Effects of temperature and wave conditions on chemical dispersion efficacy of heavy fuel oil in an experimental flow-through wave tank

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

Abstract

The effectiveness of chemical dispersants (Corexit 9500 and SPC 1000) on heavy fuel oil (IFO180 as test oil) has been evaluated under different wave conditions in a flow-through wave tank. The dispersant effectiveness was determined by measuring oil concentrations and droplet size distributions. An analysis of covariance (ANCOVA) model indicated that wave type and temperature significantly (p<0.05) affected the dynamic dispersant effectiveness (DDE). At higher temperatures (16°C), the test IFO180 was effectively dispersed under breaking waves with a DDE of 90% and 50% for Corexit 9500 and SPC 1000, respectively. The dispersion was ineffective under breaking waves at lower temperature (10°C), and under regular wave conditions at all temperatures (10-17°C), with DDE<15%. Effective chemical dispersion was associated with formation of smaller droplets (with volumetric mean diameters or VMD ≤ 200 μm), whereas ineffective dispersion produced large oil droplets (with VMD ≥ 400 μm).

Original languageEnglish (US)
Pages (from-to)1550-1559
Number of pages10
JournalMarine Pollution Bulletin
Volume60
Issue number9
DOIs
StatePublished - Sep 2010
Externally publishedYes

All Science Journal Classification (ASJC) codes

  • Oceanography
  • Aquatic Science
  • Pollution

Keywords

  • Chemical dispersion
  • Droplet size distribution
  • Dynamic dispersant effectiveness
  • Heavy fuel oil
  • Temperature effect
  • Wave effect

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