Deepwater Horizon oil spill disaster- Update on BP's attempt to stop the oil leaks - The Macondo 252 well is now officially DEAD

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Re: US Oil Spill Response Team: Plan To Deploy Dome

Re: US Oil Spill Response Team: Plan To Deploy Dome

BP to try smaller pipe to stem Gulf oil gusher

by Jeffery Collins / The Associated Press
wwltv.com
Posted on May 13, 2010 at 11:40 AM

HAMMOND, La. -- BP officials say they have decided to first try sucking oil away from the gushing Gulf well with a tube that will be inserted into the jagged pipe leaking on the seafloor.

Company spokesman Bill Salvin said BP hopes to start moving the 6-inch tube into the leaking 21-inch pipe -- known as the riser -- on Thursday night. The smaller tube will be surrounded by a stopper to keep oil from leaking into the sea.

The tube will then siphon the oil to a tanker at the surface.

Salvin says engineers have to first move the smaller tube past seawater that has gotten into the riser. The seawater could mix with methane to form crystals that could clog the pipe.

BP says the next option is a small containment box called a "top hat," which is already on the seafloor.

http://www.wwltv.com/news/BP-to-try-smaller-pipe-to-stem-Gulf-oil-gusher-93691164.html

 

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Re: US Oil Spill Response Team: Plan To Deploy Dome

Re: US Oil Spill Response Team: Plan To Deploy Dome

http://www.flickr.com/photos/deepwaterhorizonresponse/4601945759/sizes/o/

 

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Re: US Oil Spill Response Team: Plan To Deploy Dome

Re: US Oil Spill Response Team: Plan To Deploy Dome

Insertion tube strategy chosen to address Gulf of Mexico oil leak

By Jaquetta White, The Times-Picayune

May 13, 2010, 6:54PM

Gerald Herbert/The Associated PressScot Knapp, a crew member on the supply vessel Joe Griffin, turns a valve Tuesday to transfer fuel to the Development Driller III platform, background left, which was drilling the relief well at the site of the Deepwater Horizon oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico.

BP will attempt to contain the oil spilling into the Gulf of Mexico using a tube inserted directly into the gash in the riser pipe, BP spokesman Brian Ferguson said Thursday.

The company had been deciding since Wednesday between two methods of containment: the riser insertion tube and a containment box called a top hat.

"The top hat is still a solution that's in play, but the engineers have elected to go with the riser insertion tube and that process is being worked on now," Ferguson said.

The insertion tube is already at the site of the oil spill, where a drilling rig exploded April 20 and subsequently sank. The company planned to lower the tube 5,000 feet Thursday evening and position it on the seabed near where a busted pipe is spewing oil. Ferguson did not know when the tube would be attached to the pipe or activated.

The 6-inch in diameter insertion tube, which will be pushed directly into the 21-inch riser pipe, is surrounded by a gasket that will prevent the oil from escaping. The tube will be attached to a ship waiting on the surface.

BP introduced the riser insertion tube as an alternative to the top hat Wednesday. The company believes the method will prevent frozen hydrate crystals from blocking the flow of oil onto the drill ship.

BP's first attempt at capturing the escaping oil was stymied when its previous containment box, a 78-ton metal and concrete contraption, failed because frozen crystals, called hydrates, blocked the pipe opening where oil would come out after being sucked from the well. The hydrates were also so numerous that they threatened to lift the containment dome from the sea floor. The hydrate crystals form in cold temperatures and under high pressure where water combines with gases.

Both the 78-ton containment box and the smaller 2-ton top hat remain staged on the seabed near the sunken rig, Ferguson said.

BP had no other updates about efforts to contain and stop the flow of oil Thursday. The "junk shot," a plan for permanently shutting the well by plugging it with debris, could still be attempted next week, Ferguson said.

Meanwhile, a remedy that experts believe will be the most effective way of shutting in the well -- but also the most time consuming -- is months from completion. Drilling will resume next week on a relief well that would permanently shut the damaged well by pumping in cement.

BP announced on Wednesday that it had drilled the well about halfway, about 9,000 feet, before suspending drilling temporarily in order to test the well.Going the rest of the way will take about three months.

