Classifications

• • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
  • B01—PHYSICAL OR CHEMICAL PROCESSES OR APPARATUS IN GENERAL
  • B01D—SEPARATION
  • B01D3/00—Distillation or related exchange processes in which liquids are contacted with gaseous media, e.g. stripping
  • B01D3/34—Distillation or related exchange processes in which liquids are contacted with gaseous media, e.g. stripping with one or more auxiliary substances
  • B01D3/38—Steam distillation
• • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
  • B01—PHYSICAL OR CHEMICAL PROCESSES OR APPARATUS IN GENERAL
  • B01D—SEPARATION
  • B01D1/00—Evaporating
  • B01D1/0011—Heating features
  • B01D1/0058—Use of waste energy from other processes or sources, e.g. combustion gas
• • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
  • B01—PHYSICAL OR CHEMICAL PROCESSES OR APPARATUS IN GENERAL
  • B01D—SEPARATION
  • B01D1/00—Evaporating
  • B01D1/14—Evaporating with heated gases or vapours or liquids in contact with the liquid
• • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
  • B01—PHYSICAL OR CHEMICAL PROCESSES OR APPARATUS IN GENERAL
  • B01D—SEPARATION
  • B01D3/00—Distillation or related exchange processes in which liquids are contacted with gaseous media, e.g. stripping
  • B01D3/14—Fractional distillation or use of a fractionation or rectification column
  • B01D3/143—Fractional distillation or use of a fractionation or rectification column by two or more of a fractionation, separation or rectification step
  • B01D3/148—Fractional distillation or use of a fractionation or rectification column by two or more of a fractionation, separation or rectification step in combination with at least one evaporator
• • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
  • B01—PHYSICAL OR CHEMICAL PROCESSES OR APPARATUS IN GENERAL
  • B01D—SEPARATION
  • B01D3/00—Distillation or related exchange processes in which liquids are contacted with gaseous media, e.g. stripping
  • B01D3/34—Distillation or related exchange processes in which liquids are contacted with gaseous media, e.g. stripping with one or more auxiliary substances
  • B01D3/343—Distillation or related exchange processes in which liquids are contacted with gaseous media, e.g. stripping with one or more auxiliary substances the substance being a gas
  • B01D3/346—Distillation or related exchange processes in which liquids are contacted with gaseous media, e.g. stripping with one or more auxiliary substances the substance being a gas the gas being used for removing vapours, e.g. transport gas
• • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
  • B01—PHYSICAL OR CHEMICAL PROCESSES OR APPARATUS IN GENERAL
  • B01J—CHEMICAL OR PHYSICAL PROCESSES, e.g. CATALYSIS OR COLLOID CHEMISTRY; THEIR RELEVANT APPARATUS
  • B01J8/00—Chemical or physical processes in general, conducted in the presence of fluids and solid particles; Apparatus for such processes
  • B01J8/18—Chemical or physical processes in general, conducted in the presence of fluids and solid particles; Apparatus for such processes with fluidised particles
  • B01J8/24—Chemical or physical processes in general, conducted in the presence of fluids and solid particles; Apparatus for such processes with fluidised particles according to "fluidised-bed" technique
  • B01J8/38—Chemical or physical processes in general, conducted in the presence of fluids and solid particles; Apparatus for such processes with fluidised particles according to "fluidised-bed" technique with fluidised bed containing a rotatable device or being subject to rotation or to a circulatory movement, i.e. leaving a vessel and subsequently re-entering it
  • B01J8/382—Chemical or physical processes in general, conducted in the presence of fluids and solid particles; Apparatus for such processes with fluidised particles according to "fluidised-bed" technique with fluidised bed containing a rotatable device or being subject to rotation or to a circulatory movement, i.e. leaving a vessel and subsequently re-entering it with a rotatable device only
• • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
  • B09—DISPOSAL OF SOLID WASTE; RECLAMATION OF CONTAMINATED SOIL
