Abstract: Staged crushing combined with water addition and mixing is practiced at the mine site to prepare an oil sand slurry ready for hydrotransport. More particularly, as-mined oil sand is crushed to conveyable size (e.g. ?24?) using a mobile crusher. The pre-crushed ore product is conveyed to a dry ore surge bin. Ore is withdrawn from the bin and elevated to the upper end of a slurry preparation tower having downwardly aligned process components to enable gravity feed. The ore is further crushed in stages to pumpable size (e.g. ?4?) by a stack of crushers and water is added during comminution. The ore and water are mixed in a mixing box and delivered to a pump box. The surge bin and tower are relocatable. Screening and oversize reject treatment have been eliminated to achieve compactness and enable relocatability.

Abstract: A relocatable oil sand slurry preparation system is provided for preparing an aqueous oil sand slurry amenable to pipeline conveyance while producing minimum overall rejects, comprising (a) a relocatable rotary digester for slurrying oil sand and water and digesting oil sand lumps to form a pumpable slurry, the rotary digester having a feed end for receiving oil sand and water, a slurrying chamber comprising a plurality of lifters for slurrying the oil sand and water, and a trommel screen end for screening out oversize rejects from the oil sand slurry which falls through the trommel screen; and (b) a relocatable rejects recirculation unit operably associated with the rotary digester for receiving oversize rejects and delivering the rejects back to the rotary digester for further digestion. In a preferred body, relocatable oil sand slurry preparation system further comprises a rejects crusher for crushing oversize rejects prior to delivering rejects back to the rotary digester.

Abstract: A process line for separating oil sand slurry comprising coarse solids, fines, bitumen and water, into a first product comprising bitumen, fines and water and a second product comprising coarse solids, fines and water is provided comprising a plurality of countercurrently operating solid/liquid separators arranged in series along a pipeline, wherein the underflow of one separator is fed to the next separator in series and the overflow of each separator is fed to the preceding separator, the underflow of the last separator being the second product and the overflow from the first separator being the first product.

Abstract: A powder form of a hard phase component, selected from the group consisting of boron carbide, silicon carbide and a mixture of boron carbide and silicon carbide, is combined with an aluminum alloy matrix powder and applied to a metal substrate using plasma transferred arc (“PTA”) welding to produce a hardfaced structure having a wear-resisting carbide metal matrix composite overlay. The metal substrate can be any metal structure, such as an aluminum, aluminum alloy, steel or carbon steel structure, where wear resistance is desirable. Further, a process for hardfacing a metal substrate is disclosed comprising feeding a hard phase powder, selected from the group consisting of boron carbide, silicon carbide and a mixture of boron carbide and silicon carbide, and an aluminum alloy metal matrix powder to an operative PTA welding torch and welding to form a carbide metal matrix composite overlay fused to a metal substrate.

Abstract: Staged crushing combined with water addition and mixing is practiced at the mine site to prepare an oil sand slurry ready for hydrotransport. More particularly, as-mined oil sand is crushed to conveyable size (e.g. —24?) using a mobile crusher. The pre-crushed ore product is conveyed to a dry ore surge bin. Ore is withdrawn from the bin and elevated to the upper end of a slurry preparation tower having downwardly aligned process components to enable gravity feed. The ore is further crushed in stages to pumpable size (e.g. —4?) by a stack of crushers and water is added during comminution. The ore and water are mixed in a mixing box and delivered to a pump box. The surge bin and tower are relocatable. Screening and oversize reject treatment have been eliminated to achieve compactness and enable relocatability.

Abstract: A process line for separating oil sand slurry comprising coarse solids, fines, bitumen and water, into a first product comprising bitumen, fines and water and a second product comprising coarse solids, fines and water is provided comprising a plurality of countercurrently operating solid/liquid separators arranged in series along a pipeline, wherein the underflow of one separator is fed to the next separator in series and the overflow of each separator is fed to the preceding separator, the underflow of the last separator being the second product and the overflow from the first separator being the first product.

Abstract: A relocatable oil sand slurry preparation system is provided for preparing an aqueous oil sand slurry amenable to pipeline conveyance while producing minimum overall rejects, comprising (a) a relocatable rotary digester for slurrying oil sand and water and digesting oil sand lumps to form a pumpable slurry, the rotary digester having a feed end for receiving oil sand and water, a slurrying chamber comprising a plurality of lifters for slurrying the oil sand and water, and a trommel screen end for screening out oversize rejects from the oil sand slurry which falls through the trommel screen; and (b) a relocatable rejects recirculation unit operably associated with the rotary digester for receiving oversize rejects and delivering the rejects back to the rotary digester for further digestion. In a preferred body, relocatable oil sand slurry preparation system further comprises a rejects crusher for crushing oversize rejects prior to delivering rejects back to the rotary digester.

Abstract: A powder form of a hard phase component, selected from the group consisting of boron carbide, silicon carbide and a mixture of boron carbide and silicon carbide, is combined with an aluminum alloy matrix powder and applied to a metal substrate using plasma transferred arc (“PTA”) welding to produce a hardfaced structure having a wear-resisting carbide metal matrix composite overlay. The metal substrate can be any metal structure, such as an aluminum, aluminum alloy, steel or carbon steel structure, where wear resistance is desirable. Further, a process for hardfacing a metal substrate is disclosed comprising feeding a hard phase powder, selected from the group consisting of boron carbide, silicon carbide and a mixture of boron carbide and silicon carbide, and an aluminum alloy metal matrix powder to an operative PTA welding torch and welding to form a carbide metal matrix composite overlay fused to a metal substrate.