NL1037993C2 - A method of reducing the hydrocarbon-content of oil-containing sand. - Google Patents

A method of reducing the hydrocarbon-content of oil-containing sand. Download PDF

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Publication number
NL1037993C2
NL1037993C2 NL1037993A NL1037993A NL1037993C2 NL 1037993 C2 NL1037993 C2 NL 1037993C2 NL 1037993 A NL1037993 A NL 1037993A NL 1037993 A NL1037993 A NL 1037993A NL 1037993 C2 NL1037993 C2 NL 1037993C2
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NL
Netherlands
Prior art keywords
sand
hydrocarbon
fibers
water
sphagnum
Prior art date
Application number
NL1037993A
Other languages
Dutch (nl)
Inventor
Johannes Verburg
Original Assignee
Haro Nederland B V
Priority date (The priority date is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the date listed.)
Filing date
Publication date
Application filed by Haro Nederland B V filed Critical Haro Nederland B V
Priority to NL1037993A priority Critical patent/NL1037993C2/en
Application granted granted Critical
Publication of NL1037993C2 publication Critical patent/NL1037993C2/en

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Description

A method of reducing the hydrocarbon-content of oil-containing sand
The present invention relates to a method of reducing the hydrocarbon-content of oil-containing sand.
5 Sand containing oil is present in many areas of the world, in particular in oil-producing countries such as the Gulf states as the result of spills, accidents or acts of malice.
The hydrocarbon-content of the sand may be reduced using various methods, such as incineration or extraction with surface-active 10 agents. The former is relatively costly and the second leaves undesirable chemicals in the treated sand.
The object of the present invention is to provide a simple method for reducing the hydrocarbon-content of oil-containing sand.
To this end, the invention according to the preamble is charac-15 terized in that the method involves the steps of a) mixing the hydrocarbon-containing sand with sphagnum fibers, the sphagnum fibers having a water content of less than 10% by weight of water, so as to allow said sphagnum fibers to absorb hydrocarbons; and 20 b) separating the sphagnum fibers containing hydrocarbons from the sand.
This method may be used either as such or as part of a more elaborate process for a more extensive reduction of the hydrocarbon-content of the sand. It is should be noted that the sphagnum fibers 25 with the specified water content no longer absorb water in a reasonable length of time. Thus, the water content is that of the sphagnum fibers, and any extraneous water in which they may be added to the oil-containing sand is not to be taken into account. By way of example, if sphagnum fibers are suspended in water, it is the water con-30 tent before the sphagnum fibers are added to the water that counts. Depending on the type of sand and oil contained in it, the method could be improved by adding water in step a).
According to a preferred embodiment, the separation in step b) involves sieving.
35 Sieving is in particular preferred if sphagnum fibers are used that are longer than the largest grains of sand. The sphagnum fibers may have been selected for this purpose. For example, the spagnum fi- 1 0 3 79 9 3 2 bers may have been pre-sieved with a sieve having openings at least twice those of the sieve used to perform the separation of step b).
According to a favourable embodiment, the separation of step b) involves a separation based on the difference in density of sphagnum 5 fibers containing hydrocarbons and sand.
This may for example be performed by wind-sifting.
According to a preferred embodiment, the separation of sphagnum fibers containing hydrocarbons and sand by density is performed using settling of sand in water.
10 This allows for a quick and easy separation of sand reducing in oil content and the sphagnum fibers containing hydrocarbons. The hy-drocarbons-comprising sphagnum fibers float and can easily be removed from the water surface. In general it will be preferred if some stirring takes place, which helps to remove grains of sand adhering to 15 sphagnum fibers.
According to a preferred embodiment, the water is sea water.
In many oil-producing countries, such as the Gulf states, seawater is available at lower cost than regular water. This reduces the cost of the method according to the present invention.
20 According to a preferred embodiment, the sphagnum fibers added have a water-content of 4-8% by weight of water.
This allows for an optimum absorbance of the hydrocarbons by the sphagnum fibers.
According to a preferred embodiment, sphagnum fibers containing 25 hydrocarbons separated from the sand are subjected to a step of separating hydrocarbons from the sphagnum fibers containing hydrocarbons.
The hydrocarbons obtained can be put to good use, for example as a fuel or as a feedstock, making the method according to the invention more economically attractive.
30 The present invention will now be illustrated with reference to the following example.
Oil-containing sand is mixed with sphagnum fibers (commercially available from various sources, such as Haro-Sorb, Haro Nederland B.V., Twisk, The Netherlands) so as to contact the oil with the sp-35 hagnum fibers. After ensuring a good distribution of the sphagnum fibers through the sand, further mixing may be continued with reduced intensity.
3
By way of example, to 1 cubic meter of sand polluted with 50 liters of oil (as can be estimated using standard measurements) 50 kg of sphagnum fibers will be added.
After the sphagnum fibers have absorbed oil (or hydrocarbons 5 thereof), the mixture of sand and oil-containing sphagnum fibers is introduced in a settling basin containing water. The basin is prefer-rably stirred to facilitate separation of sand from fibers, as sand grains may stick to the fibers. The bottom of the basin is preferably inclined to facilitate removal of sand from the bottom of the basin. 10 Sphagnum containing oil is collected from the surface of the water in the basin. Hydrocarbons are preferably collected from the sphagnum fibers, for example by squeezing. The sphagnum fibers may be re-used a limited number of times. For disposal, they may be incinerated, preferably using their caloric content.
15 The method according to the present invention may be varied in several ways within the scope of the appending claims. For example, to facilitate mixing, the mixing of may be performed as a slurry of sand, fibers and water. As another example, mixing may be performed in an inclined cylindrical pipe having an inlet opening that is hig-20 her than the outlet opening, and the pipe is rotated. The rotation of the pipe causes the contents of the pipe to be mixed and to be transported to the outlet opening of the pipe. The inside wall of the pipe may be provided with baffles that promote mixing. In addition or alternatively, stationary or driven scrapers may be present in the lu-25 men of the pipe to improve mixing of the and to improve transport towards the lower end.
1 0 3 79 9 3

