Reducing oil droplet sizes from a subsea oil and gas release by water jetting a laboratory study performed at different scales
Brandvik, Per Johan; Davies, Emlyn John; Krause, Daniel Franklin; Leirvik, Frode; Daling, Per Snorre
Peer reviewed, Journal article
Published version
View/ Open
Date
2023Metadata
Show full item recordCollections
- Publikasjoner fra CRIStin - SINTEF Ocean [1347]
- SINTEF Ocean [1419]
Abstract
The main objective of subsea mechanical dispersion (SSMD) is to reduce the oil droplet sizes from a subsea oil release, thereby influencing the fate and behaviour of the released oil in the marine environment. Subsea water jetting was identified as a promising method for SSMD and imply that a water jet is used to reduce the particle size of the oil droplets initially formed from the subsea release.
This paper presents the main findings from a study including small-scale testing in a pressurised tank, via laboratory basin testing, to large-scale outdoor basin testing. The effectiveness of SSMD increases with the scale of the experiments. From a five-fold reduction in droplet sizes for small-scale experiments to more than ten-fold for large-scale experiments. The technology is ready for full-scale prototyping and field testing. Large-scale experiments performed at Ohmsett indicate that SSMD could be comparable to subsea dispersant injection (SSDI) in reducing oil droplet sizes.