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Estimating diluted bitumen entrained by suspended sediments in river rapids using O2 absorption rate

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Abstract

Suspended sediments and river rapids can cause oil slicks to fragment and sink, greatly complicating the cleanup process of a spill. Responders need methods for estimating the severity of spilled oil entrainment in rivers in order to properly plan resource allocation. This work presents a novel technique for predicting the amount of oil entrained by suspended sediments in rivers, using the atmospheric oxygen absorption rate of rivers as a way to estimate the surface turbulence. The technique may be used by measuring the gas transfer velocity or by using parametric equations for gas transfer velocity based on river parameters such as slope, depth, and discharge rate. In very turbulent rapids, 13 % of a diluted bitumen slick could be brought down by clay-sized sediments in about 10 min if the sediment concentration is high enough, and 80 % would be brought down in 2 h.

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Acknowledgments

The authors thank Ms. Alexis Ramos and Ms. Maria Hansen for their continuing support. We also wish to acknowledge Mr. Richard Crook and Mr. James Schlauch for their invaluable assistance in the laboratory, and Ms. Juliana Perez for her assistance in the laboratory and in the preparation of this text. The authors also thank Dean Shashi Kumar, Captain Joseph Poliseno, and Dr. Mark Hogan for their support of this project. Finally, the authors are grateful to the Canadian Association of Petroleum Producers for providing the diluted bitumen for this project.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Marine Engineering, U.S. Merchant Marine Academy, Kings Point, NY, 11024, USA

    S. Perez

  2. Department of Mathematics and Science, U.S. Merchant Marine Academy, Kings Point, NY, 11024, USA

    P. Furlan

  3. Midshipman 1st Class, U.S. Merchant Marine Academy, Kings Point, NY, 11024, USA

    S. Ellenberger & P. Banker

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  1. S. Perez
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Correspondence to S. Perez.

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Perez, S., Furlan, P., Ellenberger, S. et al. Estimating diluted bitumen entrained by suspended sediments in river rapids using O2 absorption rate. Int. J. Environ. Sci. Technol. 13, 403–412 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1007/s13762-015-0874-2

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