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Chapter 3

3.5. Materials and Methods

3.5.1. Materials

Samples of bitumen froth were received from Syncrude. Bitumen froth was
diluted with naphtha. Dilution ratio (naphtha/ bitumen weight ratio, refer to as N∕B
ratio) is 2.4. The diluted bitumen contains about 1.0 w.% solids and less than 2.0
w.% water, which can be measured by centrifugation. Most of the clay solids in
the sample are kaolinite and illite. Solids-free diluted bitumen was prepared by
centrifuge with centrifugation acceleration 3500 g for 30 minutes. The aqueous
phase used here is 1.0 w.% NaCI brine. All salts were from Fisher Scientific.

The bulk fluid properties are listed in Table 3.1. Viscosities were measured
with a Brookfield DV-III + rheometer. A spindle (#18, viscosity range = 1.3 - 30,000
mPa s) is immersed in a cylindrical cell containing approximately 7 ml of sample,
and it is further set to rotate at a given angular velocity. T₂ and diffusivity were
measured using MARAN Il Spectrometer (2.2 MHz, Oxford Instruments).

When comparing the bulk properties of the diluted fluids, it is clear to see the
difference between diluted bitumen with solids and solids-free diluted bitumen.
The viscosity of diluted bitumen with solids is larger than that of diluted bitumen
without solids, while the relaxation time and diffusivity are smaller. This is an
indication of the effect of clay solids on the diluted bitumen.

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