Methods for retrieving, reclaiming, or recycling petroleum-based products and byproducts
First Claim
1. A method to remove, retrieve, or recover a petroleum product or a petroleum byproduct from a petroleum-containing mixture, wherein the petroleum-containing mixture is composed of a petroleum-based material or a petroleum-containing material, and an inorganic material or mineral, the method comprising:
- providing the petroleum-containing mixture;
wherein the petroleum product or petroleum byproduct is contained in any of the petroleum-based material or the petroleum-containing material, and is in a solid state at ambient temperature;
submerging the petroleum-containing mixture in a liquid oil-based solution that is heated and maintained at a temperature higher than a phase-change or melting temperature of the petroleum product or the petroleum byproduct;
upon submerging the petroleum-containing mixture in the heated liquid oil-based solution, the heated liquid oil-based solution provides an environmental seal to the petroleum product or petroleum byproduct, so that the environmental seal prevents the sealed petroleum product or petroleum byproduct from degrading or burning, which allows the environmentally sealed petroleum product or petroleum byproduct to achieve phase-change from the solid state to a liquid state; and
wherein the liquified petroleum product or petroleum byproduct dissolves into the heated liquid oil-based solution, to create a liquid composition of oil-based solution and of petroleum product or petroleum byproduct; and
substantially removing, retrieving, or recovering the petroleum product or petroleum byproduct from the petroleum-containing mixture.
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Accused Products
Abstract
A method is disclosed for the retrieval and recovery of organic-based or organic-containing materials, including naturally occurring substances such as crude oil, and other petroleum-based or containing materials, natural gas, and the like, from environments where they are entrained within or otherwise admixed or complexed with other organic or inorganic materials, such as rock, sand, shale and the like. The method comprises: retrieving a quantity of the petroleum-containing mixture, treating the petroleum-containing mixture with a solvent for the petroleum material to separate the petroleum material from the mixture, and recovering the separated petroleum-containing material. The solvent may be at approximately ambient temperature and may be, for instance, heptane, hexane, naphtha, kerosene, gasoline or a petroleum based solvent or any other suitable solvent in which the asphalt binder is soluble.
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Citations
20 Claims
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1. A method to remove, retrieve, or recover a petroleum product or a petroleum byproduct from a petroleum-containing mixture, wherein the petroleum-containing mixture is composed of a petroleum-based material or a petroleum-containing material, and an inorganic material or mineral, the method comprising:
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providing the petroleum-containing mixture; wherein the petroleum product or petroleum byproduct is contained in any of the petroleum-based material or the petroleum-containing material, and is in a solid state at ambient temperature; submerging the petroleum-containing mixture in a liquid oil-based solution that is heated and maintained at a temperature higher than a phase-change or melting temperature of the petroleum product or the petroleum byproduct; upon submerging the petroleum-containing mixture in the heated liquid oil-based solution, the heated liquid oil-based solution provides an environmental seal to the petroleum product or petroleum byproduct, so that the environmental seal prevents the sealed petroleum product or petroleum byproduct from degrading or burning, which allows the environmentally sealed petroleum product or petroleum byproduct to achieve phase-change from the solid state to a liquid state; and wherein the liquified petroleum product or petroleum byproduct dissolves into the heated liquid oil-based solution, to create a liquid composition of oil-based solution and of petroleum product or petroleum byproduct; and
substantially removing, retrieving, or recovering the petroleum product or petroleum byproduct from the petroleum-containing mixture. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20)
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Specification