Sustainable Development Goals
PROJECT INFORMATION AT A GLANCE:
Project Status:
Ongoing; confidential pilot development and application evaluation
Organizations Involved:
Klean Energy, Klean Industries, major oil companies and several tire recycling companies
Services / Equipment:
Design & Engineering, Component Supply, Feasibility Study, Due Diligence, Supply Chain Management
Selected tire-derived formulations have cut heavy-oil viscosity by roughly 60–80% in the laboratory, and the value Klean is developing is a solvent you recover and reuse before refining, not a diluent you charge once. The performance is a premium oilfield application; the recovery circuit is what turns it into a different commercial proposition.
That inverts how the solvent is priced. An ordinary diluent is a purchased input consumed once and gone. A performance solvent with a separation-and-reuse circuit is judged on its lifetime contribution to extraction and its net makeup requirement. In market discussions of premium solvent applications, we have observed indicative price points rising from approximately US$8 to US$15 per US gallon. Those are Klean's application-specific commercial observations, not a published universal market quotation or proof of an executed contract.
The opportunity sits inside wider integrated recovery work. Through Klean Energy, confidential development involving Alberta and Venezuela connects pilot-scale steam-assisted gravity drainage with dewatering, water treatment, hydrocarbon upgrading and assessment of residue gasification.
Extra-heavy oil has a mobility problem, and it cannot be bought out of cheaply. High bitumen viscosity limits movement through reservoir rock, production equipment and transport. SAGD can mobilize the oil, but it brings steam generation, water separation, treatment and energy demand. Conventional diluents improve flow, yet their supply cost, compatibility and disposition shape the economics of the whole operation.
The cheapest solvent is rarely the right one. A downhole fluid must work with the specific crude, reservoir temperature and operating method without creating formation damage, instability, separation problems or downstream refinery impacts. What matters commercially is the incremental recovered oil, the net solvent consumed, the energy used and the value of the final hydrocarbon.
Tire-derived oils add a further opportunity and a discipline. Their composition can include hydrocarbon solvents and terpene-related constituents such as limonene/dipentene, originating at least partly from the natural-rubber content of end-of-life tires. The fraction and molecular composition vary with feedstock and processing, so the stream is not automatically D-limonene and not wholly biogenic. A qualified specialty solvent requires fraction selection, testing, processing and documentation.
Engineer the solvent as part of the complete extraction-and-recovery circuit. Klean has examined tire-derived hydrocarbon formulations alongside confidential integrated heavy-oil development, connecting downhole mobility, dewatering, water treatment, solvent separation, downstream upgrading and potential conversion of heavy residues.
In selected laboratory evaluations, mixtures containing tire-derived oil showed approximately 60–80% lower viscosity than their controls. That is an observed flow-property result under specific conditions, not a claim of the same uplift in field production. It gives a basis to qualify suitable crude–solvent combinations and test whether the viscosity improvement translates into economic recovery.
Recover the solvent before refining. A properly engineered circuit separates the recoverable solvent fraction from produced hydrocarbons so it can be conditioned and returned to service. The recovery rate, solvent held in the formation, unavoidable losses, separation duty and quality after repeated cycles are the pivotal design variables. Recoverability is the engineering advantage, but no universal field-recovery percentage or completed commercial loop is claimed here.
Limonene-related chemistry is part of the value proposition. Terpene-containing fractions can act as hydrocarbon solvents and may improve the mobility and handling of some extra-heavy oils. Solvent compatibility, asphaltene behaviour, reservoir performance and the cost of producing the chosen fraction must be verified for each application. Klean's formulations and processing routes remain proprietary; the objective is a stable, specified solvent, not a raw TPO barrel rebranded as a specialty chemical.
Treat water and residual hydrocarbons as part of the same business. Our wider heavy-oil development includes SAGD-associated water separation, treatment and reuse, hydrocarbon dewatering, and assessment of gasification and upgrading for suitable residues. Heavy oil can also carry trace metals such as vanadium and nickel that may concentrate in certain residues; their recovery belongs to a separate evaluation, not an assumed revenue stream from every crude.
The value of a reusable solvent is not the tonnes of oil blended once. A planning model must keep three quantities separate: the gross solvent inventory in the circuit, the fraction recovered and reconditioned, and the net makeup purchased to replace losses. It then measures the additional recoverable crude or reduced operating burden against manufacture, transport, treatment, separation and capital costs.
