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Spring 2010

Ni, Xiao

Molecular dynamics simulation and density functional theory were applied to calculate heats of immersion (ΔHimm) of n-heptane, toluene, pyridine and water on two model sand surfaces and two model clay surfaces. Our results indicated that water showed the highest ΔHimm for the model clay surfaces...

Fall 2011

Kalantari, Samira

One of the major issues in the current oil sands waste management techniques is a lack of a direct linkage between the long-term mine plans and the quantity of the tailings produced downstream. This research is focused on developing a linkage between oil sands long-term mine plans and the final...

Spring 2011

Frederick, Kurt R.

Biofilms are significant contributors to primary production, nutrient cycling, bio-stabilization and the food web of wetland ecosystems. Photoautotrophic biomass (PB) and primary production (PP) were determined for biofilms exposed to various treatments and materials in wetlands near Fort...

Fall 2012

Dow, Matthew W.

ABSTRACT: The Alberta oil sands represent tremendous economic growth and prosperity for Alberta and Canada but their development does not come without cost. Environmental Non-Governmental Organizations (ENGOs), specifically the Pembina Institute and Greenpeace, have brought significant attention...

Fall 2013

Lozowy, Andriko J

This thesis is a multi-modal exploration of the photographer-researcher as a methodological opportunity to gain multiple, collaborative and collective perspectives on living in relation to the Alberta oil sands zone of North America. Using participatory-photography with youth, this thesis is one...

Fall 2013

Stewart, Matthew

The extraction and refinement of oil sands bitumen produces substantial quantities of liquid tailings and solid coke. Tailings contain metals and naphthenic acids, which require remediation before mine closure. Adsorption is a potential remediation technique which may reuse stockpiled petroleum...

Fall 2013

Zheng, Limin

The high degree of variability of oil sands ores can be attributed to a mixture of different geological end members, i.e., estuarine sand, estuarine clay, marine sand and marine clay. This study focused on the mineralogy, especially of clay minerals, and toluene insoluble organic matter, referred...

Spring 2013

MacKenzie, Dean D

A major barrier to reclamation after oil sands mining is lack of commercially available, diverse native plant seeds and propagules for revegetation. Potential of LFH (forest floor material) developed on coarse textured soil for establishing native plants and how salvage, placement and storage...

Fall 2014

Khan, Muhammad F

The extraction of bitumen from oil sands in Alberta, Canada, leads to the creation of tailings that are contained in lake-sized ponds under zero discharge policy. Stratification of tailings over time leads to the formation of mature fine tailings (MFT), an oil based emulsion containing residual...

Fall 2014

Afshar, Shima

The current water-based method of bitumen extraction requires withdrawal of fresh water from the Athabasca River — a practice which leads to the continual buildup of tailings ponds and other environmental concerns. As Alberta’s bitumen production is expected to more than double by 2020, there is...