Peace River tar sands

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The Peace River oil sands deposit lies in the west of Alberta, and is deeper than the more will known Athabasca oil sands.

The Peace River tar sands are one of four large deposits of tar sands (also known as oil sands) located in Alberta, Canada.[1][2][3] The Peace River deposit is located in northwest Alberta, while the other three deposits are in the east. It lies, generally, in the watershed of the Peace River.

Whereas the Athabasca tar sands lie close enough to the surface that the sand can be scooped up in open-pit mines, and brought to a central location for processing, the Peace River deposits are considered too deep, and are exploited in situ by heating, through the injection of superheated steam, that reduces the bitumen's viscosity, allowing it to be pumped to the surface.[4]

See also

References

  1. Bruce Biossat (1973-11-23). "An oil-hungry world eyes Alberta's sand". Rome News-Tribune. http://news.google.ca/newspapers?id=bJ4xAAAAIBAJ&sjid=20MDAAAAIBAJ&pg=2414,3655169&dq=cold-lake+oil-sand+. Retrieved 2010-06-22. "Great as is the Athabasca spread, where real scientific exploration began just 60 years ago, it's not the full story. Alberta hold three other oil sands deposits -- Wabasca just southwest of Athabasca, Cold Lake to the south, Peace River to the west." 
  2. "Premium Petroleum Corp. Increases Lands Position to 11,520 Acres". Premium Petroleum Corp. 2007-09-19. http://www.marketwire.com/press-release/Premium-Petroleum-Corp-Increases-Lands-Position-to-11520-Acres-PINK-SHEETS-PPTL-771517.htm. Retrieved 2010-06-22. "According to the Petroleum Economist: "Although tar sands occur in more than 70 countries, the bulk is found in Canada in four regions: Athabasca, Wabasca, Cold Lake, and Peace River; together covering an area of some 77,000 km2." 
  3. O.P. Strausz. "The Chemistry of the Alberta Oil Sand Bitumen". University of Alberta. http://www.anl.gov/PCS/acsfuel/preprint%20archive/Files/22_3_MONTREAL_06-77_0171.pdf. Retrieved 2010-06-22. 
  4. "Oil and Gas" (in English). Peace River: Peace Region Economic Development Alliance. 2010. http://www.peacecountrycanada.com/oil-and-gas.aspx. Retrieved 2012-11-05. "These oil sands consist of deposits of underground bitumen; thick heavy oil within a sand reservoir. Shell Canada developed these deposits by injecting steam under pressure into the ground to separate the bitumen from the sand. It may take several months of steam heating to enable the bitumen to be pumped up through the well. As the well cools, production declines, at which time the cycle begins anew."