Burning now an option to clean up ocean oil spills previously thought incombustible — Every time there’s been a major catastrophic oil spill, you could’ve found me wandering around with a numbed look (different from my usual numbed look) and wondering with anyone who would listen to me why they couldn’t dispose of the oil slick by igniting it. Now,

“…researchers have shown in laboratory experiments that some open water oil spills previously thought to be

incombustible potentially can be cleaned up via burning, the most efficient, rapid and environmentally friendly option…. When feasible, it is an

inexpensive technique that can have a very high efficiency of removal, possibly greater than 99 percent. The burning is very rapid and any

resulting ecological damage is less severe compared to conventional oil removal methods.

However, the window of opportunity for using burning is often limited by wave and wind conditions and by the proximity of the spill to

populated areas. In addition, over time, oil spilled at sea becomes mixed with water forming an emulsion that is difficult or impossible to ignite.

Now, Penn State researchers have widened the applicability of burning by showing that diesel fuel emulsions up to 80 percent water and crude

oil emulsions up to 35 percent water can be ignited. In laboratory experiments, they demonstrated that positioning an external radiant heat

source near the spill facilitates ignition. In addition, they have developed simple charts for use as a quick reference to determine the minimum

external heat source needed to facilitate burning.” EurekAlert!