  • B09B—DISPOSAL OF SOLID WASTE NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR
  • B09B3/00—Destroying solid waste or transforming solid waste into something useful or harmless
  • B09B3/40—Destroying solid waste or transforming solid waste into something useful or harmless involving thermal treatment, e.g. evaporation
  • B09B3/45—Steam treatment, e.g. supercritical water gasification or oxidation
• • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
  • B09—DISPOSAL OF SOLID WASTE; RECLAMATION OF CONTAMINATED SOIL
  • B09B—DISPOSAL OF SOLID WASTE NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR
  • B09B3/00—Destroying solid waste or transforming solid waste into something useful or harmless
  • B09B3/70—Chemical treatment, e.g. pH adjustment or oxidation
• • E—FIXED CONSTRUCTIONS
  • E21—EARTH OR ROCK DRILLING; MINING
  • E21B—EARTH OR ROCK DRILLING; OBTAINING OIL, GAS, WATER, SOLUBLE OR MELTABLE MATERIALS OR A SLURRY OF MINERALS FROM WELLS
  • E21B21/00—Methods or apparatus for flushing boreholes, e.g. by use of exhaust air from motor
  • E21B21/06—Arrangements for treating drilling fluids outside the borehole
  • E21B21/063—Arrangements for treating drilling fluids outside the borehole by separating components
• • F—MECHANICAL ENGINEERING; LIGHTING; HEATING; WEAPONS; BLASTING
  • F26—DRYING
  • F26B—DRYING SOLID MATERIALS OR OBJECTS BY REMOVING LIQUID THEREFROM
  • F26B11/00—Machines or apparatus for drying solid materials or objects with movement which is non-progressive
  • F26B11/12—Machines or apparatus for drying solid materials or objects with movement which is non-progressive in stationary drums or other mainly-closed receptacles with moving stirring devices
• • F—MECHANICAL ENGINEERING; LIGHTING; HEATING; WEAPONS; BLASTING
  • F26—DRYING
  • F26B—DRYING SOLID MATERIALS OR OBJECTS BY REMOVING LIQUID THEREFROM
  • F26B17/00—Machines or apparatus for drying materials in loose, plastic, or fluidised form, e.g. granules, staple fibres, with progressive movement
  • F26B17/18—Machines or apparatus for drying materials in loose, plastic, or fluidised form, e.g. granules, staple fibres, with progressive movement with movement performed by rotating helical blades or other rotary conveyors which may be heated moving materials in stationary chambers, e.g. troughs
• • F—MECHANICAL ENGINEERING; LIGHTING; HEATING; WEAPONS; BLASTING
  • F26—DRYING
  • F26B—DRYING SOLID MATERIALS OR OBJECTS BY REMOVING LIQUID THEREFROM
  • F26B17/00—Machines or apparatus for drying materials in loose, plastic, or fluidised form, e.g. granules, staple fibres, with progressive movement
  • F26B17/18—Machines or apparatus for drying materials in loose, plastic, or fluidised form, e.g. granules, staple fibres, with progressive movement with movement performed by rotating helical blades or other rotary conveyors which may be heated moving materials in stationary chambers, e.g. troughs
  • F26B17/20—Machines or apparatus for drying materials in loose, plastic, or fluidised form, e.g. granules, staple fibres, with progressive movement with movement performed by rotating helical blades or other rotary conveyors which may be heated moving materials in stationary chambers, e.g. troughs the axis of rotation being horizontal or slightly inclined
• • F—MECHANICAL ENGINEERING; LIGHTING; HEATING; WEAPONS; BLASTING
  • F26—DRYING
  • F26B—DRYING SOLID MATERIALS OR OBJECTS BY REMOVING LIQUID THEREFROM
  • F26B25/00—Details of general application not covered by group F26B21/00 or F26B23/00
  • F26B25/005—Treatment of dryer exhaust gases
  • F26B25/006—Separating volatiles, e.g. recovering solvents from dryer exhaust gases

Definitions

• the present invention relates to a method of treating a material such as a compound to remove and typically recover an oil from the material.
• the method of the invention is particularly suitable for recovering hydrocarbons from a mixture of hydrocarbons and aqueous liquids.
• the invention can also be useful to recover oil from a mixture of materials containing solids (for example sand, glass, and metal pieces), liquids (for example fluid phase hydrocarbons, with aqueous phases containing water) and gases.
