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Gulf of Mexico
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Gulf of Mexico
Bathymetry of the Gulf of Mexico
Location
American Mediterranean Sea
Coordinates
25°N 90°W / 25°N 90°W / 25; -90 (Gulf of Mexico)Coordinates: 25°N 90°W / 25°N 90°W / 25; -90 (Gulf of Mexico)
River sources
Rio Grande, Mississippi River
Ocean/sea sources
Atlantic Ocean, Caribbean Sea
Basin countries
United States
Mexico
Cuba
Max. width
1,500 km (932.06 mi)
Surface area
1,550,000 km2 (600,000 sq mi)
Settlements
Houston, New Orleans, Tampa, Havana, Campeche, Mobile, Gulfport, Tampico, Key West
Galveston harbor by Verner Moore White
Ship and oil rigs in the Gulf
The Gulf of Mexico (Spanish: Golfo de México) is an ocean basin and a marginal sea of the Atlantic Ocean,[1] largely surrounded by the North American continent.[2] It is bounded on the northeast, north and northwest by the Gulf Coast of the United States, on the southwest and south by Mexico, and on the southeast by Cuba. The U.S. states of Texas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama and Florida border the Gulf on the north, which are often referred to as the "Third Coast" in comparison with the U.S. Atlantic and Pacific coasts, or sometimes the "south coast", in juxtaposition to the Great Lakes region being the "north coast." One of the gulf's seven main areas is the Gulf of Mexico basin.
The Gulf of Mexico formed approximately 300 million years ago as a result of plate tectonics.[3] The Gulf's basin is roughly oval and is approximately 810 nautical miles (1,500 km; 930 mi) wide and floored by sedimentary rocks and recent sediments. It is connected to part of the Atlantic Ocean through the Florida Straits between the U.S. and Cuba, and with the Caribbean (with which it forms the American Mediterranean Sea) via the Yucatán Channel between Mexico and Cuba. With the narrow connection to the Atlantic, the Gulf experiences very small tidal ranges. The size of the Gulf basin is approximately 1.6 million km2 (615,000 sq mi). Almost half of the basin is shallow continental shelf waters. The basin contains a volume of roughly 2,500 quadrillion liters (550 quadrillion Imperial gallons, 660 quadrillion US gallons, 2.5 million km3 or 600,000 cu mi).[4]
Contents
[hide]
1 Extent
2 Geology
3 History
3.1 European exploration
4 Shipwrecks
5 Geography
5.1 2006 earthquake
5.2 Maritime boundary delimitation agreements
6 Biota
7 Pollution
7.1 Ixtoc I explosion and oil spill
7.2 Deepwater Horizon explosion and oil spill
7.3 Minor oil spills
7.3.1 Brutus oil spill
8 See also
9 References
10 External links
Extent[edit]
The International Hydrographic Organization defines the southeast limit of the Gulf of Mexico as follows:[5]
A line leaving Cape Catoche Light (21°37′N 87°04′W / 21.617°N 87.067°W / 21.617; -87.067) with the Light on Cape San Antonio in Cuba, through this island to the meridian of 83°W and to the Northward along this meridian to the latitude of the South point of the Dry Tortugas (24°35'N), along this parallel Eastward to Rebecca Shoal (82°35'W) thence through the shoals and Florida Keys to the mainland at eastern end of Florida Bay, all the narrow waters between the Dry Tortugas and the mainland being considered to be within the Gulf.
