Step-scan photoacoustic fourier transform and X-rays photoelectron spectroscopy of oil sands fine tailings: new structural insights.

The chemical and physical properties of clay suspensions from oil sands have profound effect not only on the bitumen extraction process but also on the tailing treatment and reclamation. Step-scan Photoacoustic Fourier Transform Infrared (S2PAS-FTIR) has been used to characterize the properties of clay suspensions. The photoacoustic spectral features of the fine solids (FS) fraction were found to vary drastically with the modulation frequency. This is attributed to the increase in the relative amount of bitumen-like matter in the bulk. A similar behavior was observed on the bi-wetted solid (BWS) fraction, in spite of the fact that the variation as a function of the modulation frequency is less significant. No such change is observed on hydrophobic solid (HPS) sample. These observations allow us to refine our pictorial image of the bitumen fraction materials structure.