• the method of the invention relates to the recovery of oily fractions from waste material. For example, the removal or recovery of production fluids emanating from the well, or drilling mud added to the well, from drill cuttings recovered from oil and gas wells, typically but not exclusively generated by drilling and intervention operations in the well.
• drilling mud also called drilling fluid
• drilling fluid is used to cool the drill bit and to resist blow outs during the drilling operation.
• the drill cuttings recovered at the surface are usually contaminated by hydrocarbons from the reservoir, which permeate the rock that was drilled in order to form the bore hole, and also by the drilling mud that is pumped down the hole in order to wash the cuttings out of the well.
• the contamination of the cuttings by the drilling mud and the hydrocarbons that permeate the cuttings currently present challenges for the operator, because environmental concerns dictate that the hydrocarbons contaminating the cuttings must be removed or reduced below the threshold before the cuttings can be safely disposed of.
• efficiency savings can be made by recycling the used drilling mud for subsequent use in future cycles, and by recovering the hydrocarbons on the drill cuttings for export from the well with the other valuable production fluids. Therefore, it is useful to be able to separate and typically recover the oily materials contaminating the waste drill cuttings before disposal of the cuttings.
• a method of treating a material to recover an oil from the material comprising heating the material to evaporate the oil, removing gas phase fluids from the material, and separating the oil from the gas phase fluids removed from the material, wherein the method includes mixing hot vapour with the material.
• the oil is typically mixed with the material, and typically contaminates the material.
• the evaporation of the oil typically produces oil vapour and the oil vapour is typically removed from the material with the gas phase fluids.
• the oil is separated from the gas phase fluids in a separate separation step such as distillation, typically occurring after the evaporation of the oil and the removal of gas phase fluids from the material.
• the material can comprise solids, liquids and/or gasses in any ratio.
• the material can comprise drill cuttings, oil-contaminated soils, bleaching earth, sludge from oil tanks, oil shale and fish wastes.
• the material can comprise a compound.
• the material being treated in the chamber is heated, typically before or during or after the injection of hot vapour.
• the material being treated in the chamber is heated by friction within the chamber.
• the hot vapour exchanges heat energy with (for example the hot vapour loses heat energy to) the material being treated in the chamber.
• the hot vapour can be formed by vaporising a liquid so that it changes phase into a gas phase.
• the vapour is typically obtained by raising the temperature of the liquid to its boiling point so that it boils and vaporises.
• the hot vapour is produced from a substance which is typically in liquid form at
• the hot vapour is produced by heating the liquid above its boiling point at atmospheric pressure.
• the liquid comprises water, and typically the hot vapour comprises steam, but other vapours formed by other liquids can be used in different examples of the invention.
• the oil can be separated from the gas phase fluids removed from the chamber by distillation.
• a distillation device can be connected to an outlet of the chamber, through which the gas phase fluids can optionally be removed.
• the chamber can have more than one outlet, and the same (or a separate) separation device such as a distillation device can optionally be connected to each outlet.
• Injecting steam and/or other vapour from any other processes and/or from this process into the chamber can re-use the thermal energy inside the chamber. Reusing the available vapour from other processes and consuming less energy to heat up the material can increase the efficiency of the process. Then the process will not consume energy to make vapour (or steam).
• Hot vapour with the material being treated improves the efficiency of the process to separate oil and any other evaporable liquids at lower temperatures. Because of the hot vapour injection during the process, the thermal energy generated within the chamber is not consumed in changing the phase of large quantities of liquids in the material, and more of the energy generated is available to heat up the material and evaporate the oil fractions from the solids. Furthermore, mixing the hot vapour with the material reduces the partial pressure of the gas phase oily fractions being evaporated from the material in accordance with Dalton's law, which reduces the temperature at which these oily fractions evaporate from the material, and the temperature at which they distil in the condenser, thereby reducing the amount of energy needed to evaporate and condense the oily fractions.
• the oil can comprise hydrocarbons, organic materials, mineral and non-mineral oils.
