Alberta Taciuk Process
| Process type | Chemical |
|---|---|
| Industrial sector(s) |
Chemical industry oil industry |
| Feedstock |
oil shale oil sands organics-bearing materials |
| Product(s) |
shale oil synthetic crude |
| Leading companies |
UMATAC Industrial Processes Queensland Energy Resources United States Environmental Protection Agency |
| Main facilities | Stuart Oil Shale Plant |
| Inventor | William Taciuk |
| Year of invention | 1975 |
| Developer(s) | UMATAC Industrial Processes |
The Alberta Taciuk process (ATP; known also as the AOSTRA Taciuk process) is an above-ground dry thermal retorting technology for extracting oil from oil sands, oil shale and other organics-bearing materials, including oil contaminated soils, sludges and wastes. The technology is named after its inventor William Taciuk and the Alberta Oil Sands Technology and Research Authority.
The research and development of the ATP technology started in 1970. In 1975, its inventor, William Taciuk, formed the UMATAC Industrial Processes (now part of Polysius) to further its development. The first ATP pilot plant was constructed in 1977.
The ATP was originally developed for pyrolysis of oil sand. However, its first commercial application in 1989 was dedicated to the environmental remediation of contaminated soils. From 1999 to 2004, ATP technology was used for shale oil extraction at the Stuart Oil Shale Plant in Australia. During that time, 1.5 million barrels (238.48×103 m3) of shale oil was extracted before the owner, Southern Pacific Petroleum Pty Ltd went into receivership. The subsequent owner, Queensland Energy Resources closed and dismantled the plant.
In 2002, Estonian company Viru Keemia Grupp tested this technology; however, it was not taken into use.
The ATP is an above-ground oil-shale retorting technology classified as a hot recycled solids technology. The distinguishing feature of the ATP is that the drying and pyrolysis of the oil shale or other feed, as well as the combustion, recycling, and cooling of spent materials and residues, all occur within a single rotating multi-chamber horizontal retort. Its feed consists of fine particles.
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