A method of correlating the spread of oil slicks
When oil is spilled on water with a calm surface its spreading is presumed to pass through three regimes, one controlled by gravity and inertia, a second controlled by gravity and viscosity, and a third controlled by surface tension and viscosity. There have been many laboratory experiments on each of these regimes separately, but, because of technical limitations on small-scale experiments, none in which spreading was measured in all three regimes. A method of correlating the results of these separate experiments to produce an overall treatment of spreading through all regimes is presented. The commonly cited conclusions of previous studies concerning the first and third regimes are supported, but the intermediate regime appears to be better described as a continuous transition from the dominance of gravity to that of surface tension.
- Research Organization:
- Department of Industrial Chemistry, Okayama University, Okayama 700
- OSTI ID:
- 5196374
- Journal Information:
- Int. Chem. Eng.; (United States), Journal Name: Int. Chem. Eng.; (United States) Vol. 23:4; ISSN INCEA
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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Related Subjects
020900* -- Petroleum-- Environmental Aspects
520200 -- Environment
Aquatic-- Chemicals Monitoring & Transport-- (-1989)
54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES
BENCH-SCALE EXPERIMENTS
BOUNDARY LAYERS
CONTAINMENT
DISTRIBUTION
FLUID MECHANICS
GRAVITATION
HYDRODYNAMICS
LAYERS
MECHANICS
OIL POLLUTION CONTAINMENT
OIL SPILLS
SPATIAL DISTRIBUTION
SURFACE PROPERTIES
SURFACE TENSION
SURFACE WATERS
VISCOSITY