Abstract
ABSTRACT A research program is underway to obtain a better understanding of the interaction between spilled oil and sea state in order to predict the dispersion and ultimate physical fate of oil spilled in rough water. In pursuit of this goal, a theoretical study and two laboratory experimental studies are now complete. As a consequence, the lower limit of sea state at which globular dispersion of oil can be effected by ocean turbulence is calculable. The formation of oil globules by breaking waves, the penetration of globules into the water column, and the distribution of oil under breaking wave generated turbulence can also be modeled. A possible mechanism by which a coherent oil slick breaks up into small patches of oil (“slicklets”), caused by breaking waves, is described, and a simplified one-dimensional model of this effect is proposed. Results indicate that a 3 meter (significant wave height) sea will tend to initiate globular vertical dispersion of oil, although this process would take place over only about 13 percent of the oil slick's area. To effect a horizontal surface dispersion, breaking waves with a very long crest length are necessary, a type not ordinarily found in deep water.
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