Sponson Group Inc., 1301 East Debbie Lane, Suite 102, Box #102, Mansfield, TX 76063, USA.
Sponson Group Inc., 1301 East Debbie Lane, Suite 102, Box #102, Mansfield, TX 76063, USA.
Mar Pollut Bull. 2021 Sep;170:112665. doi: 10.1016/j.marpolbul.2021.112665. Epub 2021 Jun 29.
The use of dispersants can be an effective response tool for large offshore spills by applying dispersants on unemulsified slicks and treating as much oil as possible before it becomes too viscous. Assessing the dispersibility of an oil slick under actual environmental conditions is an important step in spill response decision-making. This research seeks to develop a new field kit that is quick and reliable and could be used by spill response personnel without scientific training. The resulting Dispersibility Assessment Kit (DAK) incorporates an automated mixing unit to standardize the applied energy, thereby eliminating the variability in "hand mixing" that is used in other dispersant field kits. The automated mixing energy was studied to determine the optimal mixing regime that correlates with ocean conditions and was incorporated in the DAK protocol. The DAK was validated against 14 oils and emulsions and was successfully tested by response personnel during at-sea demonstration.
使用分散剂可以成为应对大型海上溢油的有效手段，通过在未乳化的浮油上喷洒分散剂，并在油变得过于粘稠之前尽可能多地处理，从而达到这一效果。在溢油应急决策中，评估实际环境条件下浮油的分散性是一个重要步骤。本研究旨在开发一种快速可靠的新型现场试剂盒，即使没有科学培训，溢油应急人员也可以使用该试剂盒。所开发的分散性评估试剂盒（DAK）包含一个自动化混合单元，以标准化所施加的能量，从而消除了其他分散剂现场试剂盒中使用的“手动混合”的可变性。研究了自动化混合能量，以确定与海洋条件相关的最佳混合方案，并将其纳入了 DAK 协议中。DAK 经过了 14 种油和乳液的验证，并在海上演示期间由应急人员成功测试。
