University of Alberta

Department of Chemical and Materials Engineering

CH E 522 FUNDAMENTALS OF BITUMEN UPGRADING

Seminar #4
1. A process is developed to blend 30,000 barrels of Athabasca Bitumen with Suncor
Synthetic A (OSA) oil in order to meet pipeline density and viscosity specifications.

Athabasca Bitumen Suncor Synthetic A

3
Density (kg/m ) 1021.7 1 858.9 2
Solubility Parameter (MPa1/2) 18.25 1
Viscosity (Pas @ 15.6C) 0.0064 3

a) Determine the solubility parameter of Suncor Synthetic A using the Correa et al.1
correlation.
b) Determine the viscosity of Athabasca Bitumen at 15.6C and 30C using initial
data in Table 2.2 and Equation 2.7. Use Equation 2.8 (Puttagunta et al.1) to
predict viscosities of Athabasca Bitumen and compare to experimental values.

Puttagunta et al.1
Temperature (C) Viscosity (Pas)
Viscosity (Pas)
15.6
30
42.7 14.31
58 3.25
80.3 0.58
103.5 0.16
119.8 0.08

c) If the pipeline requires a blend with no less than 20 API, how many barrels of
Suncor Synthetic A oil is required?
d) Assuming the asphaltenes in the bitumen precipitate according to Figure 1.17 on
page 431, will the blend calculated in part c) be stable?

Asphaltenes Precipitated (wt.%) = -6.1095 (Solubility Parameter, MPa1/2) + 102.98

1
M. R. Gray, Upgrading Oilsands Bitumen and Heavy Oil, Edmonton: University of Alberta Press, 2015. pp. 43, 49, 60,76-77, 213,
473.
2
http://www.crudemonitor.ca/crude.php?acr=OSA
3
http://www.crudemonitor.ca/tools/Quick_Reference_Guide.pdf
4
Shu, W.R., A Viscosity Correlation for Mixtures of Heavy Oil, Bitumen, and Petroleum Fluids, SPE Journal, 24, 3, 277-282 (1984)

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 e) Will the viscosity of the blend meet the pipeline viscosity specification of 350 cSt
at a temperature of 15.6C? Use the viscosity mixing rules developed by Shu4:

ln x A ln A x B ln B
A
xA
A B
xB 1 xA
17.04
0.5237
3.2745 1.6316
A B
A
ln
B
A B
sg
volume frac

2. The following SARA analysis data are available for two oils. Which oil is most likely
biodegraded? Why? What are maltenes and asphaltenes?

Saturate Aromatic Polar Asphaltenes

Oil A 20% 21% 40% 19%
Oil B 55% 23% 20% 2%

3. As the average boiling point of each distillate fraction in Athabasca Bitumen

increases, how do the Nitrogen, Hydrogen, Sulphur and Carbon contents of each
fraction change? How will density of each distillate fraction change?

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