Deepwater Oil Spills Assessment of Issues and Challenges

1
Deepwater Oil SpillsAssessment of Issues and
Challenges

• Bob LaBelle, MMS
• and
• Cort Cooper, Chevron

2
Issues and Challenges

• Oil Properties/Behavior
• Oil Transport Prediction

-- Source Control -- Response Operations
3
Oil Properties

• Gravity, Viscosity, Pour Point
• Paraffins, Asphaltenes, Sulfur
• Gas Flash Point

4
Plume Behavior

• Emulsification
• Hydrate Formation
• Phase Separation
• Buoyancy
• Droplet Size
• Turbulence
• Currents
• Stratification

5
Subsurface Plume
Surface Flow
Interaction Zone
As Plume Rises
Density Zones
- Pressure
Plume
- Temperature
Current Shear
Jet
Hydrate Effects ?
Seabed
Source
X
6
Trajectory Modeling

• MMS Industry Participation in Late 1997
  Workshop
• OOC and Deepstar Assigned Committee Support for
  Issues
• MMS ESP and TAR Joint Support

7
Trajectory Modeling

• OOC Deep Spills Working Group and MMS Are
  Co-funding
• Clarkson University -- Modify
• Existing 3-D Model for Deep Water
• MIT/University of Hawaii -- Lab Work
• to Support Model Development
• Hydrate Dynamics
• Emulsification
• Possible Field Trial at 1,000 meters

Model
Lab
Field
8
Trajectory Modeling

• MMS Deepstar 4100 Committee Supporting Field
  Release in Norway
• Trial to Validate/Calibrate Numerical Model
• Summer 2000 -- Experimental Design,
  Engineering, Permitting, and
  Coordination With Numerical Modeling Effort

9
Trajectory Modeling

• Prospective Collaborators
• Norwegian Producers Group
• NOAA and USCG
• Environment Canada
• Petrobras
• Target for Completion Late 2000