• the material is mixed with additives such as catalysts, chemicals, solids and liquids to improve the separation and/or the recovery of the oil from the material before and/or during the process.
• additives such as catalysts, chemicals, solids and liquids to improve the separation and/or the recovery of the oil from the material before and/or during the process.
• the material is typically treated in one or more chamber (s). Where more than one chamber is provided, the chambers may be connected, optionally in parallel or in series.
• the material being treated is typically fed into the chamber(s) and is heated to a desired temperature.
• the material may be preheated before being fed into the chamber(s).
• the material may already contain water or water may optionally be introduced prior to feeding the material into the chamber or may be injected into the chamber which can assist in reducing the process temperature if it exceeds optimal parameters.
• the hot vapour is typically injected into the chamber through one or more injection ports.
• the hot vapour typically initiates the process to evaporate the oil below its normal boiling point.
• the chamber typically has at least one inlet and at least one outlet to feed in and transport out all the phases (solids, liquids and gasses/vapour).
• the preheating temperature, the heating rate, the vapour flow rate and the process temperature and pressure can be varied in different examples of the invention, dependant on the desired result.
• the hot vapour can be generated by a boiler, or can be re-cycled from hot gas phase fluids recovered from the material, or from any other process and/or supplying sources.
• the hot vapour may optionally be generated by energy generated within or recovered from the process and/or the ambient environment that may optimise energy efficiency.
• the chamber(s) may have at least one rotor, which may optionally have a shaft with flails, discs, propellers, arms and/or blades connected to the shaft to rotate with it.
• the flails, discs etc. can be connected to the shaft by fixed, hinged, removable or adjustable connectors or can be in an integrated shape.
• the material being treated is typically heated by friction generated by the rotor.
• the material within the chamber can typically form a fluidized bed of material around the inner surface of the chamber, providing a large surface for the efficient transfer of the thermal energy.
• the passage of the flails etc. through the fluidised bed typically generates the friction, for example between the solid particles and the flails etc., or among the solid particles themselves) to heat the material in the chamber.
• Heating may also or alternatively be supplied from external sources in order to maintain the process temperature within a suitable range.
• the rotor/shaft or the chamber may be heated by other sources, for example by electric heaters, and/or the feed can be preheated.
• Suitable structural details for the chamber can be found in the earlier references cited above.
• the friction may be enhanced by adding friction increasing solids such as sand, glass or metal pieces to the material being treated prior to feeding the material into the chamber(s), or optionally by injecting the same into the chamber(s) separately from the material to be treated.
• the solids may remain in the chamber(s) or may be removed from the chamber through an outlet.
• the chamber can have more than one outlet.
• the retention time of the material within the chamber typically depends on process conditions, composition of the solids and desired result.
• the chamber may be subjected to a vacuum when the material is being treated.
• the vacuum can optionally be generated by a vacuum pump optionally connected to an outlet on the chamber optionally via a separate vacuum system.
• the process may be used independently, in connection with, or as an integrated part of another process or apparatus either onshore or offshore.
• the various aspects of the present invention can be practiced alone or in
• compositions, an element or a group of elements are preceded with the transitional phrase “comprising”, it is understood that we also contemplate the same composition, element or group of elements with transitional phrases “consisting essentially of, “consisting”, “selected from the group of consisting of, “including”, or “is” preceding the recitation of the composition, element or group of elements and vice versa.
• transitional phrases consisting essentially of, “consisting”, “selected from the group of consisting of, “including”, or “is” preceding the recitation of the composition, element or group of elements and vice versa.
• figure 1 shows a schematic side view of a chamber used in an example of the present invention
• figure 2 shows a schematic diagram indicating the process in the chamber of figure 1;
• figure 3 shows a graph illustrating the effect of steam content within the chamber on the evaporation temperature of oils being treated in the chamber of figure 1;
• figure 4 shows a graph illustrating the percentage change in the evaporation temperature of the oils in figure 3 as a result of different contents of steam within the chamber in figure 1;
• figure 5 shows a schematic graph of the thermal energy required to treat a tonne of feed material per hour in different conditions with no water; with 15% water and 15% oil and without injection of hot vapour; with injection of hot vapour and recycling of 50% of the steam generated in the process; and with 100% recycling and re-injection of the steam generated in the process;
• figure 6 shows a schematic view similar to figure 5 showing the required power to recover 150kg of oil and treat 700kg of feed per hour;
• figure 7 shows a schematic view showing the required power and process temperature to recover 150kg of oil and treat 775 kg of solid per hour.
