In-situ burning of oil spills: Mesoscale experiments

In 1991, a series of 14 mesoscale fire experiments was performed to measure the burning characteristics of crude oil on salt water. These oil burns in a pan ranged in size from 6 to 15 m square. Results of the measurements for burning rate and smoke emissions are compared to those from previous smaller-scale burns. The burning rate, as indicated by the regression rate of the oil surface, was found to be 0.055 ±0.01 mm/s for pan fires with effective diameters greater than 7 m. Smoke particulate yields from fires greater than 2 m diameter were found to be ca 0.13 of the oil burned on a mass basis. Predictions of smoke plume trajectory and particulate deposition at ground level from the Large Eddy Simulation (LES) model developed as part of this research effort were found to be different from those predicted by the SCREEN model. LES is a steady state 3-dimensional calculation of smoke plume trajectory and smoke particulate deposition based on a mixed finite difference and Lagrangian particle tracking method. 23 refs., 21 figs., 18 tabs