Grant: Industrial Research Chairs for Colleges Grants

The accumulation of fluid fine tailings (FFT) in the oil sands industry is a major risk for operators and stakeholders alike. Industry regulations require operators to progressively treat tailings deposits so that they are ready to reclaim within 10 years of end of mine life. With the first two mines set to close in 2032, this requires oil sands operators to treat more than 1 BM3 of fluid fine tailings by 2030 while reducing the total amount of fluid tailings produced from ~1 barrel FFT/barrel oil produced to ~0.75 barrel FFT/barrel oil produced to meet their regulatory approvals. This aggressive goal has created a particular need for increased process optimization and new technology development. Dr. Kaminsky, the NSERC Industrial Research Chair for Colleges (IRCC) in Oil Sands Tailings Management at NAIT, is a neutral third-party working to help validate and de-risk these new technologies to achieve the goal of developing comprehensive solutions to the FFT problem. Dr. Kaminsky is well known in the industry as the "Queen of Clay" and her passion for the importance of clays in oil sands tailings has led to multiple presentations, conferences and papers on the subject. Clays are the biggest driver of FFT development. Hence, over the next five years the Chair's research program will explore the importance of clays in tailings management through three themes: Clay Chemistry Fundamentals, Chemical Amendments, and Physical Processes. In particular, the Chair program will look for new technologies to measure clays, model the impact of clays on tailings production and treatment and develop screening methods to assess the effectiveness of chemical amendments and physical processes in curtailing clays ability to hold water and create FFT. Over the initial five years of the program 45 students will be trained in the area of tailings treatment and clay measurements through this program. Furthermore, Dr. Kaminsky is committed to the transfer of research findings and the training of industry personnel and SME practitioners through the delivery of workshops, technical notes, white papers and hands on laboratory training.