Mahi Patil - Lab_ Oil Spill Cleanups

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San Jose State University *

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194

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Geography

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Apr 3, 2024

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pdf

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Name: Mahi Patil Period: 3 Date: 3/18/2024 Lab: Oil Spill Cleanup Background On March 23, 1989, oil tanker Exxon Valdez ran aground on Bligh Reef, leaking 11 million gallons of oil into Alaska's Prince William Sound. While the spill was a major disaster, it has provided unusual opportunities for scientific research into the aftermath of a major spill. View the photos of the 25-year anniversary here . Although the Exxon Valdez spill was far from the biggest oil spill in history, and even though it was only one of dozens of major spills that occur every year, this accident gained notoriety because it occurred in the spectacularly scenic Prince William Sound. The area is treasured for its scenic beauty and its wildlife, including sea otters, orcas, and many species of seabirds. Currents carried the oil 500 miles from the wounded tanker, staining 1,400 miles of beaches. At least 300,000 birds and 2,600 otters were killed. Armies of clean-up crews spent over 2 billion dollars blasting beaches with steam cleaners and scrubbing oil from rocks by hand, all under extensive national media coverage. Scientists studying clean-up methods and the effects of the spill reconsidered the effectiveness of human efforts in spill remediation. The $2 billion spent on the Valdez cleanup only captured about 15% of the spilled oil. After the Deepwater Horizon spill of 2010, this article on different cleanup methods was published by CNBC. Oil spill clean up should commence immediately after the accident. Crews use shovels and buckets, as well as vacuum trucks, to control and clean up the spill onshore. Offshore teams use several methods, including: Booms (physical) Floating barriers are set around land and in open water to contain surface oil. Oil can form into clumps that slip under booms. Sorbents (physical) Polypropylene sponges are deployed on beaches or on the water’s surface like a boom. When they fill with oil, they must be replaced, making them more costly than booms. Skimmers (physical) After oil is corralled with a length of boom, floating skimmers suck it onto a ship or barge. This is most effective in skimming fresh oil. Vacuum (physical) They can be used with oil skimmers to suck oil from a spill in water. Another vacuum cleaner can blow bark or other absorbent material onto oil spills, and then sucks the material up again. Dispersant (chemical) Chemicals sprayed on oil to cause it to break up and sink. Dispersants do not reduce the amount of oil in the water, but push the effects of the spill underwater. Objectives ● simulate an environmental disaster in a classroom environment ● analyze the effectiveness of oil cleanup efforts
● discuss cleanup tactics and the environmental impacts of using dispersants Materials ● Pipette ● spoons ● vegetable oil ● paper towels, coffee filter ● forceps ● water ● straws ● aluminum pan ● beaker ● aluminum foil ● dishwashing soap ● flour and baking soda Hypothesis Which of the methods above will most effectively clean up the oil? Write a complete sentence that does NOT say “I think” or “I predict,” but does use “because.” The straws or spoon will be most effective to clean up the oil because the straws will keep the oil from separating further and the spoon will pick up the most oil at once. Procedure 1. Fill your clear tub 1/3rd of the way up from the bottom with tap water from the sink. 2. Pour ~50 ml of colored vegetable oil into the beaker. This represents crude oil. 3. Slowly pour ALL the oil into the center of the water. 4. Make a small aluminum foil “boat” (about an inch wide) and float it in the middle of the oil spill. When you attempt your cleanups, you must try to NOT capsize the boat. 5. Take a photo of your oil spill and insert it into the box below.
6. Discuss with your group whether you will use some or all of the methods AND how you will quantify success in the cleanup. a. Strings and/or straws will act as containment booms . Feel free to cut straw into smaller pieces. b. Spoon will act as a skimmer . c. Paper Towels, coffee filter and sponges will represent sorbents . Use forceps to place and move paper towels to soak up oil. d. Pipette represents a vacuum . e. Flour, baking soda, and dishwashing detergent serves as dispersant . (Use LAST and watch what happens when you add it!) 7. As you remove oil from the water, add it back into the beaker. Remember to be careful not to capsize your boat! 8. Add more oil if any of the materials are successful in removing all the oil. 9. In data table 1, record the materials used, the clean up method, and your detailed observations . Data Table 1: Observations of Cleanup Methods Material Method Pros Cons Rating 1-5 (5 = most effective) 1 straws used as containment booms keeps the oil contained in one area keeps the oil from mixing with the rest of the water outside of the straw none 5 2 spoon skimmer takes a good amount out at a time -may be time consuming 4 3 paper towel sorbents Absorbed some oil Covered a wide range of the spill Spread the oil throughout used up materials quickly 0 4 coffee filter sorbent some of the oil soaked into the filter made the paper floppy and inefficient after dipping it in the first time 1 5 sponges sorbent soaks up a lot at one time makes the sponge dirty quickly 4 6 pipe vacuum Does absorb oil PIcks up water along with it Time consuming 3 7 Dishwashing detergent Chemical dispersant none made the oil sink down 0
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