BP Oil Spill: Engineering Solutions

BP Oil Spill: Engineering Solutions

I started this Blog to engage the engineering community in addressing
the Deepwater Horizon oil spill issues and brainstorming possible
solutions. I will open the discussion with the "Rate of Flow" topic but
feel free to take it anywhere you like. Please keep it to a discussion
of solutions and avoid the vilification of government or industry. I'll
start with a discussion of the rate of flow from the well.



There seems to be an obsession in the media over the quantity of flow
from the Deepwater Horizon spill. The total size of the spill will be
important for assessing the extent of damage caused but for now, it
seems like an unnecessary distraction. It also seems like a fairly
simple hydraulics calculation now that the well pipe has been cut.

I have no experience with oil wells but I do have experience with fire
flow testing at fire hydrants where flow rates are typically in the
range of 1000 gallons per minute (equal to 34,286 oil barrels per day).
To measure the rate of flow from a fire hydrant we use a simple pitot
tube (pitometer) placed into the stream of flow to measure gage
pressure. I don't know why the same technique would not work in this
case.



Alternatively, the rate of flow could be calculated from information
that already exists:



1. Pipe diameter

2. Pipe length

3. Roughness of the interior pipe surface

4. Head loss (the difference in pressure between the oil reservoir and
ocean floor)



If you want to submit your ideas directly to the response team go to
the Alternative Technology Response Form at:

www.horizonedocs.com/artform.php

or submit a white paper at:

href="https://www.fbo.gov/utils/view?id=161d8a6b9fc26c8bc61dce494a836c8f"
target="_blank">https://www.fbo.gov/utils/view?id=161d8a6b9fc26c8bc61dce494a836c8f



Find some useful technical data at:

http://www.energy.gov/open/oilspilldata.htm



Bill Dunn, P.E., President

SunCam, Inc.

http://www.suncam.com

Engineering Solutions

I started this Blog to engage the engineering community in addressing the Deepwater Horizon oil spill issues and brainstorming possible solutions. I will open the discussion with the "Rate of Flow" topic but feel free to take it anywhere you like. Please keep it to a discussion of solutions and avoid the vilification of government or industry. I'll start with a discussion of the rate of flow from the well.

There seems to be an obsession in the media over the quantity of flow from the Deepwater Horizon spill. The total size of the spill will be important for assessing the extent of damage caused but for now, it seems like an unnecessary distraction. It also seems like a fairly simple hydraulics calculation now that the well pipe has been cut.
I have no experience with oil wells but I do have experience with fire flow testing at fire hydrants where flow rates are typically in the range of 1000 gallons per minute (equal to 34,286 oil barrels per day). To measure the rate of flow from a fire hydrant we use a simple pitot tube (pitometer) placed into the stream of flow to measure gage pressure. I don't know why the same technique would not work in this case.

Alternatively, the rate of flow could be calculated from information that already exists:

1. Pipe diameter
2. Pipe length
3. Roughness of the interior pipe surface
4. Head loss (the difference in pressure between the oil reservoir and ocean floor)

If you want to submit your ideas directly to the response team go to the Alternative Technology Response Form at:
http://www.horizonedocs.com/artform.php

or submit a white paper at:
https://www.fbo.gov/utils/view?id=161d8a6b9fc26c8bc61dce494a836c8f

Find some useful technical data at:
http://www.energy.gov/open/oilspilldata.htm

Bill Dunn, P.E., President
SunCam, Inc.
http://www.suncam.com