Geology[edit]
Sediment in the Gulf of Mexico
The consensus among geologists[3][6][7] who have studied the geology of the Gulf of Mexico, is that prior to the Late Triassic, the Gulf of Mexico did not exist. Before the Late Triassic, the area now occupied by the Gulf of Mexico consisted of dry land, which included continental crust that now underlies Yucatán, within the middle of the large supercontinent of Pangea. This land lay south of a continuous mountain range that extended from north-central Mexico, through the Marathon Uplift in West Texas and the Ouachita Mountains of Oklahoma, and to Alabama where it linked directly to the Appalachian Mountains. It was created by the collision of continental plates that formed Pangea. As interpreted by Roy Van Arsdale and Randel T. Cox, this mountain range was breached in Late Cretaceous times by the formation of the Mississippi Embayment.[8][9]
Geologists and other Earth scientists agree in general that the present Gulf of Mexico basin originated in Late Triassic time as the result of rifting within Pangea.[10] The rifting was associated with zones of weakness within Pangea, including sutures where the Laurentia, South American, and African plates collided to create it. First, there was a Late Triassic-Early Jurassic phase of rifting during which rift valleys formed and filled with continental red beds. Second, as rifting progressed through Early and Middle Jurassic time, continental crust was stretched and thinned. This thinning created a broad zone of thick transitional crust, which displays modest and uneven thinning with block faulting, and a broad zone of uniformly thinned transitional crust, which is half the typical thickness, 35 kilometers, of normal continental crust. It was at this time that tectonics first created a connection to the Pacific Ocean across central Mexico and later eastward to the Atlantic Ocean. This flooded the subsiding basin created by rifting and crustal thinning to create the Gulf of Mexico. While the Gulf of Mexico was a restricted basin, the subsiding transitional crust was blanketed by the widespread deposition of Louann Salt and associated anhydrite evaporites. Initially, during the Late Jurassic, continued rifting widened the Gulf of Mexico and progressed to the point that sea-floor spreading and formation of oceanic crust occurred. At this point, sufficient circulation with the Atlantic Ocean was established that the deposition of Louann Salt ceased.[6][7][11][12]
During the Late Jurassic through Early Cretaceous, the basin occupied by the Gulf of Mexico experienced a period of cooling and subsidence of the crust underlying it. The subsidence was the result of a combination of crustal stretching, cooling, and loading. Initially, the combination of crustal stretching and cooling caused about 5–7 km of tectonic subsidence of the central thin transitional and oceanic crust. Because subsidence occurred faster than sediment could fill it, the Gulf of Mexico expanded and deepened.[6][12][13]
Later, loading of the crust within the Gulf of Mexico and adjacent coastal plain by the accumulation of kilometers of sediments during the rest of the Mesozoic and all of the Cenozoic further depressed the underlying crust to its current position about 10–20 km below sea level. Particularly during the Cenozoic, thick clastic wedges built out the continental shelf along the northwestern and northern margins of the Gulf of Mexico.[6][12][13]
To the east, the stable Florida platform was not covered by the sea until the latest Jurassic or the beginning of Cretaceous time. The Yucatán platform was emergent until the mid-Cretaceous. After both platforms were submerged, the formation of carbonates and evaporites has characterized the geologic history of these two stable areas. Most of the basin was rimmed during the Early Cretaceous by carbonate platforms, and its western flank was involved during the latest Cretaceous and early Paleogene periods in a compressive deformation episode, the Laramide Orogeny, which created the Sierra Madre Oriental of eastern Mexico.[14]
In 2002 geologist Michael Stanton published a speculative essay suggesting an impact origin for the Gulf of Mexico at the close of the Permian, which could have caused the Permian–Triassic extinction event.[15] However, Gulf Coast geologists do not regard this hypothesis as having any credibility. Instead they overwhelmingly accept plate tectonics, not an asteroid impact, as having created the Gulf of Mexico as illustrated by papers authored by Kevin Mickus and others.[3][7][12][16] This hypothesis is not to be confused with the Chicxulub Crater, a large impact crater on the coast of the Gulf of Mexico on the Yucatán Peninsula.
Today, the Gulf of Mexico has the following 7 main areas:[14]
Gulf of Mexico basin, which contains the Sigsbee Deep and can be further divided into the continental rise, the Sigsbee Abyssal Plain, and the Mississippi Cone.
Northeast Gulf of Mexico, which extends from a point east of the Mississippi River Delta near Biloxi to the eastern side of Apalachee Bay.
South Florida Continental Shelf and Slope, which extends along the coast from Apalachee Bay to the Straits of Florida and includes the Florida Keys and Dry Tortugas.
Campeche Bank, which extends from the Yucatán Straits in the east to the Tabasco–Campeche Basin in the west and includes Arrecife Alacran.
Bay of Campeche, which is an isthmian embayment extending from the western edge of Campeche Bank to the offshore regions just east of the port of Veracruz.
Western Gulf of Mexico, which is located between Veracruz to the south and the Rio Grande to the north.
Northwest Gulf of Mexico, which extends from Alabama to the Rio Grande.
History[edit]
European exploration[edit]
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Fishing boats in Biloxi
Graph showing the overall water temperature of the Gulf between Hurricanes Katrina and Rita. Although Katrina cooled waters in its path by up to 4 °C, they had rebounded by the time of Rita's appearance.
Although Christopher Columbus was credited with the discovery of the Americas by Europeans, the ships in his four voyages never reached the Gulf of Mexico. Instead, Columbus sailed into the Caribbean around Cuba and Hispaniola. The first European exploration of the Gulf of Mexico was by Amerigo Vespucci in 1497. He followed the coastal land mass of Central America before returning to the Atlantic Ocean via the Straits of Florida between Florida and Cuba. In his letters, Vespucci described this trip, and once Juan de la Cosa returned to Spain, a famous world map, depicting Cuba as an island, was produced.