"Drilling goes in stages, and the deeper you get the longer it takes and the more complex things are," Ferguson said.

Seemingly small tasks like changing out the drill bit can take hours because the drill has to travel thousands of feet back to the surface, Ferguson said.
.../
http://www.nola.com/news/gulf-oil-spill/index.ssf/2010/05/insertion_tube_strategy_chosen.html

 

[Pathfinder]

Re: US Oil Spill Response Team: Plan To Deploy Dome

Re: US Oil Spill Response Team: Plan To Deploy Dome

<CITE class=vcard>BP tries mile-long tube, latest bid to stop leak</CITE>
<CITE class=vcard></CITE>
<CITE class=vcard>By JEFFREY COLLINS, Associated Press Writer Jeffrey Collins, Associated Press Writer </CITE>? <ABBR class=recenttimedate title=2010-05-15T08:13:31-0700>43 mins ago</ABBR>
<!-- end .byline -->
HAMMOND, La. ? At first, BP tried to stop the oil rushing into the Gulf of Mexico by flipping a blowout preventer switch. A week ago, they attempted to capture the leak with a 100-ton box. The latest experiment?

Trying to guide a skinny, mile-long tube into the gusher to siphon oil to the surface.

BP PLC technicians were gingerly moving joysticks to guide deep-sea robots and thread the 6-inch tube into the 21-inch pipe spewing oil from the ocean floor. That work continued Saturday morning for a second day, BP said.

The tube is intended to suck oil up like a straw to a tanker on the surface, while a stopper surrounding it would keep crude from leaking into the sea.
The company also received word that federal regulators had approved spraying chemical dispersants beneath the sea, a contentious development because it has never been done underwater.

Traditionally used on the ocean surface, chemical dispersants act like a detergent to break the oil into small globules, which allows it to disperse more quickly into the water or air before currents can wash it ashore.

Louisiana officials claim BP and the Environmental Protection Agency ignored their concerns about how the chemicals may harm the sea floor.
...

Full text at:
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/us_gulf_oil_spill

 

[Pathfinder]

Re: US Oil Spill Response Team: Plan To Deploy Dome

Re: US Oil Spill Response Team: Plan To Deploy Dome

<CITE class=vcard>BP confident latest try to capture oil will work</CITE>
<CITE class=vcard></CITE>
<CITE class=vcard>By JEFFREY COLLINS, Associated Press Writer Jeffrey Collins, Associated Press Writer </CITE>? <ABBR class=recenttimedate title=2010-05-15T15:34:36-0700>1 hr 53 mins ago</ABBR>
<!-- end .byline -->
ROBERT, La. ? BP was confident Saturday its latest experiment using a mile-long pipe would capture much of the oil flowing into the Gulf of Mexico, even as the company disclosed yet another setback in the environmental disaster.

Engineers hit a snag when they tried to connect two pieces of equipment a mile below the water's surface. BP PLC chief operating officer Doug Suttles said one piece of equipment, called the framework, had to be brought to the water's surface so that adjustments could be made to where it fits with the long tube that connects to a tanker above.

The framework holds a pipe and stopper, and engineers piloting submarine robots will try to use it to plug the massive leak and send the crude through the lengthy pipe to the surface.

"The frame shifted, so they were unable to make that connection," said Suttles, who believes the adjustments will make the device work.

At least 210,000 gallons of oil has been gushing into the Gulf of Mexico since an oil rig exploded April 20 and sank two days later. Eleven people were killed in the blast.

BP's latest idea seems to have the best chance for success so far, said Ed Overton, a LSU professor of environmental studies. At the surface this would be easy, Overton said, but using robots in 5,000 feet of water with oil gushing out of the pipe makes things much more difficult.

"It's something like threading the eye of a needle. But that can be tough to do up here. And you can imagine how hard it would be to do it down there with a robot," Overton said.

The tube could capture more than three-quarters of the leak; BP also must contend with a smaller leak that's farther away. If the tube works, it would be the first time the company has been able to capture any of the oil before it fouls the Gulf waters.

