The impacts of oil sands processed materials (OSPM) on phytoplankton and periphyton community growth and stable carbon and nitrogen isotopes were examined. Estimates of plankton and periphyton community growth, measured as chl a and dry weight, were low and similar in reference and OSPM reclamation wetlands. The use of stable isotope analyses revealed higher δ15N of plankton and periphyton in OSPM wetlands than reference wetlands, possibly due to increased TN concentrations in some OSPM wetlands. In the laboratory, water-soluble fractions (WSF) of two types of OSPM (mature fine tailings, MFT and consolidated tailings, CT) and an amendment material (peat-mineral mixture), potential fill materials in wetland or end pit lake reclamation, were examined for phytoplankton community growth and stable carbon and nitrogen isotopes. All WSF treatments had higher chl a compared to reference water and maximum growth was observed at a 50:50 ratio of peat:CT or peat:MFT. In general, WSFs of peat had the highest concentration of total nitrogen (TN) whereas WSFs of MFT had the highest total phosphorus (TP; 3x higher). The results suggested that the addition of peat as an amendment to OSPM (particularly for MFT), contributing additional TN, could improve phytoplankton community growth in oil sands reclamation. At higher percentages of MFT WSF, there was increased turbidity due to fine clay particles that likely contributed to reduced phytoplankton growth. Turbidity could be an important factor limiting phytoplankton growth and thus reducing dietary resources and biological detritus (via sedimentation) in the initial development of an end pit lake. The WSFs also promoted the unfavourable growth of filamentous algae, highest at intermediate concentrations of peat and CT WSFs and inhibited in MFT WSFs due to light limitation. Stable N isotopes of plankton and filamentous algae suggests that 15N enrichment of algae could be a useful indicator of nutrient inputs, including OSPM seepage into natural aquatic systems, for oil sands regional monitoring programs.

This research is a follow up to preliminary studies reported by Beier and Sego (2008) and the objective is to investigate laboratory scale dewatering of oil sands total tailings using cross flow filtration technology. A laboratory experiment was setup in Oil Sands Tailings Research Facility and tests were carried out under different operational conditions using different tailings. The experiments showed clean filtrate water generated under all test conditions. Coarser tailings and higher filter pipe porosity resulted in greater filtrate flux rate. The effect of slurry velocity, residual bitumen, and transmembrane pressure on cross flow filtration performance was also evaluated. A dimensional analysis was developed using the laboratory tests to establish the relationships between measured parameters and to assist and guide future experimental programs. / Geotechnical Engineering

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Alberta, 2010. / Title from pdf file main screen (viewed on April 1, 2010). A thesis submitted to the Faculty of Graduate Studies and Research in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Chemical Engineering, Department of Chemical and Materials Engineering, University of Alberta. Includes bibliographical references.

Thesis (M.S.)--University of Iowa, 2009. / Thesis supervisor: Lea-Der Chen. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 94-97).

Thesis (M. Sc.)--University of Alberta, 2010. / Title from pdf file main screen (viewed on June 18, 2010). A thesis submitted to the Faculty of Graduate Studies and Research in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Science in Microbiology and Biotechnology, Department of Biological Sciences, University of Alberta. Includes bibliographical references.

Thesis (M. Sc.)--University of Alberta, 2010. / Title from pdf file main screen (viewed on June 11, 2010). A thesis submitted to the Faculty of Graduate Studies and Research in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Science in Chemical Engineering, [Department of] Chemical & Materials Engineering, University of Alberta. Includes bibliographical references.

Thesis (M. Sc.)--University of Alberta, 2010. / Title from pdf file main screen (viewed on July 15, 2010). A thesis submitted to the Faculty of Graduate Studies and Research in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Science in Geotechnical Engineering, Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, University of Alberta. Includes bibliographical references.

Thesis (M.Sc.)--University of Alberta, 2010. / Title from PDF file main screen (viewed on July 2, 2010). A thesis submitted to the Faculty of Graduate Studies and Research in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Science in Food Science and Technology, Department of Agricultural, Food, and Nutritional Science, University of Alberta Includes bibliographical references.

Increased nitrogen (N) deposition onto boreal peatlands and forests is anticipated with further expansion of Alberta's oil sands industry and consequently, an increase in sources of nitrogen oxide emissions. Increased N deposition has the potential to affect peatland flora and alter N cycling patterns in peatlands, therefore it is imperative to investigate at what level of excess N deposition these effects take place. This thesis discusses results from the first two years of a five year N fertilization study being conducted at a peatland complex near the hamlet of Mariana Lake in northeastern Alberta, Canada aimed at quantifying the N "critical load" for these peatland ecosystems. At the study site there are forty-two experimental plots - half in an ombrotrophic bog, the other half in the poor fen - with varying N fertilization treatments ranging from 0 kg/ha/year to 25 kg/ha/year. To investigate nitrogen uptake by plants at the Mariana Lake study site, I measured nitrogen (N) and carbon (C) concentrations of Sphagnum capitulum tissue and vascular plant foliar tissue. For Sphagnum species, I also analyzed C:N ratios and capitulum N storage. To investigate potential growth response of the target Sphagnum species, measurements were taken for linear growth (the vertical elongation of the Sphagnum shoots), stem mass density (the weight of Sphagnum stems occupying a volume after capitula were removed), and ultimately, net primary production (the product of the prior two measurements). Capitulum mass density (biomass) was measured as well to investigate possible changes in Sphagnum capitulum growth. Also, during the height of the growing season (mid-July, 2011 and 2012), the plant communities in each treatment plot were sampled to provide "baseline" data necessary for documenting any shifts in plant distribution or community composition that may occur after N additions.

During the Cretaceous, the CO2 content of the global atmosphere increased in response to the volcanism associated with the disintegration of the former continents. This led to a considerable rise in global temperatures, leading to a significant rise in the global sea level and the landward movement of coastlines. Cretaceous marine strata transgressed directly on the underlying basement or much older sedimentary strata. Extreme environmental conditions in the Cretaceous involved a possibly more acidic and chemically destructive atmosphere than at present, which favoured widespread deep weathering at that time. The extensive Cretaceous palaeo-seaways played a vital role in transporting and depositing the huge volume of sediments generated during the weathering events, which included economically important placer deposits (e.g., gold, diamond and platinum). A direct consequence of the extreme Cretaceous global warmth was the widespread development of Cretaceous silcretes. Much of the world's heavy oil occurs in Cretaceous reservoir sands. The geological processes responsible for the widespread occurrence of the Cretaceous oil sands can also be traced back to the unique Cretaceous greenhouse climatic condition. The warm climatic conditions imply a higher heat flow regime in the subsurface, which contributed to the thermal maturation of the organic rich sediments that are closely associated with the Cretaceous transgressive sands. The oils were generated as conventional light oil, which later degraded into heavy oils, rather than thermally cracked oils from over-matured source rocks. Oils migrated into shallow warm reservoir sands that were favourable for microbial activities. All the studied Cretaceous oil sands show evidence of hopane degradation without the formation of 25-norhopanes despite diasterane degradation in some of the samples. This strongly implies that biodegradation in these studied Cretaceous oil sands occurred at shallow depths. Pyrite precipitated from an open system by means of microbial sulfate reduction as part of the biodegradation process.