Re: Oil Sands Extraction Process
Oil sands are a mixture of sand/clays, bitumen and water. Each grain of oil sand has three layers: a layer of water surrounding the grain of sand, with bitumen surrounding the water to form the outer layer. The bitumen is much heavier than other crude oils. Oil sands are often referred to as tar sands or bituminous sands – all these terms are equivalent. However the use of the word "tar" to describe bitumen deposits is inaccurate.