/.../

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/us_gulf_oil_spill

 

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Re: US Oil Spill Response Team: Plan To Deploy Dome

Re: US Oil Spill Response Team: Plan To Deploy Dome

DATE: May 16, 2010 11:45:16 CST

Update on Riser Insertion Tube Tool progress

ROBERT, La. - The Unified Area Command for the response to the Deepwater Horizon oil spill continues to advance multiple subsea options to contain and ultimately stop the flow of oil from the MC 252 well in the Gulf of Mexico.

Overnight the Riser Insertion Tube Tool was successfully tested and inserted into the leaking riser, capturing some amounts of oil and gas. The oil was stored on board the Discoverer Enterprise drill ship 5,000 feet above on the water's surface, and natural gas was burned through a flare system on board the ship.

The test was halted temporarily when the tube was dislodged. While this is disappointing, it is not unexpected given the challenging operating environment.

Technicians have fully inspected the system and have re-inserted the tool.

The tool is fashioned from a 4-inch pipe and is inserted into the leaking riser, from which the majority of the flow is coming. While not collecting all of the leaking oil, this tool is an important step in reducing the amount of oil being released into Gulf waters.

The procedure - never attempted before at such depths - involves inserting a 5-foot length of the specifically-designed tool into the end of the existing, damaged riser from where the oil and gas is leaking. In a procedure approved by federal agencies and the Federal On Scene Coordinator, methanol will also be flowed into the riser to help prevent the formation of gas crystals, known as hydrates. Gas and oil will then flow to the surface to the Discoverer Enterprise drillship.

The Enterprise has the capability to separate the oil, gas and water mixture safely and eventually store or offload the recovered oil onto another vessel.
We will continue to provide updates as they become available.
For information about the response effort, visit www.deepwaterhorizonresponse.com.

http://www.deepwaterhorizonresponse.com/go/doc/2931/551935/

 

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Re: US Oil Spill Response Team: Plan To Deploy Dome

Re: US Oil Spill Response Team: Plan To Deploy Dome

BP marks first success in containing oil spill

Excerpt:

"After other attempts to contain the spill failed, BP Plc succeeded in inserting a tube into the leaking well and capturing some oil and gas.

The underwater operation used guided robots to insert a small tube into a 21-inch (53-cm) pipe, known as a riser, to funnel the oil to a ship at the surface.

"It's working as planned and we are very slowly increasing the rate that is coming from the riser tool up to the surface," BP senior executive vice president Kent Wells told reporters at BP's U.S. headquarters in Houston.

"So we do have oil and gas coming to the ship now."

Not all of the oil was being trapped, however. Wells said it was too early to say how much had been siphoned.

"This is a good step forward," said Satish Nagarajaiah, professor in civil and mechanical engineering at Rice University in Houston, but he said the siphon tool is unlikely to capture more than 15-20 percent of the oil.

"NOT A SOLUTION"

The Obama administration downplayed the significance of BP's latest breakthrough.

"This technique is not a solution to the problem, and it is not yet clear how successful it may be," Secretary of Homeland Security Janet Napolitano and Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar said in a joint statement.

Preparations for a maneuver to inject mud into the well to stop the leak for good were ongoing and would be completed in seven to 10 days, Wells said. Undersea robots are preparing pipes and hoses around the well to pump up to 40 barrels (1,680 gallons) per minute of mud into the well.

BP's best near-term hope of stopping oil from pouring from the well is "kill mud," a heavy mixture of synthetic materials that technicians will attempt to shoot into the well to form a barrier to prevent oil and gas from escaping."

Full text:

http://www.reuters.com/article/idUSTRE6430AR20100517

 

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Re: US Oil Spill Response Team: Plan To Deploy Dome

Re: US Oil Spill Response Team: Plan To Deploy Dome

BP hopes 'top kill' to stop oil can start Sunday

by Greg Bluestein / The Associated Press
wwltv.com
Posted on May 19, 2010 at 2:28 PM
Updated today at 4:22 PM

ROBERT, La. -- BP PLC says it hopes to start the next phase of its effort to halt the flow of oil gushing into the Gulf of Mexico on Sunday or early next week.

Oil has been spewing from the blown-out well since an offshore rig exploded off the Louisiana coast April 20 and sank two days later.