In 1506, Hernán Cortés took part in the conquest of Hispaniola and Cuba, receiving a large estate of land and Indian slaves for his effort. In 1510, he accompanied Diego Velázquez de Cuéllar, an aide of the governor of Hispaniola, in his expedition to conquer Cuba. In 1518 Velázquez put him in command of an expedition to explore and secure the interior of Mexico for colonization.
In 1517, Francisco Hernández de Córdoba discovered the Yucatán Peninsula. This was the first European encounter with an advanced civilization in the Americas, with solidly built buildings and a complex social organization which they recognized as being comparable to those of the Old World; they also had reason to expect that this new land would have gold. All of this encouraged two further expeditions, the first in 1518 under the command of Juan de Grijalva, and the second in 1519 under the command of Hernán Cortés, which led to the Spanish exploration, military invasion, and ultimately settlement and colonization known as the Conquest of Mexico. Hernández did not live to see the continuation of his work: he died in 1517, the year of his expedition, as the result of the injuries and the extreme thirst suffered during the voyage, and disappointed in the knowledge that Diego Velázquez had given precedence to Grijalva as the captain of the next expedition to Yucatán.
In 1523, Ángel de Villafañe sailed toward Mexico City, but was shipwrecked en route along the coast of Padre Island, Texas, in 1554. When word of the disaster reached Mexico City, the viceroy requested a rescue fleet and immediately sent Villafañe marching overland to find the treasure-laden vessels. Villafañe traveled to Pánuco and hired a ship to transport him to the site, which had already been visited from that community. He arrived in time to greet García de Escalante Alvarado (a nephew of Pedro de Alvarado), commander of the salvage operation, when Alvarado arrived by sea on July 22, 1554. The team labored until September 12 to salvage the Padre Island treasure. This loss, in combination with other ship disasters around the Gulf of Mexico, gave rise to a plan for establishing a settlement on the northern Gulf Coast to protect shipping and more quickly rescue castaways. As a result, the expedition of Tristán de Luna y Arellano was sent and landed at Pensacola Bay on August 15, 1559.
On December 11, 1526, Charles V granted Pánfilo de Narváez a license to claim what is now the Gulf Coast of the United States, known as the Narváez expedition. The contract gave him one year to gather an army, leave Spain, be large enough to found at least two towns of 100 people each, and garrison two more fortresses anywhere along the coast. On April 7, 1528, they spotted land north of what is now Tampa Bay. They turned south and traveled for two days looking for a great harbor the master pilot Miruelo knew of. Sometime during these two days, one of the five remaining ships was lost on the rugged coast, but nothing else is known of it.
In 1697, Pierre Le Moyne d'Iberville sailed for France and was chosen by the Minister of Marine to lead an expedition to rediscover the mouth of the Mississippi River and to colonize Louisiana which the English coveted. Iberville's fleet sailed from Brest on October 24, 1698. On January 25, 1699, Iberville reached Santa Rosa Island in front of Pensacola founded by the Spanish; he sailed from there to Mobile Bay and explored Massacre Island, later renamed Dauphin Island. He cast anchor between Cat Island and Ship Island; and on February 13, 1699, he went to the mainland, Biloxi, with his brother Jean-Baptiste Le Moyne de Bienville.[17] On May 1, 1699, he completed a fort on the north-east side of the Bay of Biloxi, a little to the rear of what is now Ocean Springs, Mississippi. This fort was known as Fort Maurepas or Old Biloxi. A few days later, on May 4, Pierre Le Moyne sailed for France leaving his teenage brother, Jean-Baptiste Le Moyne, as second in command to the French commandant.
