Review of flow rate estimates of the Deepwater Horizon oil spill
Marcia McNutt,R. Camilli,Timothy J. Crone,George D. Guthrie,Paul A. Hsieh,Thomas B. Ryerson,Omer Savas,Frank Shaffer +7 more
TLDR
By quantifying the amount of oil at different locations (wellhead, ocean surface, and atmosphere), it is concluded that just over 2 million barrels of oil (after accounting for containment) and all of the released methane remained in the deep sea.Abstract:
The unprecedented nature of the Deepwater Horizon oil spill required the application of research methods to estimate the rate at which oil was escaping from the well in the deep sea, its disposition after it entered the ocean, and total reservoir depletion. Here, we review what advances were made in scientific understanding of quantification of flow rates during deep sea oil well blowouts. We assess the degree to which a consensus was reached on the flow rate of the well by comparing in situ observations of the leaking well with a time-dependent flow rate model derived from pressure readings taken after the Macondo well was shut in for the well integrity test. Model simulations also proved valuable for predicting the effect of partial deployment of the blowout preventer rams on flow rate. Taken together, the scientific analyses support flow rates in the range of ∼50,000–70,000 barrels/d, perhaps modestly decreasing over the duration of the oil spill, for a total release of ∼5.0 million barrels of oil, not accounting for BP's collection effort. By quantifying the amount of oil at different locations (wellhead, ocean surface, and atmosphere), we conclude that just over 2 million barrels of oil (after accounting for containment) and all of the released methane remained in the deep sea. By better understanding the fate of the hydrocarbons, the total discharge can be partitioned into separate components that pose threats to deep sea vs. coastal ecosystems, allowing responders in future events to scale their actions accordingly.read more
Citations
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Advanced Sorbents for Oil-Spill Cleanup: Recent Advances and Future Perspectives
TL;DR: Some additional properties are emphasized, which are required by oil sorbents to cope with oil spills under extreme conditions or to facilitate the oil-collection processes.
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Particle Image Velocimetry for Complex and Turbulent Flows
TL;DR: Particle image velocimetry (PIV) has evolved to be the dominant method for velocity analysis in experimental fluid mechanics and has contributed to many advances in our understanding of turbulent and complex flows as mentioned in this paper.
Journal ArticleDOI
Extent and Degree of Shoreline Oiling: Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill, Gulf of Mexico, USA
Jacqueline Michel,Edward H. Owens,Scott Zengel,Scott Zengel,Andrew Graham,Zachary Nixon,Teresa Allard,William Holton,P. Doug Reimer,Alain Lamarche,Mark White,Nicolle Rutherford,Carl Childs,Gary S. Mauseth,Greg Challenger,Elliott Taylor +15 more
TL;DR: The entire shoreline cleanup program has been managed under the Shoreline Cleanup Assessment Technique (SCAT) Program, which is a systematic, objective, and inclusive process to collect data on shoreline oiling conditions and support decision making on appropriate cleanup methods and endpoints.
Journal ArticleDOI
Mineral-coated polymer membranes with superhydrophilicity and underwater superoleophobicity for effective oil/water separation.
Peng-Cheng Chen,Zhi-Kang Xu +1 more
TL;DR: A novel kind of superhydrophilic hybrid membranes for effective oil/water separation prepared by depositing CaCO3-based mineral coating on PAA-grafted polypropylene microfiltration membranes, endowing the membranes with underwater superoleophobicity are reported.
Journal ArticleDOI
Oil weathering after the Deepwater Horizon disaster led to the formation of oxygenated residues.
Christoph Aeppli,Catherine A. Carmichael,Robert K. Nelson,Karin L. Lemkau,William M. Graham,Molly C. Redmond,David L. Valentine,Christopher M. Reddy +7 more
TL;DR: It is hypothesized that biodegradation and photooxidation share responsibility for the accumulation of oxygen in the oil residues, revealing that molecular-level transformations of petroleum hydrocarbons lead to increasing amounts of, apparently recalcitrant, oxyhydrocarbons that dominate the solvent-extractable material from oiled samples.
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