• the blocks represent the required power in kW shown in the left hand axis and the line graph and diamonds represent the corresponding process temperature, shown in the right hand axis.
• a suitable chamber for carrying out examples of the present invention is shown schematically in figure 1, and typically comprises a reactor vessel 1 having a body and end plates. Different configurations are possible.
• the schematic view shown in side view in figure 1 shows a hollow bore which receives a rotor assembly comprising an axle or driveshaft 5 bearing rotor arms or flails 15 which is driven in rotation by a motor 10.
• the rotor arms or flails 15 are typically of similar designs to those described in the earlier references cited above.
• the chamber 1 typically has at least one feed inlet at one end of the chamber bore, which may be at the top or the bottom of the chamber, close to one end wall, through which material to be treated is fed into the chamber 1, and at least one outlet 3 typically located at the opposite end of the chamber bore, typically at a lower end of the chamber 1, through which solids can leave the chamber following the conclusion of the cycle of treatment.
• the chamber 1 also has at least one vapour outlet or flue 4 typically located at an upper end of the chamber 1, through which gasses can leave the chamber following the conclusion of the cycle of treatment.
• the present example has a vapour generator in the form of a boiler 20, which generates hot vapour in the form of steam typically by heating liquid water to its boiling point within the boiler, and injecting the hot vapour in the form of steam through an injection line 21 and a vapour inlet 22 into the chamber 1, where it is mixed with the material being fed into the chamber 1 through the inlet 2.
• a vapour generator in the form of a boiler 20
• injecting the hot vapour in the form of steam through an injection line 21 and a vapour inlet 22 into the chamber 1, where it is mixed with the material being fed into the chamber 1 through the inlet 2.
• the injection line 21 can incorporate a check valve 23 preventing passage of the vapour from the injection line 21 into the boiler 20.
• the boiler 20 can optionally be electrically heated, either internally through a heater coil, or by any other suitable means, which can be varied in different examples of the invention.
• the flue or vapour outlet 4 typically connects the bore of the chamber 1 with a condenser system comprising at least one (and optionally more than one) condenser 30 having a first outlet 31 leading to an oil collection tank and a 2nd outlet 32 leading to an optional reinjection line 33.
• the material to be treated comprises contaminated drill cuttings, which may incorporate oil-based drilling mud and/or indigenous hydrocarbons permeating the drill cuttings.
• the contaminated drill cuttings are fed into the inlet 2, typically on a conveyor, and drop into the bore of the chamber typically while the rotor assembly comprising the shaft 5 and rotors 15 are being driven in rotation by the motor 10.
• the rotor assembly can be rotated within the chamber 1 (optionally with a solid particulate material such as sand etc. in the chamber) before the material is fed into the chamber in order to preheat the chamber to a suitable operating temperature or alternatively the chamber can be preheated by any other method such as electrical heat tracing.
• the configuration of the rotor assembly can typically be as disclosed in the earlier references cited above, and the reader is referred to those publications for further details of the basic structural aspects of the chamber 1.
• Driving the rotor assembly at sufficient speeds raises the temperature of the material within the internal bore of the chamber 1 to around 260 to 270°C, or to a temperature to suit the material being processed, typically at a temperature slightly below the boiling point of the oil to be removed from the material.
• Water vapour at high temperature in the form of steam from the boiler 20 is injected through the check valve 23 and injection line 21 into the inlet 22 of the chamber 1, and is mixed with the material being treated by the rotating rotors 15.
• the temperature of the steam injected is greater than 100°C, i.e. typically the steam is superheated.
• the steam can be injected into the chamber at 120-150°C in some cases where relatively little additional heat energy from the hot vapour is desired, but this parameter can optionally be varied according to the anticipated evaporation temperature of the oil, and in some cases, higher temperatures can optionally be used for the injected steam, for example, greater than 200°C, e.g. 300°C or more.
