Characterization of a Utah tar sand bitumen

A preliminary characterization of a Utah tar sand bitumen has been made using methods developed for high boiling petroleum fractions. The characterization includes information about the major compound types which can be compared with similar data for other tar sand bitumens and, more importantly, can be correlated with data from petroleum samples for which refining characteristics are known. Examination of the P. R. Spring bitumen showed that it differed significantly from representative petroleum residues, principally in its high nonhydrocarbon content. Compositional information is important because of the effects that composition has on the recovery and processing of the bitumen.