Properties of cementitious material incorporating treated oil sands drill cuttings waste

Oil sands drill cuttings waste represents one of the most difficult challenges for the oil sands mining sector. Reducing the amount oil sands drill cutting waste sent to landfill offers one of the best solutions for waste management. The present work offers an innovative solution for the recycle and reuse of treated oil sands drill cuttings waste (TOSW) in grout manufacture. In this study, the physical, chemical and mineralogical characteristics of the treated oil sands drill cuttings waste were investigated. Fresh and hardened properties for grouts incorporating the treated solid drill cuttings waste were evaluated. The results show that incorporating up to 20% of the treated solid drill cuttings waste as a partially replacement of cement will not adversely affect the properties of the grout. Leaching tests evidenced the reduction in the release of heavy metals from the tested mixtures compared to that of the raw waste indicating successful stabilization/solidification of such waste in the grout.