The "top-kill" method BP hopes to start involves shooting heavy mud into crippled equipment on top of the well to stem the flow of oil and gas. The company's engineers hope to quickly follow it up by aiming cement at the well to permanently keep down the oil.

Engineers could also use another strategy called the "junk shot," which involves shooting knotted rope, pieces of tires and golf balls into the blowout preventer. Crews hope they will lodge into the nooks and crannies of the device to plug it.

http://www.wwltv.com/news/gulf-oil-...ll-to-stop-oil-can-start-Sunday-94278599.html

 

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Re: US Oil Spill Response Team: Plan To Deploy Dome

Re: US Oil Spill Response Team: Plan To Deploy Dome

BP says 'top kill' unlikely before Tuesday

by Greg Bluestein / Associated Press

wwltv.com
Posted on May 21, 2010 at 2:35 PM
Updated today at 2:38 PM

ROBERT, La. -- BP now says it will likely be at least Tuesday before engineers can shoot heavy mud into a blown-out well spewing oil into the Gulf of Mexico.

Three ultra-deepwater rigs and other equipment are at the site where the Deepwater Horizon oil platform exploded April 20. They're preparing for a delicate procedure called a "top kill" that BP hopes will stop the flow of oil from the well.

Crews will pump in heavy drilling mud, which is a thick, viscous fluid that's twice the density of water. That should stop the oil, and then they'll use cement to keep more from gushing out.

BP's Doug Suttles says this hasn't been tried at 5,000 feet underwater before, so engineers want to make sure everything is just right.

http://www.wwltv.com/news/gulf-oil-spill/BP-says-top-kill-unlikely-before-Tuesday-94607524.html

 

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Re: US Oil Spill Response Team: Plan To Deploy Dome

Re: US Oil Spill Response Team: Plan To Deploy Dome

BP: Mile-long tube collecting less oil than before

BP: Mile-long tube collecting less oil than before

by Greg Bluestein / Associated Press
wwltv.com
Posted on May 23, 2010 at 11:37 AM
Updated today at 11:51 AM



COVINGTON, La. -- Three top Obama administration officials are returning to the Gulf Coast to monitor the massive oil spill that seems to have no end in sight, as BP PLC officials said Sunday that one of their efforts to slow the leak wasn't working as effectively as before.

BP spokesman John Curry told The Associated Press on Sunday that a mile-long tube inserted into the leaking well siphoned some 57,120 gallons of oil within the past 24 hours, a sharp drop from the 92,400 gallons of oil a day that the device was sucking up on Friday. However, the company has said the amount of oil siphoned will vary widely from day to day.

Engineers are working furiously to stem the growing ooze as more wildlife and delicate coastal wetlands are tainted despite the oil-absorbing booms placed around shorelines to protect them.

/.../
http://www.wwltv.com/news/BP-Mile-long-tube-collecting-less-oil-than-before-94694554.html

 

[tropical]

Re: US Oil Spill Response Team: Plan To Deploy Dome

Re: US Oil Spill Response Team: Plan To Deploy Dome

about relief drills ...


http://www.nytimes.com/2010/05/03/us/03montara.html

excerpt:
"Although the idea sounds simple, the experience with a similar spill last year near Australia shows just how difficult it can be to execute the maneuver.
“It’s like finding a needle in a haystack,” said Rachel Siewert, an Australian senator who is a member of the country’s opposition Greens Party and is critical of the oil industry.
The Australian accident, known as the Montara spill, began Aug. 21 with a blowout of high-pressure oil similar to the one in the gulf. With the well spewing 17,000 to 85,000 gallons per day, precious weeks passed before the relief wells were started.

When efforts got under way, the first four attempts — drilled on Oct. 6, 13, 17 and 24 — missed the original well.

A fifth attempt finally intersected the original on Nov. 1, and about 3,400 barrels of heavy mud were pumped through the relief well into the base of the original well. The spewing oil finally stopped Nov. 3 — more than 10 weeks after the original explosion."

