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Oil Spill Challenge “Solution Revealed” #1: “Hypalon” containment

ed-melcarek

The days and weeks pass, and oil continues to blast upwards from the bottom of the Gulf. And as time marches on, we continue to receive submissions from you about how to stop the gushing oil and protect the coastline. Because of the importance and magnitude of this disaster, and because we want to keep you apprised of various InnoCentive activity around this Challenge, we are glad to share during the coming weeks the details of several key solutions and ideas we’ve received from you. Today’s post is a summary of a submission by Ed Melcarek, who is a seven-time winning InnoCentive Solver.

This is a stopgap “band-aid” containment solution at the deep water well head. The oil is directed to the surface with a flexible structure resembling an inverted funnel.  This flexible structure is made of “Hypalon” fabric used in making inflatable watercraft, like Zodiacs. It is highly resilient to abrasion, tensile forces, and is inert to volatile hydrocarbons. The inverted funnel structure has ballast weight inside the outer rim pipe perimeter, and is lowered over the leaking wellhead on the ocean floor via a nylon rope tether.


funnel

Once in place on the ocean floor, it is not physically attached to the wellhead in any way,  it simply directs the expelled oil, which has buoyancy, to the top of the funnel where it enters a pipe leading to the surface. A pump on the surface would egress the oil/ice slurry out of the polypropylene pipe.

Hypalon fabric is available in 8-foot wide rolls, and is designed to be joined together with adhesive. It can also be stitched together as added insurance for strength.

Once cured, the resulting seams are very strong in shear. The pipe to the surface must be polypropylene. It is cheap, available, and has buoyancy in seawater. It is easily welded and machined. It comes in standard 20-foot lengths so it has to be connected in segments. 8″ IPS Schedule 80 is standard. Considering the wellhead is a mile deep, some 265 segments would be needed. The weight of the stainless steel bolts at the connections will make the pipe essentially neutrally buoyant in salt water, an important attribute when lowering and installing the structure into position.

surface

This polymer is highly resistant to coatings of any kind, and has a coefficient of friction approaching that of Teflon.  It is available up to 12″ IPS, and is a standard stocked item readily available.

The pipe segments are bolted together vertically as the funnel is lowered to the sea floor. Provisions would be made to accurately position the funnel over the wellhead. A single guideline anchor on the wellhead structure could be sent to the surface. This would guide the funnel downwards through the mile-deep water column towards and over the wellhead, while the neutral buoyancy of the pipe would provide vertical stability and lateral flexibility in the water column. Nothing will adhere to the polymer pipe or the Hypalon composite fabric; not oil, ice, or any out-gassed compound from the crude.

The problem encountered with the 100 ton concrete structure was  the accumulation of ice on the inside surfaces, blocking the flow of crude oil through the egress piping. Coating the inside surfaces of any concrete / steel structure with Teflon paint could be problematic in that it is not known how the coating behaves under the pressure and temperature. If it spills on the surface of the concrete, it would leave a nucleation site for ice to form and accumulate. And, rather than trying to supply heat from the surface in some form like steam, to abate the crystallization, this solution simply prevents the ice compounds from adhering to the incident surfaces. The ice crystallization will still occur, but will not adhere to the inside surfaces of the polymer materials, leaving the oil / ice  slurry completely mobile. The oil, ice and water slurry can be pumped out at the surface through the polypropylene pipe. The propylene cable tether remains in place to provide stability with regards to currents, while the pipe deflects in the water column. The simplicity of the proposed solution also provides it to be deployed in a number of different leakage locations, as is the case at the site. The time window for fabrication and deploying this solution would be a fraction of a re-design and re-build of any concrete / rebarrred structure, including cost.

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  • Bryan Collins

    excellent tent encapsulization and I agree to the point that I am unsure of what pressures we are actually dealing with. My math and average fo calc’s based upon the actual total ft.hd at the well head depth and those dirived figures on the actual kpa psi at the head a mile down still translate into some mighty powerfull kpa / psi at sea level pressures. I woudl have to assume that multiple tent over vertial connections woudl have to be employed into the design and sent vertical to surface over collections and again connected into several pipes or one large holding pond where ships could vac it to the holds. My point is are you basing the design on containment of volume, pressure or all the mixed liquids and gases moving to the surface ? I do like the idea with some additional tweeking, still, I beleive my collins insertion throttle valve would also work, given some had the nerve to open the pipe flange to make the physical penetration and seal. what I have not actually found is the method by which they presently actually connect to the well heads to bring the fluid surface side while the rigs /ships remain in a motion state i.e. where does the ship to well head flex take place and what compensates for fixed stationary to moving connections ? anyway, congrates on your selection, I woudl like to see it in op…Bryan C

  • http://1issue1.com CraigLinq

    I’ve been considering a tent like structure over the well head as a solution followed by a riser to the surface. The are some imaginary or self imposed constraint that could be thrown out.

