TRS Foundation

We are currently 70 days into this disaster. With the rising estimates of oil gushing into the Gulf of Mexico, and the lack of success BP has had, it’s more critical than ever to take innovative concepts and develop them into solutions for putting an end to this disaster.

Screenshot of the gusher of oil with containment cap removed from BP live feed on June 23rd

We recently posted several things about the disaster in the Gulf: timeline of events, by-the-numbers look and cold hard truths about BP’s intentions. One thing we haven’t touched upon, however, is a theory of our own. Our theory is simple: use the force of the oil against itself.

Below is a simplified list of the attempts made by BP for containing and/or stopping the leak. For a more detailed breakdown, please view our previous blog post.

25 April – BP fails to activate the shutoff valves
7 May – 100-ton “Top Hat” fails when crystals build up
14 May - Riser insertion tube tool (RITT) used to collect oil and succeeds in collecting 2,000 barrels/day by May 16
17 May – 2-ton “Top Hat” fails
29 May - “Top Kill” fails
30 May – “Junk Shot” fails
3 June – Diamond saw fails to cut through pipe
4 June – Shears work and BP fits containment cap on pipe – more than 50% oil still gushing out
28 June – Tankers that BP promised would arrive (by around June 14th) to syphon more oil, still have yet to arrive

Basic chemistry and physics tells us that the pressure at the ocean floor is approximately 2,200 psi – about twice as much as a high-pressure hose at a local car wash. Given the known properties of oil, the pipe and the fact that the reservoir is approximately 3 miles beneath the ocean floor, the oil pressure is on the order of 12,000-15,000 psi. This is a massive pressure difference for BP to attempt these “Top Hat” ideas at these depths. The “Top Kill” tried to suffocate the leak with heavy mud and cement, but likely could not overcome the massive pressure. “Junk shot” attempted to force materials inside the pipe with massive pressure against it. The image below is a diagram of the “Top Kill” idea. Notice how it attempts to force mud and cement against the oil and its massive oil pressure.

Operation "Top Kill" diagram showing heavy mud and cement being pumped into the pipe

There are a multitude of factors involved in this giant engineering problem, but the one constant is that the pressure of the oil is several times stronger than the pressure of the water at the ocean floor. Instead of viewing this massive pressure differential as a problem, let’s view it as an opportunity. This opportunity leads us to the theory of a check valve. There are several scenarios in our everyday life that use a check valve for extreme situations. The diagrams below display a side-view of a two check valves that close when the pressure is greater from a particular side.

Side view of check valve

Side view of check valve with spring

Is there a way we can use this theory to engineer a potential concept?

These seal valves work in special ways to specifically use the massive force against

Side view of pressure seal valves (from Velan)

itself, as seen in the excerpt from a product catalog from Velan: “the higher the internal pressure, the greater the sealing force.”

Within the Oil and Gas industry, there are a multitude of these types of valves. They are specialized to deal with high pressures and varying viscosities. Velan (and others) have identified and been working for a long time for how to deal with these situations and innovate around them .

We recognize that it is unlikely there be a product already in existence that can fix this disaster, but surely there is a way to modify and innovate upon the theory of these valves to create something that will work for this situation. It should also be possible to use known concepts of dealing with over pressurization and other issues and apply engineering innovations to overcome them.

Our goal is to change the way BP and others have thought about concepts to this problem: use the force of the oil against itself. Tomorrow, we will use this theory and post our own concept.

All of this brings up one thought: the difference between being Capable and being Willing.

References include: CNN, New York Times, Active Rain, ABC news, NECN, Velan, Newsweek, SkyTruth

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