Naked Science Forum
General Science => General Science => Topic started by: Geezer on 16/07/2010 02:49:58
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Yeah! BP finally seems to have plugged the leak.
But why did it take a "technology company" (their words, not mine) so long to figure it out?
It seems like they cut off the top of the well stack then shoved a controllable cork in it. Did I miss something?
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They've plugged it but it does'nt sound like a permanent solution
But BP is stressing that even if no oil escapes for 48 hours, that will not mean the flow of oil and gas has been stopped permanently.
And they may even open it up again to pump oil to the surface
If the pressure remains high, BP and the government will have to decide whether to try to keep the well shut or to leave it open and pipe oil to four vessels on the surface.
The US government's incident commander, Adm Thad Allen, said even if it was successful, the well would be reopened and oil capture by ships on the surface would restart while a seismic test was done.
I think their permanent solution is still the relief wells that should be ready sometime next month - guess it's just a case of wait and see now.
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Could it be, the priority is focused on the capturing the oil?
It seems to reason, maybe in this business situation, slamming shut the door might possibly disable any future potential drilling for this oil?
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presently theyre monitoring the pressure of the well as they closed the leaks of the cap slowly. a significant drop in pressure would indicate a leak from below the BOP & would make the final plugging of the well harder. to plug the cap now could jeopardize the integrity of the pipe below the BOP
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Reason it took so long is that initially they cut corners ( and both them AND the regulators that were supposed to provide oversight are equally to blame for that) and made this problem. Then they had to get the repair parts made ( these are not exactly something you can go and buy at the corner hardware shop in a range of sizes and colours for a pound) and ship them out to what is essentially the middle of the gulf. Then you have to drop them to the bottom of the sea and assemble this over a pipe that is bent, buckled and also blowing out oil at a pressure so high that you can burst nitrogen cylinders with it. Add to this having to use remote operation ( remember you are way beyond the depth of any diver no matter what they breathe) using submarines that are both clumsy and delicate and not terribly maneuverable or cheap. Then you also need the people who are trained and can use this equipment, they are both not plentiful and not cheap, and may already have other work to do.
After all this they did cap it, and hopefully this temporaty cap will hold until they can plug the pipe further down and install a better valve system to capture the oil ( you still want to take it to a refinery, closing down oil production there in the gulf means oil companies buy oil from other places, like Nigeria ( love the blood oil in your car?) or ration fuel supplies) in a production well.
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I suspect they tried the other collection methods first because they didn't want to put any back pressure on the well. The method they just implemented could cause the well bore to fail, which might make matters a lot worse. I'm sure they could have tried this method much earlier, but I can understand why they might have been very reluctant to try it.
So far so good though. Let's hope it holds until they get a chance to seal it properly at the lower end of the bore.
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Reason it took so long is that initially they cut corners ( and both them AND the regulators that were supposed to provide oversight are equally to blame for that) and made this problem. Then they had to get the repair parts made ( these are not exactly something you can go and buy at the corner hardware shop in a range of sizes and colours for a pound) and ship them out to what is essentially the middle of the gulf. Then you have to drop them to the bottom of the sea and assemble this over a pipe that is bent, buckled and also blowing out oil at a pressure so high that you can burst nitrogen cylinders with it. Add to this having to use remote operation ( remember you are way beyond the depth of any diver no matter what they breathe) using submarines that are both clumsy and delicate and not terribly maneuverable or cheap. Then you also need the people who are trained and can use this equipment, they are both not plentiful and not cheap, and may already have other work to do.
After all this they did cap it, and hopefully this temporaty cap will hold until they can plug the pipe further down and install a better valve system to capture the oil ( you still want to take it to a refinery, closing down oil production there in the gulf means oil companies buy oil from other places, like Nigeria ( love the blood oil in your car?) or ration fuel supplies) in a production well.
SeanB, You opened my eyes!
Yes the Regulators were not doing their job, and all involved cutting corners.
OH boy I guess with all the talk in the News about the hazard caused by this event, somewhat affected my impression.
I personally overlooked or rather taken sort of lightly that at that depth, it is not as simple as replacing a head gasket on an engine in your back yard, or washing the dirt off the dishes in the sink. Yep I know I can not get specialty items of that magnitude from the local hardware distributor or from a plumbing supply house.
Running the Mega buck equipment a mile below sea level is like engaging a the hardball real life video game while being under the gun.
Talk about pressure.
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I do have (2) small questions relate to this...
When this distruction first occurred, the mass of the collaping delivery tube from the BOP to the ocean surface, as it was submerging, could it have put a strain and maybe have caused some fracturing at the base or below the Wells sea floor exit port, or some fatigue to its structure ? Is that the reason they are being cautious?
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When this distruction first occurred, the mass of the collaping delivery tube from the BOP to the ocean surface, as it was submerging, could it have put a strain and maybe have caused some fracturing at the base or below the Wells sea floor exit port, or some fatigue to its structure ? Is that the reason they are being cautious?
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Yes, I think they were very concerned that the casing might fail under pressure. It might still.