• the rotors are operated at the speeds described in the earlier references, to which the reader is referred for further details.
• the heat from the friction generated by rotation of the rotor assembly in combination with the heat energy from the hot vapour added from the boiler 20 increases the temperature within the chamber 1 until the oil evaporates in gas phase from the solid drill cuttings.
• the gas phase components including the gas phase oil fraction are liberated from the drill cuttings and pass or are drawn through the outlet by an optional vacuum pump 6, which may be mounted in the line connecting the outlet 4 with the condenser 30.
• the line connecting the outlet 4 with the condenser 30 may also include a cyclone 7 to remove particulate material from the gasses before they reach the condenser 30. Because of the presence of the hot vapour in the chamber mixture, the partial pressures of the gasses are reduced thereby reducing the evaporation temperatures of the oily fractions.
• heat is optionally exchanged between a coolant that circulates between the condenser 30 and the chamber 1, which absorbs heat from the gas phase material within the condenser 30 and carries it to the chamber 1 where it is lost to the chamber 1, thereby increasing the thermal efficiency of the system.
• the coolant is recycled back to the condenser 30 at a lower temperature, where it again absorbs heat from the gas phase material passing through the condenser 30.
• a heat exchanger can be provided in the lines between the condenser and the chamber.
• the coolant circuit between the condenser 30 and the chamber 1 is optional, and may be omitted from certain examples of the invention.
• the coolant circuit can be connected between the condenser 30 and some other component of the same or ancillary equipment, in order to act as a heat pump absorbing heat from the gasses passing through the condenser 30 and transferring that energy to another part of the same process or to a different process, in order to improve the overall efficiency of the same.
• the oil fraction of the gas phase materials within the condenser 30 condense back into liquid form within the condenser, and are drained through the outlet 31 into the oil tank. Further purification steps can be carried out on the condensate material draining into the oil tank 31 dependent on the desired fraction to be recovered, but at this point, that oil is effectively and efficiently separated and recovered from the original waste materials.
• the oil can be exported from the tank 31 and can be further processed if needed, or used as required, and because it has merely changed phase at a relatively low temperature, the molecular structure of the oil is almost unaffected, and the valuable longer chain hydrocarbons can be retained for processing of more complex chemicals.
• the recycling of the high-temperature gas phase materials out of the condenser and back into the chamber is one option that can be omitted from certain examples of the invention, but which is advantageous, because the thermal energy escaping from the condenser 30 is recycled back into the chamber 1, thereby improving the thermal efficiency of the process, and any fractions of oils that pass through the condenser without changing phase back into liquid form are recycled for further treatment.
• the shaft 5 can be hollow, and can optionally receive heated fluids, either from the condenser 30, or from another source such as a heat pump, or a different piece of apparatus which may or may not be part of the system for treating materials.
• the chamber 1 can incorporate an oil jacket 8, which can be heated using fluids from the condenser 30, or from another heat source.
• drill cuttings contaminated by 3 different oils were subjected to the above process with different w% contents of steam injected as hot vapour into the chamber 1 in each case.
• Each sample of contaminated cuttings was tested in different treatment cycles using different amounts of steam in each cycle. In each example, three different cycles were performed using 7.5%, 15% and 30% per weight of steam injected into the chamber 1.
• the 3 oils from the different samples all evaporated from the cuttings at significantly higher temperatures than when steam was injected.
• 4000 kg cuttings were used with an estimated contaminating oil content of 17.6%w.
• the mix by w% of solids:oil:steam was approximately 70:15:15 (with the 15%w steam example).
• Drill cuttings were contaminated with oil 1 with a boiling point in the absence of steam injection of 230°C. Upon injection of 7.5%w of steam into the chamber, the oil was evaporated from the cuttings when the chamber had reached 160°C. Upon injection of 15%w of steam into the chamber, the oil had evaporated from the cuttings when the chamber had reached 150°C, and upon injection of 30%w steam into the chamber, the oil had evaporated when the chamber temperature had reached 130°C. Accordingly, injection of the steam into the chamber as part of the process dramatically reduced the temperature at which the oil evaporated from the cuttings, and thereby reduced the heat energy required to operate the process and separate the oil from the cuttings.