 

[Pathfinder]

Re: US Oil Spill Response Team: Plan To Deploy Dome

Re: US Oil Spill Response Team: Plan To Deploy Dome

BP: Tube siphons less oil from Gulf for 2nd day

by Greg Bluestein / The Associated Press
wwltv.com
Posted on May 24, 2010 at 8:55 AM
Updated today at 9:01 AM



COVINGTON, La. -- The amount of oil siphoned by the mile-long tube inserted into the leaking well in the Gulf of Mexico has fallen again.

BP PLC spokesman John Curry told The Associated Press on Monday that the tube collected some 47,040 gallons of oil on Sunday. BP said that the siphon collected 57,120 gallons on Saturday and 92,400 gallons on Friday.

The company, which leased the rig and is responsible for the cleanup, has said that the amount of oil that the tube siphons will vary widely. BP said in a news release that the mile-long tube is "a new technology, and both its continued operation and its effectiveness in capturing the oil and gas remain uncertain.?

Anger with the government and BP has grown as the monthlong oil spill creeps deeper into the Gulf Coast's wetlands.

http://www.wwltv.com/news/BP-Tube-siphons-less-oil-from-Gulf-for-2nd-day-94736154.html

 

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Re: US Oil Spill Response Team: Plan To Deploy Dome

Re: US Oil Spill Response Team: Plan To Deploy Dome

Success of 'top kill' strategy to squelch Gulf of Mexico oil spill should be known by Wednesday evening

By Jaquetta White, The Times-Picayune

May 24, 2010, 7:12PM

Patrick Semansky/The Associated PressDoug Suttles, chief operating officer for BP, was photographed during a news conference in Venice on May 9.

BP will attempt a "top kill" maneuver to permanently stanch the oil flow from a leaking well Wednesday morning and will know whether or not the procedure is working by that evening, the company's Chief Operating Officer Doug Suttles said Monday. If the top kill does not work, the company will try to contain the oil by placing a cap on the riser pipe and sucking oil to the surface.

"This job has taken quite some time to prepare and plan for. It's not unique or new but it is unique and new in 5,000 feet of water," Suttles said. "If that operation is successful, we will be able to stop the flow from the well."

Tony Hayward, BP's chief executive officer said Monday that there is a 60 percent to 70 percent chance of success with the top kill.

The single biggest challenge to the procedure, Suttles said, will be overcoming the rate at which oil is gushing up from the well.

BP is working to contain two oil leaks on a pipe attached to the sunken Deepwater Horizon rig. The rig, which BP leased from Transocean, exploded about 50 miles off the Louisiana coast on April 20 and subsequently sank. Eleven people on the rig were killed.

The top kill will be performed near the smaller of the two leaks. The second, larger leak, has been affixed with a tube that is capturing some, but not all, of the oil and natural gas spilling from it. Because the top kill will be performed at the base of the broken pipe, down near the blowout preventer, it should permanently shut off both leaks if it is successful.

The top kill process involves pumping fabricated "kill mud," which is about twice the density of water, into the well at 50 barrels a minute to overcome the flow.

The material will be pumped at that high pressure down the choke and kill lines of the blowout preventer, which failed to seal the well after the rig exploded, to push the oil back into the reservoir. Choke and kill lines are used to control the amount and pressure of drilling mud in the wellbore so that surges of oil and natural gas can be kept under control.

If the kill mud is not able to overcome the flow of oil, it could get trapped in the riser pipe and erode it, which could lead to additional leaks, Suttles said.

The drill mud could be followed with cement to permanently seal the well.

Should the maneuver fail, BP may pump debris into the well to clog it and then try the top kill again, Suttles said. The company may also cut the joint where the riser pipe comes out of the blowout preventer and place a cap on it. The cap would be attached to another riser pipe that BP would use to suction oil from the well to a drill ship on the surface. Doing so would not stop the flow of oil, but would contain oil escaping from both leak sites.

http://www.nola.com/news/gulf-oil-spill/index.ssf/2010/05/success_of_top_kill_strategy_t.html

 

[Sally Furniss]

Re: US Oil Spill Response Team: Plan To Deploy Dome

Re: US Oil Spill Response Team: Plan To Deploy Dome

Bill Nye on Drilling Mud and Top kill

http://edition.cnn.com/2010/US/05/26/gulf.oil.spil/

 

[tropical]

Re: US Oil Spill Response Team: Plan To Deploy Dome

Re: US Oil Spill Response Team: Plan To Deploy Dome

Sally post #34,
news link excerpts:

"During a speech at a fundraiser in San Francisco, California, on Tuesday, Obama said he initiated a review into "how it is that oil companies can say they know how to handle these problems and it turns out, actually, that they don't." But he blamed more than BP. He also blamed the failure of the country to transition away from fossil fuels toward green technologies.
"We've been putting it off for decade after decade after decade and it is about time that we said to ourselves that we're ready to make a change on behalf of the future of our children and our grandchildren," Obama said."

