Development of an inclined liquid fluidized bed for tar sand processing

An inclined liquid fluidized-bed reactor (ILFBR) system has been developed and successfully operated for 24 hours. Modifications to the previously tested ILFBR systems include incorporation of a oil fluidizing zone in the front of the fluid bed, an increase in the angle of the fluid bed to -12 (the minus sign shows that the discharge is below the horizontal level of the inlet), and reduction of the fluidizing gas velocities equal to or below the minimum fluidization velocity. These changes produced a functional bubbling slurry bed for the processing of tar sand. The produced oils and spent sand resemble the products from screw pyrolysis reactor (SPR) tests suggesting that the ILFBR system functioned similar to the SPR systems with the recycle oil pyrolysis and extraction (ROPE®)process. With slight modifications in the heater control and placement, the system will be ready for development of operational parameters for the surface processing of tar sand.