Study of pyrolysis kinetics of Alberta oil sand by thermogravimetric analysis

The kinetics of the thermal decomposition of Alberta oil sand has been investigated by thermogravimetric analysis (TGA) for the study of oil sand pyrolysis characteristics. The TGA experiments were carried out at four different heating rates of 10, 20, 30, 40 degrees C/min up to 900 degrees C to verify weight variation and reaction temperature. The activation energy of the thermal decomposition of Alberta oil sand obtained from the kinetic analysis was similar to that of the previous researches. Also, bitumen was extracted by solvent (toluene, THF (tetrahydrofuran)) and analyzed. Extracted bitumen was analyzed by using proximate analysis, ultimate analysis, heavy metal analysis, heating value, asphaltenes, API, SIMDIS, density, TLC, and molecular weight. The analyses of the extracted bitumen were similar to those of heavy residue.