...

"U.S. Commerce Secretary Gary Locke on Monday declared a fishery disaster in the Gulf of Mexico.
A final, permanent solution to cap the well could take until August -- the estimated completion date for a relief well that is being dug on a parallel course with other efforts to stop the leak, said Coast Guard Commandant Adm. Thad Allen, the Obama administration's point person in the Gulf."




what? "until August" ...


:flask:
how many $ trilions of possible compensation,
and global irreversible megadamage will be done to the environment
until August ...
:yinyang:
insert the spill sucking supertankers
http://www.flutrackers.com/forum/showthread.php?t=146927

 

[Pathfinder]

Re: US Oil Spill Response Team: Plan To Deploy Dome

Re: US Oil Spill Response Team: Plan To Deploy Dome

BP yet to make call on choking Gulf oil gusher

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by Greg Bluestein and Mike Baker / Associated Press
wwltv.com
Posted on May 26, 2010 at 6:28 AM
Updated today at 7:44 AM

COVINGTON, La. - BP's latest experimental bid to plug its seabed oil gusher in the Gulf of Mexico hung in the balance early Wednesday as its top executive reviewed overnight tests before deciding whether to go ahead.

BP was still running tests and expected to decide Wednesday morning if it will go ahead with an effort to choke off its oil gusher at the bottom of the Gulf of Mexico by force-feeding it heavy drilling mud and cement, Chief Executive Tony Hayward said.

Hayward told NBC's "Today" show that if he gives the green light, he expected the top kill procedure to happen Wednesday.

The top kill involves pumping enough mud into the gusher to overcome the flow of the well, which has leaked millions of gallons of oil into the water since an April 20 rig explosion. Engineers then plan to follow it up with cement that the company hopes will permanently seal the well.

"I have to say that it will be a day or two before we can have certainty that it's worked." Hayward said on NBC. He said pressure tests ahead of the procedure continued through the night and he would review the results before deciding whether to go ahead.

The top kill has been successful in aboveground wells but has never been tried a mile beneath the sea. Hayward earlier pegged its chances of success in this case at 60 percent to 70 percent.

It is the company's latest effort to stem the spill and comes as politicians and Gulf residents are losing patience with the company over several failed attempts to stop the leak.

(Click photo for live stream of oil leak.)


At least 7 million gallons of crude have spilled into the sea, fouling Louisiana's marshes, coating birds and other wildlife and threatening livelihoods from fishing and tourism.

"We want what everybody wants -- to stop the flow at the source as quickly as possible," said BP PLC spokesman John Curry. "We understand the frustration and we just want to bring this to closure."

BP said those who want can watch the procedure online. Live video of the leak has been available for the past few days, and BP said that it will continue throughout the procedure.
/.../

http://www.wwltv.com/news/local/BP-CEO-yet-to-make-call-on-choking-Gulf-oil-gusher-94909789.html

 

[Pathfinder]

Re: Deepwater Horizon oil spill disaster- Update on BP's attempt to stop the oil leaks

Re: Deepwater Horizon oil spill disaster- Update on BP's attempt to stop the oil leaks

What is 'top kill' and when will we know if it plugs BP oil spill?

The 'top kill' procedure aims to cap the undersea well feeding the BP oil spill in the Gulf. The US Coast Guard gave approval Wednesday to proceed.


By Mark Guarino, Staff writer / May 26, 2010

The US Coast Guard has cleared BP to proceed with the ?top kill? procedure that officials say is the most complex attempt yet to stop oil from gushing into the Gulf of Mexico. The procedure is expected to begin Wednesday, though BP and the US Minerals Management Service had not announced a start time.


