A REVIEW AND EVALUATION OF BASIC TECHNIQUES FOR PREDICTING THE BEHAVIOR OF SURFACE OIL SLICKS

Despite improved techology and tighter legal regulations, the increased production and transport of oil on the oceans will inevitably result in spillage from ships or drilling sites. Accurate prediction of the transformation and transport of the oil will be necessary to avoid environmental and economic damage from such spills. This Sea Grant report is a comprehensive review of existing techniques for wind field modeling, slick advection, oil transformation and composite modeling. Specific evaluations are made of 15 composite models on the basis of time and dimension scales, incorporating the strengths and limitations of assumptions that can currently be made. Future research and data needed to improve the accuracy of predicting the transport of oil by wind, wave and current in different locations are outlined. Current skills and future requirements in long-range weather forecasting are also covered by this report.

• Supplemental Notes:
  • Price is $5.00.
• Corporate Authors:

  Massachusetts Institute of Technology

  Sea Grant Program, 77 Massachusetts Avenue
  Cambridge, MA  United States  02139
• Authors:
  • Stolzenbach, K D
  • Madsen, O S
  • Adams, E E
  • Pollack, A M
  • Cooper, C K
• Publication Date: 1977-3

Subject/Index Terms

• TRT Terms: Dynamics; Mapping; Mathematical models; Oil spills; Simulation
• Old TRIS Terms: Oil spill behavior; Oil spill mapping; Oil spill simulation; Oil spreading dynamics
• Subject Areas: Environment; Marine Transportation;

Filing Info

• Accession Number: 00165885
• Record Type: Publication
• Source Agency: Massachusetts Institute of Technology
• Report/Paper Numbers: MITSG 77-8
• Files: TRIS
• Created Date: Dec 8 1977 12:00AM