    First constraint to be disregarded is the pressure/flow juggernaut that is extremely difficult to manage with the obvious pressure and flow from the well head. With previous attempts to make a direct connection to the well head it is clear that simply connecting another pipe from the well-head to the surface is impossible and dangerous.

    Rather than channel the pressure to the surface, allow the pressure to dicipate the well head then provide a tent ( about 1000 ft in diameter) to catch the less dense elements (oil product to the surface whereas a counter current of aqueous brine will circulate toward the bottom and can exit from the bottom of the tent. The roughly cone shaped structure will be held up by the flotation of petroleum products and would be considerably more stable as tension structure like those clustered over airports as roofing. Such structures would be much less likely to fold and twist and would provide complementary friction and flotation gradient.

    This tent would be continuous with a large riser with the shape of an elongated hour glass with a large throat. The top of the riser containment boom has to be large but the portion because there is not deterrent to flow. So the amount that is coming out of the head or it will be lossed. The top boom has to be designed for very deep containment and extensible segments for tidal variations since it will eventually stat spilling.

    I could go on- speculating in various materials and geometries for containment should anyone run out of other ideas.

    Allow me to, make my point again. The velocities and flow at the pump seeming to be encouraging engineer to contain the well at its source. More feasible is to allow the crude into a larger contained area
    where the crudes tendency to be lighter than water will slowly separate it from the water and float up a properly designed flexible tube where an extensible joint allows the aggregated crude to float in the ocean until it is promptly suctioned into tankers.

  • Hugh

    In our search for solutions we must remember that the 100,000 barrels of oil per day are escaping at likely 30,000 psi. This per a world-class scientist who left BP Alaska after it took over from ARCO and
    BP *destroyed* all of ARCO’s meticulously collected scientific records regarding the conditions of the oil pipelines and processors. BP is one sick puppy. Indeed, a criminally insane puppy?

  • Steven Walker

    What has frustrated me most about BP’s response to this problem is that they managed to assemble this BOP stack down there in the first place. Some of the media stories might lead you to believe this thing fell off a passing aircraft, and ended up at the bottom of the sea by accident ?

    BP always intended to pump this stock from this depth. They have – had ? all the kit they needed to bolt the BOP to the top of the line casing, and then couple up the original riser to the top of all that. What happened to the equipment they used when they assembled that thing down there.

    All through the desperate video feed; we have been looking at a perfectly serviceable raised face flange, coupling the broken pipe to the top of the valve stack. Everything has screamed to clear away the fallen riser; unbolt, cut off, blow off; the bolt heads, securing the flanged coupling, and fit a new riser. Bingo !

    - the leak would be controlled, and BP get their oil well back; everyone is a winner. Yet day in, day out they seem to have done nothing more effective than poke at the thing with a stick ??

    They assembled that BOP on the end of the casing in the sea bed; the coupled up the original riser ? – what happened to the submersible, and the team of guys who did that ? Have BP got themselves into such a panic that they are unable to remember how they assembled that valve stack down there in the first place ?

    For all ingenuity in these articles; the greatest question is “how did BP do it in the first place, and what is preventing them from doing it again now ?” Truly perplexing.

    Steven Walker

  • John Davidson

    There is a pumping system called an airlift where air is injected into the suction end of the pipe so that the density of the liquid/air mixture is lower than the outside liquid – used for sucking things up from river bottoms etc. Only works when about 2/3 of the lift is below water. Airlift considerations have a number of implications for the tent idea:
    1. If there is negligible gas in the well discharge the suck into the tent might be enhanced by pumping gas back into the line at some point. (Preferably not all the way to the bottom – this adds to costs and will increase the length of the pipe that needs to be larger/duplicated to handle the gas/oil mix.) It is desirable that there is a net flow of seawater into the tent to reduce the escape of oil.
    2. If there is appreciable gas this needs to be taken into account when sizing the pipe and/or deciding how many pipes to use. Keep in mind that it is often easier to set up a number of small pipes than one big one.
    3. Not sure but there may be points along the pipe where the pressure inside the pipe is lower than the outside pressure. This is more likely to occur if there is gas inside the pipe. The risk of pipe collapsing due to these pressure differences should be considered when selecting the pipe(s)

  • Dolf Van Meerbeeck DSc

    A variation on a theme, but not that much thoughts and calculations in it. Hypalon is compromised at that depth. 160 bar = 16 MPa = 2,320 psi -see compressive strength.
    Don’t forget that well has a potential minimal 10,000 psi to 18,000 psi plus.
    No real dealing with hydrate clathrates and RPT.