Shipwrecks[edit]
The Mardi Gras shipwreck around the early-19th century about 35 miles off the coast of Louisiana in 4,000 feet (1220 meters) of water. She is believed to have been a privateer or trader. The shipwreck, whose real identity remains a mystery, lay forgotten at the bottom of the sea until it was discovered in 2002 by an oilfield inspection crew working for the Okeanos Gas Gathering Company (OGGC). In May 2007, an expedition, led by Texas A&M University and funded by OGGC under an agreement with the Minerals Management Service (now BOEM), was launched to undertake the deepest scientific archaeological excavation ever attempted at that time to study the site on the seafloor and recover artifacts for eventual public display in the Louisiana State Museum. As part of the project educational outreach Nautilus Productions in partnership with BOEM, Texas A&M University, the Florida Public Archaeology Network[18] and Veolia Environmental produced a one-hour HD documentary[19] about the project, short videos for public viewing and provided video updates during the expedition. Video footage from the ROV was an integral part of this outreach and used extensively in the Mystery Mardi Gras Shipwreck documentary.[20]
On July 30, 1942 the Robert E. Lee, captained by William C. Heath, was torpedoed by the German submarine U-166. She was sailing southeast of the entrance to the Mississippi River when the explosion destroyed the #3 hold, vented through the B and C decks and damaged the engines, the radio compartment and the steering gear. After the attack she was under escort by the USS PC-566, captained by LCDR Herbert G. Claudius, en route to New Orleans. The USS PC-566 began dropping depth charges on a sonar contact, sinking the U-166. The badly damaged Robert E. Lee first listed to port then to starboard and finally sank within about 15 minutes of the attack. One officer, nine crewmen and 15 passengers were lost. Ironically the passengers aboard the Robert E. Lee were primarily survivors of previous torpedo attacks by German U-boats.[21] The wreck's precise location was discovered during the C & C Marine survey that located the U-166.
The German submarine U-166 was a Type IXC U-boat of Nazi Germany's Kriegsmarine during World War II. The submarine was laid down on December 6, 1940 at the Seebeckwerft (part of Deutsche Schiff- und Maschinenbau AG, Deschimag) at Wesermünde (modern Bremerhaven) as yard number 705, launched on November 1, 1941 and commissioned on March 23, 1942 under the command of Oberleutnant zur See Hans-Günther Kuhlmann. After training with the 4th U-boat Flotilla, U-166 was transferred to the 10th U-boat Flotilla for front-line service on June 1, 1942. The U-boat sailed on only two war patrols and sank four ships totalling 7,593 gross register tons (GRT).[22] She was sunk on July 30, 1942 in Gulf of Mexico.[23]
In 2001 the wreck of U-166 was located in 5,000 feet (1,500 m) of water, less than two miles from where it had attacked the Robert E. Lee. An archaeological survey of the seafloor prior to construction of a natural gas pipeline led to the discoveries by C & C Marine archaeologists Robert A. Church and Daniel J. Warren. The sonar contacts consisted of two large sections lying approximately 500 feet apart at either end of a debris field that indicated the presence of a U-boat.[24]
Geography[edit]
Gulf beach near Sabine Pass
The Mississippi River Watershed is the largest drainage basin of the Gulf of Mexico Watershed.[25]
Map of northern part of Gulf of Mexico
The shaded relief map of the Gulf of Mexico and Caribbean area.[26][27]
The Gulf of Mexico's eastern, northern, and northwestern shores lie along the US states of Florida, Alabama, Mississippi, Louisiana, and Texas. The US portion of the Gulf coastline spans 1,680 miles (2,700 km), receiving water from 33 major rivers that drain 31 states.[28] The Gulf's southwestern and southern shores lie along the Mexican states of Tamaulipas, Veracruz, Tabasco, Campeche, Yucatán, and the northernmost tip of Quintana Roo. The Mexican portion of the Gulf coastline spans 1,743 miles (2,805 km). On its southeast quadrant the Gulf is bordered by Cuba. It supports major American, Mexican and Cuban fishing industries. The outer margins of the wide continental shelves of Yucatán and Florida receive cooler, nutrient-enriched waters from the deep by a process known as upwelling, which stimulates plankton growth in the euphotic zone. This attracts fish, shrimp, and squid.[29] River drainage and atmospheric fallout from industrial coastal cities also provide nutrients to the coastal zone.
The Gulf Stream, a warm Atlantic Ocean current and one of the strongest ocean currents known, originates in the gulf, as a continuation of the Caribbean Current-Yucatán Current-Loop Current system. Other circulation features include the anticyclonic gyres which are shed by the Loop Current and travel westward where they eventually dissipate, and a permanent cyclonic gyre in the Bay of Campeche. The Bay of Campeche in Mexico constitutes a major arm of the Gulf of Mexico. Additionally, the gulf's shoreline is fringed by numerous bays and smaller inlets. A number of rivers empty into the gulf, most notably the Mississippi River and Rio Grande in the northern gulf, and the Grijalva and Usumacinta rivers in the southern gulf. The land that forms the gulf's coast, including many long, narrow barrier islands, is almost uniformly low-lying and is characterized by marshes and swamps as well as stretches of sandy beach.
The Gulf of Mexico is an excellent example of a passive margin. The continental shelf is quite wide at most points along the coast, most notably at the Florida and Yucatán Peninsulas. The shelf is exploited for its oil by means of offshore drilling rigs, most of which are situated in the western gulf and in the Bay of Campeche. Another important commercial activity is fishing; major catches include red snapper, amberjack, tilefish, swordfish, and various grouper, as well as shrimp and crabs. Oysters are also harvested on a large scale from many of the bays and sounds. Other important industries along the coast include shipping, petrochemical processing and storage, military use, paper manufacture, and tourism.