At its simplest, top kill involves pumping drilling mud at a rate of 40 to 50 barrels per minute to reduce the pressure of the oil?s flow, ultimately stopping it altogether. Top kills have been performed to address similar spills, BP officials say, but none has been done at 5,000 feet below the water?s surface.

?The pace at which we are doing this is unprecedented ? [and] we need to be careful in terms of setting expectations,? said Kent Wells, BP's vice president for exploration and production.

The procedure requires an elaborate and precise orchestration among five vessels at the surface, whose duties range from housing pumping equipment to storing a total of 50,000 barrels of drilling mud, and several remote-controlled undersea robots. If all goes as planned, the dense mud will be pumped through a single 6-5/8-inch-diameter drill pipe from one vessel, which will then enter two 3-inch-diameter hoses. Those hoses will deliver the material to the sea floor, where they will intersect with the choke and kill lines of the damaged blowout preventer, which sits atop the well.

On Monday BP Chief Operating OfficerDoug Suttles defined success as halting the flow of oil from the well. If the procedure is launched early Wednesday, ?by Wednesday evening we should know if it?s successful,? he said.

If the flow is stopped, the well would then either be permanently sealed with concrete or be covered by a second blowout preventor to replace the one that failed April 20, the date of the explosion that initiated the crisis, Mr. Suttles said.

The procedure is not without risk. The condition of the well?s bottom remains uncertain, and fractures in the rock may prevent the mud from having a solid enough base to exert pressure against the oil so that its flow is reversed.

The direction of the mud entering the well is also problematic because it will be driving into the well from both its sides, not from the top, which may strip the mud of the kinetic energy it needs to push the oil down, says Bruce Johnson, professor emeritus of oceanic engineering at the US Naval Academy in Annapolis, Md.

By injecting the mud sideways, ?they?re really depending on the weight of the mud to force [the oil] back down the tube,? Dr. Johnson says. ?I think that?s going to be tough.?

US Coast Guard Rear Adm. Mary Landry has said she is ?optimistic? that top kill will work, but she told reporters last week that plans are in place in case it fails. ?We have be to ready for the long haul to see this through,? Landry said.

If the top kill fails, one risk is that it could end up eroding the riser, a now-broken pipe connected to the wellhead, and increasing the well?s flow of oil, Suttles said Monday.

If that happens, BP plans to cut the riser and place another containment dome over the leak. Another option on the table is launching the ?junk shot,? which is an injection into the well of materials ranging from rubber tire shards to golf balls. The procedure was planned weeks ago but dropped once it was determined it would risk the effectiveness of the top kill, Suttles said.

http://www.csmonitor.com/USA/2010/0...nd-when-will-we-know-if-it-plugs-BP-oil-spill

 

[Treyfish]

Re: Deepwater Horizon oil spill disaster- Update on BP's attempt to stop the oil leaks

Re: Deepwater Horizon oil spill disaster- Update on BP's attempt to stop the oil leaks

BP Starts Top-Kill Strategy To Cap Leak

2010/05/26 | CityNews.ca Staff

John Moore/Getty Images


<!-- START OF STORY TOOLS --><!-- START OF RELATED STORIES -->


<!-- END OF RELATED STORIES --><!-- END OF STORY TOOLS -->BP has started its so-called top kill strategy to stop the oil leak in the Gulf of Mexico that?s been spewing crude into the water for over a month.

BP Chief Executive Tony Hayward gave the green light Wednesday after U.S. government scientists said it was safe to proceed. Crews plan to pump manufactured mud and cement, twice as dense as the sea water, into the Deepwater Horizon rig?s blowout preventer. The hope is the heavy materials will counteract the upward pressure of the oil.
Watch a live underwater video feed of the spill

Engineers will then use cement to permanently seal up the well.

One expert doesn?t have high hopes for this proposed action. Bob Bea, a professor of engineering at Berkeley, said the speed at which the oil is flowing may result in a failed attempt to cap the leak.

This technique has proven successful on above-ground wells, but has never been used more than a kilometre under water. Hayward claims there?s a 60 to 70 per cent chance of success in this case.
If this effort fails, the government will have to step in to stop what could become the worst oil spill in American history.

