giant plug

[myself]

why cant we run a cable from an aircraft carrier

run that cable straight down to the leak

and start sending down buckets of concrete

or some substance to plug that shit



am i over simplifying this?



i've been wondering why this is taking so long to fix

i suppose BP wants to keep the oil easily accessible so that they can continue to drill

what would we have to sacrifice in order to give up that oil in the gulf?

i guess gas prices might go up...
food prices as well...

people might die if they dont get aid



but all that life in the gulf... gone for a long time

i know our planet is resilient, but the ecosystem is fragile



think it's time for a non profit organization to get over there and start cleaning up the oil that our govt spilt?

or is it something we have to simply accept

this oil business is ugly

damn shame


what can WE do

i dont trust anyone else

 

[Ecton]

Good question. One thing that keeps popping up is the quantity of methane and forming on trapping mechanisms. My understanding is that clathrates are highly unstable and dangerous. But I don't know the details.

I do know that the government contacted an elderly neighbour of mine, because he researched oil slick recovery work 30 years ago. (He invented a radar technique that can quickly detect and map oil slicks.) They are seriously calling EVERYONE who might be able to help.

 

[the]

how are the buckets of concrete gonna dry at the bottom of an ocean?

 

[kita]

Wells are usually filled with drilling mud and seawater to keep the oil from pouring out. I don't think its possible at the point of the leak because its so deep, and the huge amount of oil coming out prevents anything else from being put in the well.

It's taking so long the fix because the best solution is to drill a relief well, and that will take months to finish.

 

[DoveAlexa]

how are the buckets of concrete gonna dry at the bottom of an ocean?

Some concrete sets in water.

Also, there is a company in my city who have invented a vegetable-based fluid for literally dissolving crude oil into harmless components. They were contacted and are being used in this spill now. They've already used the product before on other spills.

I do think the reason though that this is taking so long IS indeed because they want to still access that oil. Greedy fuckers.

 

[the]

Some concrete sets in water.

Also, there is a company in my city who have invented a vegetable-based fluid for literally dissolving crude oil into harmless components. They were contacted and are being used in this spill now. They've already used the product before on other spills.

I do think the reason though that this is taking so long IS indeed because they want to still access that oil. Greedy fuckers.

I am pretty sure all concrete sets in water because it is a chem reaction not really drying that makes it hard. But it is gonna have a shit ton of oil pushing through it constantly which was what I was getting at.

 

[Matariki]

We also have to take pressure of the sea into account.
I don't know if concrete would work. Wouldn't it crack?
Oil is lighter than water, the pressure from the oil coming up and the pressure from the sea floor would cause the concrete to crack.
There is also a possibility of seepage.

Unless I am mistaken.

 

[the]

We also have to take pressure of the sea into account.
I don't know if concrete would work. Wouldn't it crack?
Oil is lighter than water, the pressure from the oil coming up and the pressure from the sea floor would cause the concrete to crack.
There is also a possibility of seepage.

Unless I am mistaken.

All good points

 

[88chaz88]

It's hard to plug because at that depth a human body, no matter how much diving gear, would be crushed under the pressure.

 

[DoveAlexa]

I bet you they'll try explosions next XD, to "collapse" the thing. In theory it sounds like it should work, but this is not a mine shaft people!
lol

Okay seriously though, how are they even doing fixing this now? I stopped hearing about it on the news.

 

[the]

I bet you they'll try explosions next XD, to "collapse" the thing. In theory it sounds like it should work, but this is not a mine shaft people!
lol

Okay seriously though, how are they even doing fixing this now? I stopped hearing about it on the news.

They are just letting it empty out and seeing what happens.

 

[kita]

Okay seriously though, how are they even doing fixing this now? I stopped hearing about it on the news.

They are drilling a relief well, actually two just to make sure. Once they start pumping from the new well it relieves the pressure on the leaking well so it can be repaired.

 

[Matariki]

A relief well is the best idea so far. Here's how its set to work;

BP Relief well design.

As BP drills two relief wells in the Gulf of Mexico, we look at the process involved
BP crews are drilling two relief wells in the Gulf of Mexico (GoM) to stem the flow from the MC252 well.

BP has relief well contingency plans in place to allow the company to completely stop the flow of oil and gas from the well. These plans have now been called into action in the GoM.

A drilling rig drills a relief well or second well to intersect the original, flowing well as deeply as possible. A specialized heavy liquid is then pumped into the flowing well to bring it under control. This liquid is denser than oil and so exerts pressure (known as hydrostatic pressure) to suppress the flow of oil. Once the flow is stopped, cement is pumped into the well to completely
plug it.


A relief well should be faster to drill than the original well thanks to the knowledge already gained about the geology and pressure in the reservoir. However, drilling a well of this nature presents many technical challenges to ensure that the flowing well is intersected in the right position and that the fluid and cement pumping operations are effective. BP has assembled a world-class team of experts from within the company and key specialists in the industry to ensure that the relief well operations are conducted safely and successfully.

A second relief well forms part of the contingency plans in case the first well encounters any delays. This means that progress can still be made to kill the flowing well should one drilling operation encounter a problem.

So it seems that they are planning to block up the well with cement once the two relief wells have been constructed.