The present disclosure provides a method for recovering bitumen that includes contacting bitumen with steam and/or water and an organic amine having a boiling point at one atmosphere of greater than 145° C. and recovering the bitumen. The bitumen can in oil sands, where the step of contacting includes contacting the oil sands having bitumen with the steam and/or water and the organic amine. Contacting the bitumen with the steam and/or water and the organic amine and recovering the bitumen can be done in-situ in a subterranean formation.

The present disclosure relates to an improved bitumen recovery process from oil sands. The oil sands may be surface mined and transported to a treatment area or may be treated directly by means of an in-situ process of oil sand deposits that are located too deep for strip mining. Specifically, the present disclosure involves the step of treating oil sands with a propylene oxide capped glycol ether described by the structure:

RO—(CH.sub.2CH.sub.2O).sub.m(CH.sub.2CH(CH.sub.3)O).sub.nH wherein R is a linear, branched, cyclic alkyl, phenyl, or alkyl phenyl group of at least 4 carbons, and m and n are independently 1 to 3.

A two-step process to produce oil or gas from a subterranean formation wherein in a first step the subterranean formation is treated with an aqueous composition containing a chelating agent selected from the group of glutamic acid N,N-diacetic acid or a salt thereof (GLDA), aspartic acid N,N-diacetic acid or a salt thereof (ASDA), methylglycine N,N-diacetic acid or a salt thereof (MGDA), and N-hydroxyethyl ethylenediamine N,N′,N′-triacetic acid or a salt thereof (HEDTA) and wherein, in a next step, in the outlet streams from the subterranean formation the aqueous phase is separated from the non-aqueous phase.

Techniques described herein relate to producing bitumen while monitoring various aspects of paraffinic froth treatment (PFT) operations using near infrared (NIR) spectrometry and chemometric analysis to continuously monitor and enable measurements of physical and chemical properties of various streams in PFT operations, which can be done in real time online and can facilitate process control. NIR spectrometry can be used to acquire NIR spectra measurements from a PFT process stream and the NIR spectra measurements and chemometric analysis can, in turn, be used to determine composition characteristics of the PFT process stream as well as operational features of a PFT process unit. For example, NIR spectra can be used to determine upward velocity in a PFT settler to facilitate settler operation for diluted bitumen quality control. NIR spectra can be obtained using reflectance or transmission probes which can be positioned within particular phase of a stratified PFT process stream.

An apparatus for washing solid particles removed from a hydrocarbon-containing fluid produced from an oil and gas production facility using a company automated unit. The apparatus comprises an inlet that carries a mixture of solids particles and water flushed from a de-sander.

Embodiments relates to a bitumen recovery process from oil sands. The oil sands may be surface mined and transported to a treatment area or may be treated directly by means of an in situ process of oil sand deposits that are located too deep for strip mining. Specifically, the present invention involves the step of treating oil sands with a composition comprising an alkanolamine and an ethylene oxide capped glycol ether.

Direct steam injection (DSI) heating techniques can use a heater to heat a process stream in bitumen froth treatment. The DSI heater can include a diffuser with multiple side-by-side rows of outlets perpendicular to a longitudinal axis of the diffuser, and a piston plug that moves axially within the diffuser to selectively cover rows of outlets to vary steam injection. The piston plug has first and second annular seals and is moved between different axial positions in a stepwise fashion such that when one or more rows of outlets are completely covered, the first annular seal is located in between adjacent rows and the second annular seal abuts against the diffuser to inhibit passage of steam so as to prevent cavitation. The DSI heater can include various other features, such as particular seal unit constructions and diffuser outlet configurations.

A method for processing bitumen froth comprised of bitumen, water containing chlorides and solids is provided for producing a final diluted bitumen product having reduced chlorides. In particular, fine water droplets containing chlorides that are present in raw diluted bitumen are captured by washing the raw diluted bitumen with low salinity water to produce the final diluted bitumen product having reduced chlorides.

Methods are provided for separation of bitumen from oil sands ore having a bitumen content higher than about 6%. Activated carbons, or combinations of activated carbons and caustic are used as process additives for ore-water slurry-based bitumen extraction processes or in situ bitumen recovery processes. These additives promote breakdown of adhesion between clay minerals and bitumen, resulting in the enhanced efficiency of extraction of bitumen from oil sands ore.

A process for in situ thermal recovery of hydrocarbons from a reservoir is provided. The process includes: providing an oxygen-enriched mixture, fuel, feedwater and an additive including at least one of ammonia, urea and a volatile amine to a Direct-Contact Steam Generator (DCSG); operating the DCSG, including contacting the feedwater and the additive with hot combustion gas to obtain a steam-based mixture including steam, CO.sub.2 and the additive; injecting the steam-based mixture or a stream derived from the steam-based mixture into the reservoir to mobilize the hydrocarbons therein; and producing a produced fluid including the hydrocarbons.