• Drill cuttings were contaminated with oil 2 with a distillation temperature in the absence of steam injection of 250°C.
• the oil was evaporated from the cuttings when the chamber had reached 180°C.
• the oil had evaporated from the cuttings when the chamber had reached 166°C, and upon injection of 30%w steam into the chamber, the oil had evaporated when the chamber temperature had reached 150°C. Accordingly, injection of the steam into the chamber as part of the process dramatically reduced the temperature at which the oil evaporated from the cuttings, and thereby reduced the heat energy required to operate the process and separate the oil from the cuttings.
• Drill cuttings were contaminated with oil 3 with a distillation temperature in the absence of steam injection of 295°C.
• the oil was evaporated from the cuttings when the chamber had reached 220°C.
• the oil had evaporated from the cuttings when the chamber had reached 200°C, and upon injection of 30%w steam into the chamber, the oil had evaporated when the chamber temperature had reached 190°C. Accordingly, injection of the steam into the chamber as part of the process dramatically reduced the temperature at which the oil evaporated from the cuttings, and thereby reduced the heat energy required to operate the process and separate the oil from the cuttings.
• Figure 4 shows the percentage change in the temperature at which the oils in the previous examples evaporates in the chamber in accordance with the different steam injections.
• the largest percentage change in the evaporation temperature of the oil from the cuttings is seen with oil 1, followed by oil 2, and subsequently by oil 3.
• oil 1 the largest percentage change in the evaporation temperature of the oil from the cuttings
• oil 2 the largest percentage change in the evaporation temperature of the oil from the cuttings
• oil 3 shows a dramatic reduction in the boiling point of the oil.
• a dramatic reduction in the boiling point of the oil is shown with the injection of even small amounts of steam, with increased amounts of steam injection showing a non-linear response, but still showing an improvement as more steam by %w is injected into the chamber during the process.
• the oil separates from the drill cuttings at lower temperatures requiring less heat energy and therefore allowing a more efficient system.
• 15%w of steam (and 15%w oil) can decrease the process temperature required to drive off the oil from the cuttings by up to 30-35%. If the steam content increases up to 30%w the process can be completed at 36-42% lower temperature. Lowering the temperature of the process below the atmospheric boiling temperature of the oil enables recovery of heavier oils with lower risks of cracking and changing the molecular structure of the oil, which is therefore unaffected in value and can be exported from the process and sold, thereby further increasing the efficiency of the overall process.
• the steam absorbs the thermal energy and it prevents the temperature from rising.
• the lower temperature of the operation is technically advantageous as the lower temperatures reduce the demands of the process on the mechanical structure of the chamber as well as improving the quality of the recovered oil.
• the injection of steam facilitates a more stable process inside the chamber. Accordingly more of the chamber components and mechanical structure can be of standard quality and design, saving costs in the construction and maintenance of the chamber.
• Injecting steam that has been recycled from the condenser offers additional energy savings and efficiencies and can save significant amounts of energy.
• FIG. 5 An example of energy saving is shown in figure 5 and 6.
• oil type 2 is mixed with solid feed material and treated as described above in the chamber in a range of different ratios of oil:water:solid.
• the amount of energy required to complete the process exceeds 150kW/hr.
• the composition of the components of the second to fourth columns was 15:15:70 (oil: water: solid).
• steam was injected into the process chamber in different ratios with respect to the feed water content fed into the chamber.
• the different ratios are shown in the separate columns 0, 1, 2 and 4 in figure 7.
• there was no injected steam in column 1
• the ratio of injected steam to liquid water in the feed was 1:1
• in column 2 the ratio was 2:1
• in column 4 the ratio was 4:1.
• the process temperature reached during the process is shown in the right hand axis represented by the diamond markers joined by the line
• the power required for each process run is shown in the left hand axis, represented by the columns 0, 1, 2 and 4.
• steam injection in accordance with the method can be seen to dramatically reduce the temperature of the process.

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