  • mark

    concider useing steele cables thew flange as guide wire and stability for sleve made from bladders, which also can be quick glued and deployed around marriage flange.

    That should fish!

  • David Isham

    Maybe, one of these young kids with an engineering degree can solve this problem? All of us older guys are working on non ‘Oil’ energy issues! Screw oil!

  • Arjuna Perera

    I tend to agree with David Isham. As fossil fuel gets rarer wells will be going in to harsher territory thus greater the risk of a mishap. Its time we switched on to non-oil formats as much as possible to cut down on the requirement of oil.

    The tent idea looks good, but why not couple it with a water + oil extraction process for the contents within the tent for separation? Settlement tanks are a good start to reduce water volume. The remainder can be then subject to the usual refinery process which will get the balance water out?

    Given the billions that BP needs to fork out, isn’t it better to have this type of setup as a one time build?

  • Larry Neiderhiser

    Why did they not just weigh that pipe down and then clamp the pipe together in the first place? They could have done this in just a couple of days. It would have saved a real mess. Then if there were any more leaks elsewhere, Ed Melcarek’s method would kick in. Well, after this last couple of months, I am still seeing the oil spewing. This makes me think that they are not going to cap that well ever. Thousands of suggestions and they aren’t doing a thing that I can see. All I am seeing is that oil etc. jetting out. They seem to want that oil even if they just get a portion and the rest lost into the ocean.
    Well, ho hum.
    Larry

    P.S.

    I just heard that Russia tried the to cap an oil well a few years back by drilling relief wells. The eleventh relief well finally made contact and they were able to cap it. The question is how many and how long will it take to cap this one.

  • Bill Brydges

    It seems to me that the pressure issue could be solved by just reversing the funnel – in other words narrow it near the bottom at the wellhead and then an increasingly wide diameter up to the surface where the various pieces of the funnel could be tethered to ships. Effectively, what that would do is limit the oil’s spread and focus it for skimmer and containment ships to be able to siphon it off. I think the challenges occur when trying to deal with the pressure into shrinking diameters, but it would seem something that resembles a tornado loosely around the well would simply route the oil into a somewhat confined space where it could be collected. If the oil is bouyuant, the path of least resistance will be up to the surface where it can be pumped off. I’m sure there are complexities here I’m missing, but it seems like the main focus should be on avoiding the pressure issues by giving the oil a place to go.

    They could even try concentric versions of the funnel in increasing diameters.

  • http://www.forgioneengineering.com Matteo Forgione

    I agree with John Davidson that an airlift would be required in this configuration. We use them to “pump” slurry from deep drilled shafts at amazing rates with small compressors. Lowering the density of the oil/water/air mixture in the column inside the “tent” and tube would create a high up lift force due to buoancy, and the tent portion and pipe may need to be anchored to the sea floor with robotically installed rock anchors. If a fabric tube is used, the buoyancy for could exceed the tensile strength of the material and high strength wire rope could be used running parallel to the tube in pairs from one joint to the next, segregating the mechanical functions, one for strength, one for plumbing. There may definitely be issues with a fabric pipe collapse. Buying long lengths of pipe from a mega ERW pipe manufacturer like Stupp may allow for fewer connections to the sea floor.