The published Klean scenario illustrates gross hydrocarbon blending demand, not reusable downhole solvent consumption. For a 10,000-barrel-per-day final hydrocarbon blend, over 365 days at 0.90 tonnes per cubic metre, indicative shares are:
| Illustrative TPO share of final blend | TPO barrels per day | TPO cubic metres per day | TPO tonnes per year |
|---|---|---|---|
| 0.5% | 50 | 7.95 | 2,610 |
| 1.0% | 100 | 15.90 | 5,220 |
| 2.0% | 200 | 31.80 | 10,450 |
These are market-sizing arithmetic, not recommended dosages, actual offtakes, field injection rates or net purchases after solvent recovery. The downhole closed loop needs a different, recovery-adjusted model, and a higher per-gallon performance-solvent price is justified only where the operator's total recovery and reuse economics support it.
Renewable-content potential also requires precision. Natural rubber contributes biogenic carbon to the tire feedstock, so certain tire-derived fractions may carry verified renewable content. The renewable share of a specific finished solvent must be measured or allocated; the entire mixed stream is not automatically biogenic. A potentially less persistent or more recoverable solvent is not automatically preferable without a project-specific baseline covering emissions, water, toxicity and losses.
A premium, reusable application now sits alongside established fuel and petrochemical outlets for tire-derived oil. The laboratory viscosity findings support further oilfield product qualification, and the engineering work identifies how the solvent could be recovered and reused inside the extraction system. The premium-price observations show why the specialty-solvent route merits attention.
The differentiator is the combination of feedstock and product engineering, oilfield process understanding, equipment integration and customer economics. Klean is evaluating whether a selected tire-derived fraction delivers more total value as a reusable extraction aid than as a one-pass commodity oil, and this is not a claim that every fraction, reservoir or development will benefit.
The same end-of-life tire supplies recovered carbon black, potential zinc- and silica-bearing mineral fractions, and hydrocarbon streams for fuel, petrochemical or premium solvent use. Each product has separate specification, separation, cost and customer requirements; the opportunity is to engineer those choices as a portfolio, not assume everything recovered is immediately saleable.
Three priority lessons selected from the wider experience behind this project. Each highlights a decision that can materially influence technical performance or commercial viability. Through a defined engagement, we apply our broader technology and delivery experience to your project's requirements, risks and opportunities.
1. A measured mobility result opens a specialty-product opportunity. Selected tire-derived mixtures reached roughly 60–80% lower viscosity in laboratory evaluation. The next decision is whether a qualified formulation delivers meaningful field recovery or operating savings for the target crude.
2. Recoverability can matter more than the first gallon's price. Our premium-solvent observations extend from approximately US$8 to US$15 per gallon, but viable closed-loop economics depend on recovery rate, losses, separation duty and net makeup, not a headline selling price.
3. The whole production system sets the value. Downhole extraction, water recycling, solvent recovery and downstream upgrading must work as one system. The integration opportunity is larger than selling undifferentiated pyrolysis oil into a fuel market.
WHAT DO THESE LESSONS MEAN FOR YOUR PROJECT?
For an extra-heavy oil operator, the first step is a paid crude-compatibility and solvent-recovery assessment: characterize the crude, define the intended treatment, evaluate sample performance and build a preliminary net-solvent and incremental-recovery model. For a tire-derived oil developer, the question is whether a qualified performance fraction earns a better market and margin than existing outlets. Where equipment development is required, work proceeds through a paid Detailed Equipment Quotation through Detailed Feasibility Study to Front-End Engineering Design pathway with agreed decision gates.
Evaluate Your Reusable Heavy-Oil Solvent Opportunity with Klean >> GO.
For equipment developments, our paid Detailed Equipment Quotation (DEQ) defines the preliminary technology and investment basis, followed where warranted by a Detailed Feasibility Study (DFS) and Front-End Engineering Design (FEED). Confidential specifications and proprietary process information are considered under an appropriate NDA and engagement.
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ABOUT THE INFORMATION PRESENTED
This case presents our ongoing confidential development and application evaluation. The viscosity finding is attributed to our published project account, and the supply scenarios are planning calculations with stated assumptions. Project identities, formulations, test conditions and operating data remain confidential and are addressed within an appropriately scoped engagement.
This project addresses the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) by considering the goals and associated targets illustrated by the WBCSD's Tire Industry Project (TIP). TIP provides a framework for action that outlines impactful pathways for the tire sector to contribute to achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). To learn more about how our approach, solutions, and technologies contribute to advancing the SDGs, please review the report “Sustainability Driven: Accelerating Impact with the Tire Sector SDG Roadmap”.
