Sunken and submerged spilled oils

摘要

Response to any oil spill can be challenging. Responding to spills of oils that sink or become submerged introduces another level of complication. Several organisations around the world are considering how to improve their response to incidents where the oil sinks or submerges. The study briefly described in this article has reviewed the available information and has developed an approach to modelling the behaviour of oils that could sink or become submerged. This will enable the potential problems to be understood in more detail and allow the development of more effective response technologies. The study is due to be completed in February 2009.