  • http://www.semco,com/www.podenergy.net Dick Hogan

    We submitted a similar Proposal to Horizon using inverted cone, geotextile fabric, multi-layered tube as/or pipe. Diameters could be 12 to 15 feet and each layer allows 15 to 30 inches of self- expanding layer separations. (Minimizes Bill’s pressure question) It is much less expensive, and one maker has a thickness that comes close to strength of the hypalon which is way more costly. A design employing both geotextiles and hypalon is feasible. The seafloor end would be initially open (But closable) around all existing gushers. Its first layer would contain the petroleum in the middle, and have a sieve size to allow water and silt to migrate to the next outer layer(s). The seafloor end of all layers would be one; tha is, layers could/should be seamed perhaps fo feet above floor to initialize the other separate layers. Sieve size of all interior layers would be and allow sand/silt to filter water and silt to outer layers. The last outer layer can be impermeable to allow warmer interior water to filter outward and maintain the upward flow rate. Each layer may then rise due to buoyancy, even at differing rates due to water and crude temperature variances–all the while filtering the mile long trek of petroleum to surface.
    Surface capture would be processed as currently done. But letting the water escape as needed in upward flows would aid pump actions. Options include inflatable surrounding and inflatable hoses to maintain “pipe” diameter disciplines and alternating to gently “pump” the upward flowing fluids.
    These comments are added late in the process to essentially agree this method will work. It permits ongoing gushing to continue as it very well might like it or not. We join in agreeing that this should be started and become a model of Safety First preparations should further deep water drilling be continued. I think we all know the long term future says we should continue in a more safely designed system as this whole set of comments/blogs envisions. Our geotextile inverted curtain was initially submitted June 2nd and Horizons’ polite reply encouraged us to continue. We contacted several geotextile makers and diameters of tube can range 6 feet to fifteen feet, lengths over 100 feet. Seaming on site. Each mile long layer would cost $528,000 and up to 600K. Sieve sizes could be varied and anchor minimized by considering buoyancies of available materials. Availability of materials will be very quick.
    INNOCENTIVE: Keep together on bringing this up-to-date innovative solution to a national model, safer and essential to maintain a seawater and petroleum access environment for our grandchildren and beyond! We are over 2 million barrels crude spilled and wasted and still gushing.

    Thank you from the SEMCO team, Dick Hogan

  • Dornean Radu

    Here are two problems:
    •First problem is to stopped the eruption of the oil into sea
    •Second is to collect the oil of the sea.
    This solution can help to solve the firs problems.
    We consider that is necessary to close the source with solid cone of steel or reinforced concrete to limitation of the volume of oil dispersion and collected the oil by pipes or closed the source by classical method with drilling fluids or concrete.

    The cone is realized of more section placed one over alt, tight on cone surface. If BP will to close the derrick, can fill the cone with material.

  • Mike

    Here is a very similar idea sent by me directly to BP’s site:
    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UM_Jkasze5E

    They evaluated it and said their standard reply which was it was either already thought of or not practical. No comment by them other than that. I can’t see why it wouldn’t work and couldn’t be quickly deployed. Maybe get a few ready for the next oil screw-up.

  • http://ultrawavetheory.com Davidmac

    Folks, the problem here is that BP decided in the beginning to try their best to salvage the well. It would only have taken a very heavy weight that could be inserted into the top of the pipe to plug the leak. If the value of 30ksi from the post above is correct, which seems excessive, and the pipe has a 22″ in flange, which probably puts it at 12 inches diameter then the buoyancy compensated mass would be somewhat greater than 6,800 tons. The navy has enough junk metal lying around to quickly build something that heavy, or even heavy enough to crush the existing piping down into the subsurface material if necessary. No one suggesting such a thing was listened to by BP or the government, who despite their posturing, don’t want to admit now that it could have been done quickly, but with a total loss of use. Now they need a “win”, a fix that allows the well to continue its operation, to save face. All of you who are trying to provide partial fixes will not be listened to either; its just not in their best interest. The only thing they are looking for is a permanent but usable fix. If you have one of those then they will listen, but it’s hard to do anything quickly and simply at those depths. All you have to do is look at how long it’s been, and then how long it actually takes to fix to see that.

    Since I don’t have all of the facts, this is just conjecture on my part. I would like to have someone from BP (or anyone else) tell me why this would not work if I am indeed wrong. The good folks at Innocentive have my contact info., or you can send an email to dam_n_u@yahoo.com.

  • http://none TL Clayton

    As I look over these submissions, the idea forms that they are technical fixes. They use material or techniques already on-the-shelf, meaning, the material is easy to get. The other item they need is money. BP has lots of that. Besides, when your life is on the line, does money count.

    There has been too much foot dragging from all parties–the federal government and BP. I suspect a hidden agenda(s). The federal government has NOT acted with speedily. None of the actors has been transparent. The only thing the federal government did was send down an armed posse and a gaggle of lawyers to sue HIM or IT who was found responsible in a court of LAW. But, taming the gushing oil well was NEVER their purpose. The tools for shutting of the oil flow was never in their kit bag. Bullets and writs will never stop oil flow.

    How convenient it all is. First, there was an explosion. From what? Where was it? Some say it was gas that cause the explosion. Then, the crude oil caught fire. Where did the gas go? What set it off? In the meantime, the entire rig has sunk beneath the waves of the sea beyond our reach. If it was built like a ship, why did it sink so easily?

    Every industrial plant I have ever seen, had a flare or flares. It is cheaper to burn combustible gasses off than capture them, ship them, process them, and maybe sell them. I expect ALL oil rigs to have a flare. To insure that the gas is burned, there is a pilot flame at the top.

