Flume tank studies to elucidate the fate and behavior of diluted bitumen spilled at sea |
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Authors: | Thomas L King Brian Robinson Michel Boufadel Kenneth Lee |
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Institution: | 1. Centre for Offshore Oil, Gas and Energy Research, Department of Fisheries and Oceans Canada, 1 Challenger Dr., Dartmouth, Nova Scotia B2Y 4A2, Canada;2. Center for Natural Resources Development and Protection, Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, the New Jersey Institute of Technology, Newark, NJ, United States of America;3. Wealth from Oceans National Research Flagship, CSIRO, Australian Resources Research Centre, 26 Dick Perry Avenue, Kensington, WA 6151, Australia |
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Abstract: | An economical alternative to conventional crudes, Canadian bitumen, harvested as a semi-liquid, is diluted with condensate to make it viable to transport by pipeline to coastal areas where it would be shipped by tankers to global markets. Not much is known about the fate of diluted bitumen (dilbit) when spilled at sea. For this purpose, we conducted dilbit (Access Western Blend; AWB and Cold Lake Blend; CLB) weathering studies for 13 days in a flume tank containing seawater. After six days of weathering, droplets detached from the AWB slick and were dense enough to sink in seawater. The density of CLB also increased, but at a slower rate compared to AWB, which was attributed to the high concentration of alkylated polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons in it, which are more resistant to weathering. An empirical, Monod-type model was introduced and was found to closely simulate the increase in oil density with time. Such a model could be used within oil spill models. |
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Keywords: | Diluted bitumen Dilbit Submerged oil Natural weathering Non-conventional oil Flume tank |
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