Patent ID: 7704400

Claim:
A system for washing sand contaminated with hydrocarbons, the system comprising: a plurality of reactors for washing and rinsing sand, the plurality of reactors arranged in a sequence from a first reactor to a last reactor, the first reactor configured to receive contaminated sand, each reactor comprising a funnel portion in a lower section thereof for accumulating a layer of sand and a sand conveying device for removing sand in said layer from that reactor through an aperture defined near a bottom of the funnel portion, wherein each reactor except the first reactor is disposed to receive sand removed from a previous reactor in the sequence, each reactor having a fluid outlet associated therewith for removing fluid therefrom; a steam supply system for providing each of the plurality of reactors with steam for washing the sand; a water supply system for providing the last reactor with clean water for rinsing the sand; a separator associated with each reactor and connected to the fluid outlet thereof, each separator configured for separating the fluid from the associated reactor into a first portion containing a relatively low proportion of hydrocarbons and a second portion containing a relatively high proportion of hydrocarbons, wherein each reactor except the last reactor is disposed to receive the first portion of fluid from the separator associated with a next reactor in the sequence for rinsing the sand.