Mining Oil Sand

1. Soil is removed to expose and containing seni-solid petroleum, or bitumen
   
2. The oil sand is loaded onto trucks and poured into a crusher to break up lumps and remove rocks
   
3. The oil sand is then mixed with warm water to create a slurry mixture and transported by pipeline to an extraction plant
   
4. At the plant, the slurry enters a separation vessel. Sand settles to the botton and bitumen and tiny air bubbles form a froth on top.
   
5. The bitumen froth is skinnedoff, later mixed with solvent and spun in a centrifuge to remove water and clay solids. The bitumen can then be processed into crade oil.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tar_sands