The gulf's warm water temperature can feed powerful Atlantic hurricanes causing extensive human death and other destruction as happened with Hurricane Katrina in 2005. In the Atlantic, a hurricane will draw up cool water from the depths and making it less likely that further hurricanes will follow in its wake (warm water being one of the preconditions necessary for their formation). However, the Gulf is shallower; when a hurricane passes over the water temperature may drop but it soon rebounds and becomes capable of supporting another tropical storm.[30]
The Gulf is considered aseismic; however, mild tremors have been recorded throughout history (usually 5.0 or less on the Richter magnitude scale). Earthquakes may be caused by interactions between sediment loading on the sea floor and adjustment by the crust.[31]
2006 earthquake[edit]
Main article: 2006 Gulf of Mexico earthquake
On September 10, 2006, the U.S. Geological Survey National Earthquake Information Center reported that a magnitude 6.0 earthquake occurred about 250 miles (400 km) west-southwest of Anna Maria, Florida, around 10:56 AM EDT. The quake was reportedly felt from Louisiana to Florida in the Southeastern United States. There were no reports of damage or injuries.[32][33] Items were knocked from shelves and seiches were observed in swimming pools in parts of Florida.[34] The earthquake was described by the USGS as an intraplate earthquake, the largest and most widely felt recorded in the past three decades in the region.[34] According to the September 11, 2006 issue of The Tampa Tribune, earthquake tremors were last felt in Florida in 1952, recorded in Quincy, 20 miles (32 km) northwest of Tallahassee
Maritime boundary delimitation agreements[edit]
Cuba and Mexico: Exchange of notes constituting an agreement on the delimitation of the exclusive economic zone of Mexico in the sector adjacent to Cuban maritime areas (with map), of July 26, 1976.
Cuba and United States of America: Maritime boundary agreement between the United States of America and the Republic of Cuba, of December 16, 1977.
Mexico and United States of America: Treaty to resolve pending boundary differences and maintain the Rio Grande and Colorado River as the international boundary, of November 23, 1970; Treaty on maritime boundaries between the United States of America and the United Mexican States (Caribbean Sea and Pacific Ocean), of May 4, 1978, and Treaty between the Government of the United States of America and the Government of the United Mexican States on the delimitation of the continental shelf in the Western Gulf of Mexico beyond 200 nautical miles (370 km), of June 9, 2000.
On December 13, 2007, Mexico submitted information to the Commission on the Limits of the Continental Shelf (CLCS) regarding the extension of Mexico's continental shelf beyond 200 nautical miles.[35] Mexico sought an extension of its continental shelf in the Western Polygon based on international law, UNCLOS, and bilateral treaties with the United States, in accordance with Mexico's domestic legislation. On March 13, 2009, the CLCS accepted Mexico's arguments for extending its continental shelf up to 350 NM into the Western Polygon. Since this would extend Mexico's continental shelf well into territory claimed by the United States, however, Mexico and the U.S. would need to enter a bilateral agreement based on international law that delimits their respective claims.
[show]
Places adjacent to Gulf of Mexico
Texas United States
Louisiana • Mississippi • Alabama Florida
Mexico
Tamaulipas
Gulf of Mexico
Atlantic Ocean
Veracruz Mexico
Tabasco • Campeche • Yucatán • Quintana Roo Cuba
Caribbean
Biota[edit]
Various biota include chemosynthetic communities near cold seeps and nonchemosynthetic communities such as bacteria and other micro – benthos, meiofauna, macrofauna, and megafauna (larger organisms such as crabs, sea pens, crinoids, and demersal fish and cetaceans including endangered ones) are living in the Gulf of Mexico.[36] Recently, resident Bryde's whales within the gulf were classified as an endemic, unique subspecies and making them as one of the most endangered whales in the world.[37] The Gulf of Mexico yields more finfish, shrimp, and shellfish annually than the south and mid-Atlantic, Chesapeake, and New England areas combined.[4]
The Smithsonian Institution Gulf of Mexico holdings are expected to provide an important baseline of understanding for future scientific studies on the impact of the Deepwater Horizon oil spill.[38] In Congressional testimony, Dr. Jonathan Coddington, Associate Director of Research and Collections at the Smithsonian's National Museum of Natural History, provides a detailed overview of the Gulf collections and their sources which Museum staff have made available on an online map. The samples were collected for years by the former Minerals Management Service (renamed the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, Regulation and Enforcement) to help predict the potential impacts of future oil/gas explorations. Since 1979, the specimens have been deposited in the national collections of the National Museum of Natural History.[39]
See also: List of invasive marine fish in the Gulf of Mexico
Pollution[edit]
Dead zone in the Gulf of Mexico
The major environmental threats to the Gulf are agricultural runoff and oil drilling.
