Patent ID: 8357291

Claim:
A method of recovering hydrocarbons, comprising: providing a bitumen-froth emulsion containing asphaltenes and mineral solids; adding a solvent to the bitumen-froth emulsion to induce a rate of settling of at least a portion of the asphaltenes and mineral solids from the bitumen-froth emulsion and generate a solvent bitumen-froth mixture; and adding water droplets by a spray nozzle system to the solvent bitumen-froth mixture to increase the rate of settling of the at least a portion of the asphaltenes and mineral solids, wherein the water droplets are added in a concentration of from about 0.01 weight percent (wt %) relative to bitumen to about 10 wt % relative to bitumen, and wherein the addition of the water droplets increases the size of the asphaltenes from about 10 microns to at least about 1,000 microns.