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Why does tar sand mining wear out equipment quickly?
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heavy oil and tar sand
Major oil fields of the Arabian-Iranian basin region.
Tar sand mining operations involve the excavation of tar sand using heavy earth-moving equipment to remove overburden and extract the ore. The process causes significant wear on machinery primarily because the material is highly abrasive. Tar sand is composed of sand grains coated in bitumen, and the physical act of crushing and transporting this gritty, mineral-rich ore creates intense friction that rapidly degrades the components of mining and processing equipment.1