There are frequent "red tide" algae blooms[40] that kill fish and marine mammals and cause respiratory problems in humans and some domestic animals when the blooms reach close to shore. This has especially been plaguing the southwest and southern Florida coast, from the Florida Keys to north of Pasco County, Florida.
The Gulf contains a hypoxic dead zone that runs east-west along the Texas-Louisiana coastline. In July 2008, researchers reported that between 1985 and 2008, the area roughly doubled in size and now stretches from near Galveston, Texas, to near Venice, Louisiana. It is now about 8,000 square miles (21,000 km2), nearly the record.[41] Poor agricultural practices in the northern portion of the Gulf of Mexico have led to a tremendous increase of nitrogen and phosphorus in neighboring marine ecosystems, which has resulted in algae blooms and a lack of available oxygen. Occurrences of masculinization and estrogen suppression were observed as a result. An October 2007 study of the Atlantic croaker found a disproportioned sex ratio of 61% males to 39% females in hypoxic Gulf sites. This was compared with a 52% to 48% male-female ratio found in reference sites, showing an impairment of reproductive output for fish populations inhabiting hypoxic coastal zones.[42]
There are 27,000 abandoned oil and gas wells beneath the Gulf. These have generally not been checked for potential environmental problems.[43]
Ixtoc I explosion and oil spill[edit]
Main articles: Ixtoc I and Ixtoc I oil spill
In June 1979, the Ixtoc I oil platform in the Bay of Campeche suffered a blowout leading to a catastrophic explosion, which resulted in a massive oil spill that continued for nine months before the well was finally capped. This was ranked as the largest oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico until the Deepwater Horizon oil spill in 2010.
Deepwater Horizon explosion and oil spill[edit]
Main articles: Deepwater Horizon explosion and Deepwater Horizon oil spill
On April 20, 2010, the Deepwater Horizon oil platform, located in the Mississippi Canyon about 40 miles (64 km) off the Louisiana coast, suffered a catastrophic explosion; it sank a day-and-a-half later.[44] It was in the process of being sealed with cement for temporary abandonment, to avoid environmental problems.[43] Although initial reports indicated that relatively little oil had leaked, by April 24, it was claimed by BP that approximately 1,000 barrels (160 m3) of oil per day were issuing from the wellhead, about 1-mile (1.6 km) below the surface on the ocean floor.[45] On April 29, the U.S. government revealed that approximately 5,000 barrels (790 m3) per day, five times the original estimate, were pouring into the Gulf from the wellhead.[46] The resulting oil slick quickly expanded to cover hundreds of square miles of ocean surface, posing a serious threat to marine life and adjacent coastal wetlands, and to the livelihoods of Gulf Coast shrimpers and fishermen.[47] Coast Guard Rear Adm. Sally Brice O'Hare stated that the U.S. government will be "employing booms, skimmers, chemical dispersants and controlled burns" to combat the oil spill. By May 1, 2010, the oil spill cleanup efforts were underway, but hampered by rough seas and the "tea like" consistency of the oil. Cleanup operations were resumed after conditions became favorable. On May 27, 2010, The USGS had revised the estimate of the leak from 5,000 barrels per day (790 m3/d) to 12,000–19,000 barrels per day (3,000 m3/d)[48] an increase from earlier estimates. On July 15, 2010, BP announced that the leak stopped for the first time in 88 days.
In July 2015 BP reached an $18.7bn settlement with the US government, the states of Alabama, Florida, Louisiana, Mississippi and Texas, as well as 400 local authorities. To date BP's cost for the clean-up, environmental and economic damages and penalties has reached $54bn.[49]
Minor oil spills[edit]
According to the National Response Center, the oil industry has thousands of minor accidents in the Gulf of Mexico every year.[50]
Brutus oil spill[edit]
On May 12, 2016, a release of oil from subsea infrastructure on Shell's Brutus oil rig released 2,100 barrels of oil. This leak created a visible 2 mile by 13 mile oil slick in the sea about 97 miles south of Port Fourchon, Louisiana, according to the U.S. Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement.[50]
See also[edit]
Cantarell Field
Brine pool
Charlotte Harbor Estuary, Florida
Gulf Coast
Gulf of Mexico Foundation
Hypoxia
Jack 2 (a test well in the deep waters of the Gulf of Mexico)
Orca Basin
Outer Continental Shelf
Territorial evolution of the Caribbean
US Gulf of Mexico Protraction areas
Atwater Valley
East Cameron
Eugene Island
Garden Banks
Green Canyon
Keathley Canyon
Mississippi Canyon
Sigsbee Escarpment
South Marsh Island
Walker Ridge
References[edit]
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Jump up ^ "Mystery Mardi Gras Shipwreck Documentary". MUA.