    A rig is the most dangerous place on the face of the earth. Crude oil is the most dangerous thing in the world. Everything is in crude oil — from the lightist gas to the heavyist asphalt. Any spark can set it off.

    In the meantime, the politicos are playing games with the lives of millions of people and countless numbers of wild life. Some way to be green, isn’t it?

    In the interum, keep thinking up schemes which might stauch the oil spill. BP won’t listen to you. The oil companies know and you do not. The feceral government will not listen to you either. Who are you? Merely a dump serf.

    TLC

  • http://- Murilo

    Ed, I see that you are a good killer!
    Discovery TV had a show with good part of the catastrophe inside view!
    All technicians are there and they just think exactly from the axle from the BLACK BOX. :(
    They never believed that the platform was going to sink.
    They are in a try to make an interception with two other simultaneous perforations that will take 2 months… :(
    The second try they did was almost exactly the present Ed’s idea, but using an old metallic box with a tube on top, connected to a pump.
    What happen? A surprise for the amateurs!
    With the confined expansion of the gases inside the ‘funnel’, they got large freezing blocks of water+gases! :(
    So, I think that this funnel idea should be done but with a 1500 meter ‘tube’ with entire diameter of 3 meter, what would allow to oil come up ‘naturally’ to recover, losing the gas.
    The most stupid stuff they have done was the use of the solvents, that has being connected OVER the oil and gas scape! Now the shadow we see in surface has the deep of almost 600 meter high!
    They should ask at least a question to brother Lavoisier!
    Funny that, at a point, to cut the steel high quality tube they used a giant hydraulic ‘jaw’!
    My GOD! They should try to adapt this cutter just to smash the tube exit, that now is too short!!! :( (((
    POSSIBLE, here I let a suggestion, they would try this BEFORE that valves set is, the set that is shameful failing.
    In this view they gave the right treat to the question of 11 casualties that was not able to be found.
    Best! Murilo SP july/03

  • http://- Murilo

    Oh, yes… a fast PS:
    - ‘they’ – the oil guys – didn’t show any consistent and mobile technology to separate the oil from water.
    - Sorry for my English. :)
    M.

  • john ford

    i’m no engineer , and at the risk of sounding stupid , i’ll throw it out there…they tried the “hot dog in the hallway ” approach , which anybody could see would not work , but what if they put a bladder around the smaller pipe that would inflate with the pressure from the leak itself , then divert the oil and such up the suction pipe to whatever vessel they were sending it to , with a relief valve so as not to blow the existing pie out , and anything from the relief valve being picked up by the cap funnel……

  • http://www.gulfoilspillsolution.org Jeff Holden

    HI Guys, I just wanted you to know that there is a website http://www.gulfoilspillsolution.org that is championing Similar Solutions to the idea you are discussing. In this case it’s called the Deepwater Oil Recovery System Your idea is actually similar to an idea I had (Also submitted to BP and rejected and submitted to the Coast Guard) and also similar to a whole group of ideas being submitted from around the world by different companies and individuals all with the same basic concept. This group of ideas is now being looked at by Senator Richard Burr’s office in Washington. If you want me to add your designs and animations to the site I certainly will. I have assembled several animations and small scale test backyard videos that different folks have tried. I’m looking for some good test videos. Go to the Similar Solutions of the site to view them Thanks, Jeff Holden of Holden Development jeff@gulfoilspillsolution.org 336-722-2278

  • Ebrahim Vahdat

    Hello;
    It is a good way to collect the slurry (mixed water-oil).
    The huge slurry goes up from the pipe, what can we do after that? Storage? Where? the new problem is done in the other place.
    I think, the huge slurry have to control by recycling or regenerating.

  • JT Streetman

    I just have to laugh, sorry folks but what else can I do ? Getting mad is of course to no avail. BP is an “extraction specialist”, why would anyone expect them to be able to become “overnight containment or disaster recovery specialist” ? Our government should have taken over control immediately .. I like to believe they would have said “Hey, we need all the help we can get, lets try those Innocentive folks!” I came up with several workable solutions the day after it happened, as I see did most of you … The irony is, most of the people at bottom of the food chain in any Oil company is the roughnecks that work on the rigs, could have solved this leak problem. There is absolutely no need for exotic materials or processes, just simple roughneck knowhow and determination. The problem is and was they passed the problem to the suits….

    No, I did not try to post a solution as a solver, I’m a Pragmatist / Realist … Did ANY of you really believe that BP would listen to anyone ?