Hydraulic and earth engineering – Fluid control – treatment – or containment – Floatable matter containment
Patent
1995-07-24
1997-11-18
Graysay, Tamara L.
Hydraulic and earth engineering
Fluid control, treatment, or containment
Floatable matter containment
405 66, 405 67, 2102424, 210924, E02B 1504
Patent
active
056880740
DESCRIPTION:
BRIEF SUMMARY
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The invention relates to an oil barrier according to the preamble of the claim.
With oil transporters becoming steadily larger, the environmental risk due to leaking oil also becomes steadily higher. In oil disasters during the past years, entire coastal areas have been highly contaminated, and life in the sea below the threatened areas has been completely annihilated. For this reason, attempts were made--e.g. during the Gulf war--to prevent the leaked oil offshore, especially of the shore of Saudi Arabia, from spreading and to readsorb it by suitable means. According to French Patent 2 646 189, attempts were made, to blow mineral fibers which were made hydrophobic onto the water surface. Oil was supposed to attach to these fibers, so that they could then be more easily collected and disposed as a mass. The fibers are made hydrophobic with silicone oil, whereby as a result of the short fibers a sinking of these fibers cannot be prevented, so that the sea bottom is still contaminated and soiled. British Patent 1 235 463 introduces a process in which the oil floating on the water is adsorbed by inorganic fibers, whereby the fibers have been previously provided with a hydrophobic material. The fibers thus float on the oil and attach the oil, which is then removed by burning off the fibers. Not considering the fact that the simple burning of the oil adsorbed by the fibers is not economically justifiable, the burning of the oil itself causes a significant environmental burden. In addition, the storage capacity of the inorganic fibers simply sprayed and placed onto the water surface is minimal, so that only small amounts of oil can be adsorbed from the water safely and only for a short period. A particular disadvantage is that in all of these prior art solutions, the fibers are placed loosely on the water surface, so that it is usually not even possible to prevent the oil spill from spreading further once it has leaked or occurred. For this purpose, German Patent 41 40 247 suggests that from glass wool materials which were made hydrophobic, a barrier is formed by placing these glass fibers into a perforated tube. The oil is able to enter the tube and the glass wool through the perforation, where it is bound accordingly and is stored until the barrier is removed from the water and is disposed. The disadvantage here is that this oil adsorber or the corresponding barrier floats on the top of the water surface, so that it cannot be prevented that oil exits below the barrier into the area beyond the barrier during waves. In FRA-2 111 239 an oil barrier having two parts is shown, in which the foam material substance floating on the water is water-proof or hydrophobic. The upper area consequently cannot absorb either water or oil, nor any substance similar to oil. It acts in the swimming position while stabilized by the water porous foam material part, exclusively as a barrier, which for example, prevents the oil from expanding over a surface area. The lower part which is submerged in the water can--if at all--absorb only limited amounts of water due to the foam. Even though its volume is substantially greater than that of the upper part, it is not suited, particularly in the event of high waves as a stabilizing keel.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The invention is thus based on the objective of creating an oil adsorber which can be easily placed on and removed from the water, which also lies in the water safely during high waves, and is not penetrable by oil, and which furthermore is easy to produce and work with.
The objective of the invention is realized in accordance with the invention characteristics contained in claim 1.
This design has the unexpected effect that the oil barrier places itself always in the same shape on the water surface, since the fiber mats very quickly take up so much water in the lower part that this quickly and surely creates a keel which thus ensures an accurate position of the barrier. Because of the precise and secured keel position the oil spill is unable to pen
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patent: 3981100 (1976-09-01), Weaver et al.
patent: 5071545 (1991-12-01), Ashtary
patent: 5165821 (1992-11-01), Fischer et al.
patent: 5186831 (1993-02-01), De Petris
patent: 5215407 (1993-06-01), Brelsford
patent: 5466379 (1995-11-01), Schiwek
patent: 5468536 (1995-11-01), Whitcomb et al.
Ocean Industry, "Pollution Control Report", pp. 46-61, Jun. 1970.
Creighton Wray James
Graysay Tamara L.
Mayo Tara L.
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