TESTING OF A HIGH SEAS OIL RECOVERY SYSTEM
A system for recovery of petroleum products from accidental offshore spills has been developed and tested. The testing has included both model testing and full-scale testing of a 60 ft. long system capable of recovering oil at a rate of 2,000 gallons per minute. The tests have shown the system to be capable of recovering spilled oil at high efficiencies (less than ten percent water in the recovered oil) at the 2,000 gpm rate under environmental conditions ranging from calm to a sea state with eight-foot significant wave height and in currents up to three knots. Tests indicate the system efficiency to be relatively independent of oil specific gravity, viscosity, oil film thickness, wind and wave conditions, oil-water interfacial tension, surface temperature and variation in significant oil type when towed at speeds of one to three knots. The oil recovery rate was observed to be relatively independent of the foregoing parameters with the exceptions of oil film thickness and, within specified limits, the viscosity. The oil recovery system is completely self contained with its own power unit, control systems, and pumps, and is air and truck transportable for rapid deployment to remote spill locations. A double weir system is employed to obtain the high performance of the system, which operates in such a way that oil thickens in front of the primary weir and then further thickens in front of the secondary weir, where it is withdrawn. Typically, the system concentrates free slicks from a thickness of 0.1 inches or less to a depth of approximately two feet in front of the secondary weir. The testing program includes additional full-scale tests, both under laboratory conditions and at sea, to further verify the system performance.
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Supplemental Notes:
- Presented at the 1973 Offshore Technology Conference, Houston, Texas, April 30-May 2, 1973.
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Corporate Authors:
Offshore Technology Conference
6200 North Central Expressway
Dallas, TX United States 45206 -
Authors:
- March, F A
- Beach, R L
- Conference:
- Publication Date: 1973-4
Media Info
- Features: References;
- Pagination: p. 261-274
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Serial:
- Volume: 1
Subject/Index Terms
- TRT Terms: Oil spill cleanup
- Old TRIS Terms: High seas oil recovery; Oil recovery
- Subject Areas: Environment; Marine Transportation;
Filing Info
- Accession Number: 00054073
- Record Type: Publication
- Source Agency: National Maritime Research Center, Galveston
- Report/Paper Numbers: OTC #1750
- Files: TRIS
- Created Date: May 7 1974 12:00AM