Measurements to Estimate the Downward Heat Flux from a Burning Oil Pool

Abstract

Oil spills in ice-covered waters pose unique challenges to remediation activities. In-situ burning is a potential remediation technique that has shown promising efficiency in earlier trials. An element of in-situ burning is the feedback between the flame of a burn on ice and the melting, oil-infiltrated ice beneath. To measure the vertical downward heat flux, a series of burns were performed on a concrete platform instrumented with temperature sensors. The oil pool had a diameter of 200 mm and burn times were between 5 and 15 minutes. The heat flux was determined beneath the pool at the center of the platform. The heat flux was determined beneath the pool and the center of the platform. The heat flux into the platform increased with time, reaching 10 to 15 kW/m² beneath the flame during burns of crude oil. Diesel, and intermediate fuel oil (IFO 60). The heat flux from crude oil burning on a pool of water was up to 1 kW/m² prior to the vigorous burn phase (boil-over), and 5 kW/m² during that phase. The measurements provide a constraint for experiment design and modeling of in-situ burning of oil on ice.

Measurements to Estimate the Downward Heat Flux from a Burning Oil Pool