Jump up ^ Helgason, Guðmundur. "Robert E. Lee". German U-boats of World War II – uboat.net. Retrieved August 1, 2015.
Jump up ^ Helgason, Guðmundur. "U-166". German U-boats of World War II – uboat.net. Retrieved July 31, 2015.
Jump up ^ "Historic Shipwrecks in the Gulf of Mexico". gomr.mms.gov. Archived from the original on October 17, 2008. Retrieved February 22, 2010.
Jump up ^ Daniel J. Warren, Robert A. Church. "The Discovery of U – 166 : Rewriting History with New Technology" (PDF). Offshore Technology Conference. Retrieved July 31, 2015.
Jump up ^ "Gulf of Mexico Watershed". EPA.gov. Retrieved December 6, 2010.
Jump up ^ National Geophysical Data Center, 1999. Global Land One-kilometer Base Elevation (GLOBE) v.1. Hastings, D. and P.K. Dunbar. National Geophysical Data Center, NOAA. doi:10.7289/V52R3PMS [access date: March 16, 2015]
Jump up ^ Amante, C. and B.W. Eakins, 2009. ETOPO1 1 Arc-Minute Global Relief Model: Procedures, Data Sources and Analysis. NOAA Technical Memorandum NESDIS NGDC-24. National Geophysical Data Center, NOAA. doi:10.7289/V5C8276M [access date: March 18, 2015].
Jump up ^ "National Water Program Guidance: FY 2005". epa.gov. Archived from the original on October 2, 2006. Retrieved January 21, 2007.
Jump up ^ "Gulf of Mexico". Handbook of Texas Online. Texas State Historical Association. Retrieved June 26, 2010.
Jump up ^ "Warm Waters Provide Fuel for Potential Storms". NASA Earth Observatory. Archived from the original on October 1, 2006. Retrieved May 5, 2006.
Jump up ^ "Earthquakes in the Gulf of Mexico". Retrieved December 27, 2006.
Jump up ^ "Central Florida Feels Quake". Archived from the original on August 28, 2007. Retrieved December 27, 2006.
Jump up ^ "6.0 Magnitude Earthquake In Gulf Of Mexico Shakes Southeast". www.observernews.net.
^ Jump up to: a b United States Geological Survey, September 11, 2006 Archived October 14, 2006, at the Wayback Machine.
Jump up ^ "Mexico's Attempt to Extend its Continental Shelf Beyond 200 Nautical Miles Serves as a Model for the International Community, Mexican Law Review, Volume V, Number 2, Jan.– June 2013" (PDF).
Jump up ^ Minerals Management Service Gulf of Mexico OCS Region (November 2006). "Gulf of Mexico OCS Oil and Gas Lease Sales: 2007–2012. Western Planning Area Sales 204, 207, 210, 215, and 218. Central Planning Area Sales 205, 206, 208, 213, 216, and 222. Draft Environmental Impact Statement. Volume I: Chapters 1–8 and Appendices". U.S. Department of the Interior, Minerals Management Service, Gulf of Mexico OCS Region, New Orleans. page 3-27–3-34 PDF Archived March 26, 2009, at the Wayback Machine..
Jump up ^ Rosel E. P.. Corkeron P.. Engleby L.. Epperson D.. Mullin D. K.. Soldevilla S. M.. Taylor L. B.. 2016. STATUS REVIEW OF BRYDE’S WHALES (BALAENOPTERA EDENI) IN THE GULF OF MEXICO UNDER THE ENDANGERED SPECIES ACT. NOAA Technical Memorandum NMFS-SEFSC-692
Jump up ^ Zongker, Brett (July 21, 2010). "Smithsonian Holdings to Aid Researchers in the Gulf". Associated Press. Archived from the original on July 24, 2010. Retrieved July 29, 2010.
Jump up ^ Coddington, Jonathan (June 15, 2010). "Testimony to the Subcommittee on Insular Affairs, Oceans and Wildlife; Committee on Natural Resources; U.S. House of Representatives" (PDF). [Smithsonian Ocean Portal]. Retrieved July 29, 2010.
Jump up ^ "The Gulf of Mexico Dead Zone and Red Tides". Retrieved December 27, 2006.
