Grant: Applied Research and Development Grants - Level 2
Northern Alberta Institute of Technology
$75,000.00
Bugs and veggies as a progressive dewatering technology for untreated tailings
FY 2021-22
Summary
The oil sands industry is saddled with a tailings inventory exceeding 1.21 Bm3 (osip.alberta.ca). The majorityof this volume is stored as mature fine tailings (MFT), a stable slurry suspension containing ~30% solids thatcan persist for decades. Reducing the volume of stored tailings by accelerating the rate of dewatering anddensification is a high priority for oil sands operators. Several tailings treatment technologies have beendeveloped to address this problem, however, current costs of implementation limit their deployment at scale.Previous studies have suggested that plants can be employed as a cost effective tailings capping or dewateringtechnology by accessing water trapped in suspension and releasing it to the environment throughevapotranspiration, thereby increasing solids content and shear strength. The proposed study builds on previouswork whereby native, upland, Boreal plant species were successfully augmented with amendments such asbacteria and hydrolyzed proteins to dewater thickened tailings and centrifuge cake. With the objective oftargeting untreated MFT, the proposed study aims to develop a progressive, plant mediated dewateringtechnology capable of supporting plants on the surface of the fluid MFT. In addition, we will optimize amicrobial and organic amendment to augment plant growth and investigate the mechanism by which plantgrowth is enhanced by examining nutrient content in the plant and soil, and gene expression from rootassociated microorganisms. We will also seek to understand how treatments affect the uptake of salts, metals,and hydrocarbons from the tailings into the plants. This highly interdisciplinary project combines expertisefrom the Centre for Boreal Research, the Applied Bio-Nanotechnology Industrial Research program, and theCentre for Oil Sands Sustainability within the Northern Alberta Institute of Technology (NAIT), the molecularbiology unit at the Laurentian Forestry Centre, and Canadian Natural. If successful, this project will result in acost effective, progressive dewatering prototype capable of passively transforming tailings into a soil systemsuitable for reclamation, and will be scalable for field deployment
Program
Applied Research and Development Grants - Level 2
Location
Alberta, Canada
Recipient Type
Academia
Type
Grant
Source
NSERC's Awards Data
As published
Application id
548373-2019
Name nom
Bajic, Jelena
Department département
Head Office
Organization id
25090
Institution établissement
Northern Alberta Institute of Technology
Province en
Alberta
Province fr
Alberta
Country en
CANADA
Country fr
CANADA
Fiscal year exercice financier
2021
Competition year année de concours
2019
Award amount
75000
Program id
CARD2
Program name en
Applied Research and Development Grants - Level 2
Program name fr
Subventions de recherche et développement appliquée - niveau 2
Group en
Research partnerships programs
Group fr
Programmes de partenariat
Committee code
1561
Committee name en
Applied Research and Development Grants
Committee name fr
Subventions de recherche et développement appliquée
Area of application code
301
Area of application group en
Energy resources
Area of application group fr
Ressources d'énergie
Area of application en
Oil, gas and coal
Area of application fr
Pétrole, gaz et charbon
Research subject code
1504
Research subject group en
Environmental engineering
Research subject group fr
Génie de l'environnement
Research subject en
Solid waste management (including radioactivity)
Research subject fr
Gestion des déchets dangereux (y compris radioactivité)
Installment
inst:2
Partie
1
Nb partie
2
Application title
Bugs and veggies as a progressive dewatering technology for untreated tailings
Keyword
NSERC
Application summary
The oil sands industry is saddled with a tailings inventory exceeding 1.21 Bm3 (osip.alberta.ca). The majorityof this volume is stored as mature fine tailings (MFT), a stable slurry suspension containing ~30% solids thatcan persist for decades. Reducing the volume of stored tailings by accelerating the rate of dewatering anddensification is a high priority for oil sands operators. Several tailings treatment technologies have beendeveloped to address this problem, however, current costs of implementation limit their deployment at scale.Previous studies have suggested that plants can be employed as a cost effective tailings capping or dewateringtechnology by accessing water trapped in suspension and releasing it to the environment throughevapotranspiration, thereby increasing solids content and shear strength. The proposed study builds on previouswork whereby native, upland, Boreal plant species were successfully augmented with amendments such asbacteria and hydrolyzed proteins to dewater thickened tailings and centrifuge cake. With the objective oftargeting untreated MFT, the proposed study aims to develop a progressive, plant mediated dewateringtechnology capable of supporting plants on the surface of the fluid MFT. In addition, we will optimize amicrobial and organic amendment to augment plant growth and investigate the mechanism by which plantgrowth is enhanced by examining nutrient content in the plant and soil, and gene expression from rootassociated microorganisms. We will also seek to understand how treatments affect the uptake of salts, metals,and hydrocarbons from the tailings into the plants. This highly interdisciplinary project combines expertisefrom the Centre for Boreal Research, the Applied Bio-Nanotechnology Industrial Research program, and theCentre for Oil Sands Sustainability within the Northern Alberta Institute of Technology (NAIT), the molecularbiology unit at the Laurentian Forestry Centre, and Canadian Natural. If successful, this project will result in acost effective, progressive dewatering prototype capable of passively transforming tailings into a soil systemsuitable for reclamation, and will be scalable for field deployment
