (e) combining the flocculant-containing stream (20) provided in step (c) with the tailings stream (10) provided in step (a) thereby obtaining a flocculant-enriched tailings stream; (f) subjecting the flocculant-enriched tailings stream obtained in step (e) to shear and mixing in a shear device (6) thereby obtaining flocculated tailings (30); (g) separating the flocculated tailings thereby obtaining a dewatered tailings stream and a water-enriched stream; wherein the amount of flocculant-containing stream (20) combined in step (e) is based on the clay content (3) of the tailings stream (10) as measured in step (b) and the concentration (5) of flocculant of the flocculant-containing stream (20) as measured in step (d); and wherein the amount of shear in step (f) is selected dependent on the solids concentration (2), the clay content (3) and the flow rate (4) of the tailings stream (10) as measured in step (b).