Claims (7)

1. Werkwijze voor het verminderen van het koolwaterstof-gehalte van 5 olie-bevattend zand, met het kenmerk, dat de werkwijze de stappen omvat van a) het mengen van het koolwaterstof bevattende zand met sphagnum-vezels, waarbij de sphagnum-vezels een watergehalte van minder dan 10 gewichtsprocent water hebben, zodat de genoemde sphagnum-vezels kool- 10 waterstoffen kunnen absorberen; en b) het scheiden van de koolwaterstoffen-bevattende sphagnum-vezels van het zand.A method for reducing the hydrocarbon content of oil-containing sand, characterized in that the method comprises the steps of a) mixing the hydrocarbon-containing sand with sphagnum fibers, the sphagnum fibers having a water content have less than 10 weight percent water, so that said sphagnum fibers can absorb hydrocarbons; and b) separating the hydrocarbon-containing sphagnum fibers from the sand. 2. Werkwijze volgens conclusie 1, waarbij het scheiden in stap b) ze-15 ven omvat.2. Method according to claim 1, wherein the separation in step b) comprises seven. 3. Werkwijze volgens conclusie 1 of 2, met het kenmerk, dat het scheiden in stap b) een scheiding omvat op basis van het verschil in dichtheid tussen koolwaterstoffen-bevattende sphagnum-vezels en zand. 20Method according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that the separation in step b) comprises a separation based on the difference in density between hydrocarbon-containing sphagnum fibers and sand. 20 4. Werkwijze volgens een der voorgaande conclusies, waarbij het scheiden op dichtheid van koolwaterstoffen-bevattende sphagnum-vezels en zand wordt uitgevoerd door van het laten bezinken van zand in water. 25Method according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the density separation of hydrocarbon-containing sphagnum fibers and sand is carried out by allowing sand to settle in water. 25 5. Werkwijze volgens een der voorgaande conclusies, waarbij het water zeewater is.A method according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the water is sea water. 6. Werkwijze volgens een der voorgaande conclusies, waarbij de toege-30 voegde sphagnum-vezels een watergehalte van 4-8 gewichtsprocent water hebben.6. A method according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the sphagnum fibers added have a water content of 4-8% by weight of water. 7. Werkwijze volgens een der voorgaande conclusies, waarbij de van het zand gescheiden koolwaterstoffen-bevattende sphagnum-vezels wor- 35 den onderworpen aan een stap van het scheiden van koolwaterstoffen van de koolwaterstoffen-bevattende sphagnum-vezels. 10379937. A method according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the hydrocarbon-containing sphagnum fibers separated from the sand are subjected to a step of separating hydrocarbons from the hydrocarbon-containing sphagnum fibers. 1037993
NL1037993A 2010-05-31 2010-05-31 A method of reducing the hydrocarbon-content of oil-containing sand. NL1037993C2 (en)

Priority Applications (1)

Application Number Priority Date Filing Date Title
NL1037993A NL1037993C2 (en) 2010-05-31 2010-05-31 A method of reducing the hydrocarbon-content of oil-containing sand.

Applications Claiming Priority (2)

Application Number Priority Date Filing Date Title
NL1037993 2010-05-31
NL1037993A NL1037993C2 (en) 2010-05-31 2010-05-31 A method of reducing the hydrocarbon-content of oil-containing sand.

Publications (1)

Publication Number Publication Date
NL1037993C2 true NL1037993C2 (en) 2011-12-01

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Date Code Title Description
V1 Lapsed because of non-payment of the annual fee

Effective date: 20131201