At least 26 million litres of oil have spilled into the sea since the rig explosion on April 20 that killed 11 people. The spill has devastated Louisiana fishermen, threatened the state?s tourism industry and has seriously harmed wildlife and ecosystems.

And as BP begins its latest plan of action some disturbing reports have come to light, including one that suggests government watchdogs have accepted gifts from oil and gas companies. In a report released this week, Mary Kendall, the acting inspector general for the Interior Department, claims some employees from the government agency responsible for keeping tabs on the industry have negotiated jobs with the companies they?re supposed to be monitoring.

Reports also suggest there were warnings before the explosion. Testimony given before a hearing Tuesday and BP?s internal investigation show managers from Transocean, the company that owns the rig, worried BP wasn?t taking the necessary steps to contain pressure, according to a rig worker.

There was also testimony alleging BP took ?shortcuts?.

Tests taken less than an hour before the explosion also showed pressure was building, suggesting a very large abnormality in the well, according to a BP investigator.
:tiphat:http://www.citytv.com/toronto/cityn...7750--bp-starts-top-kill-strategy-to-cap-leak

 

[Pathfinder]

Re: Deepwater Horizon oil spill disaster- Update on BP's attempt to stop the oil leaks

Re: Deepwater Horizon oil spill disaster- Update on BP's attempt to stop the oil leaks

BP: effort to plug Gulf oil spill going as planned

By GREG BLUESTEIN Associated Press Writer ? 2010 The Associated Press
May 26, 2010, 6:08PM


COVINGTON, La. ? BP started pumping heavy mud into the leaking Gulf of Mexico well Wednesday and said everything was going as planned in the company's boldest attempt yet to plug the gusher that has spewed millions of gallons of oil over the last five weeks.

BP hoped the mud could overpower the steady stream of oil, but chief executive Tony Hayward said it would be at least 24 hours before officials know whether the attempt has been successful. The company wants to eventually inject cement into the well to permanently seal it.

"I'm sure many of you have been watching the plume," Hayward said from Houston. "All I can say is it is unlikely to give us any real indication of what is going on. Either increases or decreases are not an indicator of either success or failure at this time."

The stakes are high. Fisherman, hotel and restaurant owners, politicians and residents along the coast are fed up with BP's so far ineffective attempts to stop the oil leak that sprang after an offshore drilling rig exploded April 20. Eleven workers were killed, and by the most conservative estimate, 7 million gallons of crude have spilled into the Gulf, fouling Louisiana's marshes and coating birds and other wildlife.

The top kill has worked above ground but has never before been tried 5,000 feet beneath the sea. Company officials peg its chance of success at 60 to 70 percent.

President Barack Obama said "there's no guarantees" it will work. The president planned a trip to Louisiana on Friday.

"We're going to bring every resource necessary to put a stop to this thing," he said.

.../

http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/ap/top/all/7023846.html

 

[tropical]

Re: Deepwater Horizon oil spill disaster- Update on BP's attempt to stop the oil leaks

Re: Deepwater Horizon oil spill disaster- Update on BP's attempt to stop the oil leaks

May 27

http://www.bp.com/liveassets/bp_int...local_assets/bp_homepage/html/rov_stream.html

___

MOONPORT PRODUCTIONS SPECIAL REPORT - Gulf Oil Spill Part 2 - Top Kill May Have Failed

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-sggqTRXzGg

May 26
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BP's bottom line on 'top kill' -- wait a day
http://edition.cnn.com/2010/US/05/26/gulf.oil.spil/index.html?hpt=T1

By the CNN Wire Staff <script type="text/javascript">cnnAuthor = "By the CNN Wire Staff ";</script>
<script type="text/javascript">if(location.hostname.indexOf( 'edition.' ) > -1) {document.write('May 26, 2010 -- Updated 2322 GMT (0722 HKT)');} else {document.write('May 26, 2010 7:22 p.m. EDT');}</script>May 26, 2010 7:22 p.m. EDTMay 26, 2010
___

May 25:
Gulf oil crisis- Possible sea floor collapse video (last part of video)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZM9UycOEcws&feature=watch_response