ABSTRACT The application of dispersants to an oil-slick is a key remediation tool and thus understanding its effectiveness is vital. Two in situ oil slicks were created in the North Sea (off the coast of The Netherlands), one left to natural processes whilst dispersant (Slickgone NS) was applied to the other. GC-MS analysis of seawater from the surface slick, and at 1.5 and 5 m below the slick, revealed only two samples with measurable hydrocarbons (221 ± 92 μg ml−1 seawater), from the surface of the “Slickgone Dispersed” oil-slick ~25.5 hours after oil-slick formation, which was likely due to environmental conditions hindering sampling. Additionally, 16S rRNA gene quantitative PCR and amplicon analysis revealed extremely limited growth of obligate hydrocarbonoclastic bacteria (OHCB), detected at a relative abundance of <1×10-6 %. Furthermore, the Ecological Index of Hydrocarbon Exposure (EIHE) score, which quantifies the proportion of the bacterial community with hydrocarbon-biodegradation potential, was extremely low at 0.012 (scale of 0 – 1). This very low abundance of hydrocarbon-degrading bacteria at the time of sampling, even in samples with measurable hydrocarbons, could potentially be attributed to nutrient limitation (~25.5 hours after oil-slick creation total inorganic nitrogen was 3.33 μM and phosphorus was undetectable). The results of this study highlight a limited capacity for the environment, during this relatively short period, to naturally attenuate oil.

Application of dispersants aims to enhance the natural dispersion process in order to reduce the size of the slick and the amount of oil at the surface. This study presents an approach for modeling the development of the surface oil slick as a function of the wind speed, oil viscosity, and dispersant application. We modeled the oil slick mass distribution across a transect through the slick over time taking into account the continuous entrainment of oil, resurfacing process of the different oil droplet size classes and horizontal transport. Outcomes show distinctively different oil slick features, depending on how favorable conditions are for dispersion. A large comet-shaped slick is formed in the case of suboptimal dispersion. Optimal dispersion yields a small surface oil slick, with a large mass of oil suspended. The benefit of dispersants is limited to in conditions with suboptimal natural dispersion, with the exception of extremely unfavorable conditions in which the slick size would be increased. The oil slick length, fraction of oil still floating, lifetime of the slick, and wind drift are highly influenced by wind speed and related mixing conditions, and to a lesser extent by oil properties. In the newly defined “Dispersibility Factor” (DF) the oil slick properties and environmental conditions can be combined into one value that correlates with the simulation outcomes and therefore can be used as an indicator of favorability of natural dispersion and likelihood of added value of chemical dispersion.

Viscosity plays an important role in dispersion of spilled surface oil, so does adding chemical dispersants. For seven different oil grades, entrainment rate and initial droplet size distribution were investigated using a plunging jet apparatus with coupled camera equipment and subsequent image analysis. We found that amount of oil entrained is proportional to layer thickness and largely independent of oil properties: A dispersant dose of 1:200 did not result in a significantly different entrainment rate compared to no dispersants. Oil viscosity had a minor to no influence on entrainment rate, until a certain threshold above which entrainment was impeded. The mean droplet size scales with the modified Weber number as described by Johansen. The obtained results can help improve dispersion algorithms in oil spill fate and transport models, to aid making an informed decision about application of dispersants.

This study quantifies the effect of oil layer thickness on entrainment and dispersion of oil into seawater, using a plunging jet with a camera system. In contrast to what is generally assumed, we revealed that for the low viscosity "surrogate MC252 oil" we used, entrainment rate is directly proportional to layer thickness. Furthermore, the volume of stably suspended small oil droplets increases with energy input (plunge height) and is mostly proportional to layer thickness. Oil pre-treated with dispersants (dispersant-oil ratio ranges from 1:50 to 1:300) is greatly entrained in such large amounts of small droplets that quantification was impossible with the camera system. Very low interfacial tension causes entrainment by even minor secondary surface disturbances. Our results indicate that the effect of oil layer thickness should be included in oil entrainment and dispersion modelling.

Application of chemical dispersants or mechanical dispersion on surface oil is a trade-off between surface effects (impact of floating oil) and sub-surface effects (impact of suspended oil). Making an informed decision regarding such response, requires insight in the induced change in fate and transport of the oil.

Current oil spill fate and transport models predict natural dispersion with an algorithm that is known to be highly empirical. Chemical dispersion in these models is calculated in a simplistic manner, often requiring the user to give efficiency as input rather than it being output of the model. Our goal is to provide one (conceptual) dispersion model, describing the effect of natural dispersion, mechanical dispersion and chemical dispersion on the fate of oil spilled in marine systems. The dispersion process was split up into sub-processes, developing a conceptual model. Each of these sub-processes was individually analysed; an algorithm is proposed and substantiated with reported field and laboratory dispersion studies. Additionally, we investigated the currently not modelled relationship between oil layer thickness and entrainment of oil, the first step in the dispersion process, under a plunging jet. With a laboratory plunging jet system with coupled high-speed camera equipment we could describe the relationship between oil layer thickness and amount of oil entrained under different conditions.

Application of chemical dispersants or mechanical dispersion on surface oil is a trade-off between surface effects (impact of floating oil) and sub-surface effects (impact of suspended oil). Making an informed decision regarding such response, requires insight in the induced change in fate and transport of the oil. We aim to identify how natural, chemical and mechanical dispersion could be quantified in oil spill models. For each step in the dispersion process, we review available experimental data in order to identify overall trends and propose an algorithm or calculation method. Additionally, the conditions for successful mechanical and chemical dispersion are defined. Two commonly identified key parameters in surface oil dispersion are: oil properties (viscosity and presence of dispersants) and mixing energy (often wind speed). Strikingly, these parameters play a different role in several of the dispersion sub-processes. This may explain difficulties in simply relating overall dispersion effectiveness to the individual parameters.

In certain conditions, (part of) an oil spill can disappear from the water surface through a process called natural dispersion. One available oil spill response option is to enhance this process by addition of dispersants (chemical dispersion). An informed decision for such response requires insight in the oil slick size WITH and WITHOUT treatment. This thesis aims to enable such assessment of net effectiveness, by providing a strategy for modelling the dispersion process. A plunging jet test was developed for investigating entrainment and droplet breakup. Using this set up the relevance of oil layer thickness was proven and an algorithm to model droplet sizes of dispersed oil was defined. The findings were applied in a model simulating dispersion and resurfacing as well as the wind-driven differential transport between the floating slick and suspended droplets. The simulation outputs help assess the added value (or not) of dispersant application in reducing the surface oil slick size for different oil types and conditions.