Jump up ^ Joel Achenbach, "A 'Dead Zone' in The Gulf of Mexico: Scientists Say Area That Cannot Support Some Marine Life Is Near Record Size", Washington Post, July 31, 2008
Jump up ^ Thomas, Peter; Md Saydur Rahman (2012). "Extensive Reproductive Disruption, Ovarian Masculinization and Aromatase Suppression in Atlantic Croaker in the Northern Gulf of Mexico Hypoxic Zone". Proceedings of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences. 279 (1726): 28–38. doi:10.1098/rspb.2011.0529.
^ Jump up to: a b Donn, Jeff (July 7, 2010). "Gulf home to 27,000 abandoned wells". Burlington, Vermont: Burlington Free Press. pp. 1A.
Jump up ^ "Burning oil rig sinks, setting stage for spill; 11 still missing", by Kevin McGill and Holbrook Mohr (Associated Press), Boston Globe, April 23, 2010
Jump up ^ "Well from sunken rig leaking oil", by Cain Burdeau (Associated Press), Boston Globe, April 25, 2010
Jump up ^ Robertson, Campbell; Kaufman, Leslie (April 28, 2010). "Size of Spill in Gulf of Mexico Is Larger Than Thought". The New York Times.
Jump up ^ "Race to plug leaking oil well off La. spurs new tactics", by Cain Burdeau (Associated Press), Boston Globe, April 27, 2010
Jump up ^ "Gulf Oil Spill Worst in U.S. History; Drilling Postponed", by Marianne Lavelle, National Geographic, May 27, 2010
Jump up ^ Ed Crooks, Christopher Adams,. "BP: Into uncharted waters". ft.com. Retrieved August 10, 2015.
^ Jump up to: a b Chow, Lorraine. "Shell Oil Spill Dumps Nearly 90,000 Gallons of Crude Into Gulf". EcoWatch. Retrieved June 6, 2016.
External links[edit]
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Gulf of Mexico.
Resource Database for Gulf of Mexico Research
Gulf of Mexico Integrated Science
Mystery Mardi Gras Shipwreck
"Mexico, Gulf of". Encyclopædia Britannica (11th ed.). 1911.
"Mexico, Gulf of". Collier's New Encyclopedia. 1921.
Bathymetry of the Northern Gulf of Mexico and the Atlantic Ocean East of Florida United States Geological Survey
The Present State of the West-Indies: Containing an Accurate Description of What Parts Are Possessed by the Several Powers in Europe written by Thomas Kitchin, 1778, in which Kitchin discusses, in chapter 1, why the Gulf should have been called the "West Indian Sea."
BP Oil Spill, NPR
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Nuclear reaction
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In this symbolic representing of a nuclear reaction, lithium-6 (6
3Li
) and deuterium (2
1H
) react to form the highly excited intermediate nucleus 8
4Be
which then decays immediately into two alpha particles of helium-4 (4
2He
). Protons are symbolically represented by red spheres, and neutrons by blue spheres.
Nuclear physics
Nucleus · Nucleons (p, n) · Nuclear matter · Nuclear force · Nuclear structure · Nuclear reaction
Models of the nucleus[show]
Liquid drop · Nuclear shell model · Interacting boson model · Ab initio
Nuclides' classification[show]
Isotopes – equal Z
Isobars – equal A
Isotones – equal N
Isodiaphers – equal N − Z
Isomers – equal all the above
Mirror nuclei – Z ↔ N
Stable · Magic · Even/odd · Halo
Nuclear stability[show]
Binding energy · p–n ratio · Drip line · Island of stability · Valley of stability
Radioactive decay[show]
Alpha α · Beta β (2β, β+) · K/L capture · Isomeric (Gamma γ · Internal conversion) · Spontaneous fission · Cluster decay · Neutron emission · Proton emission
Decay energy · Decay chain · Decay product · Radiogenic nuclide
Nuclear fission[show]
Spontaneous · Products (pair breaking) · Photofission
Capturing processes[show]
electron · neutron (s · r) · proton (p · rp)
High energy processes[show]
Spallation (by cosmic ray) · Photodisintegration
Nucleosynthesis and
nuclear astrophysics[show]
Nuclear fusion
Processes: Stellar · Big Bang · Supernova
Nuclides: Primordial · Cosmogenic · Artificial
High energy nuclear physics[show]
Quark–gluon plasma · RHIC · LHC
Scientists[show]
Alvarez · Becquerel · Bethe · A.Bohr · N.Bohr · Chadwick · Cockcroft · Ir.Curie · Fr.Curie · Pi.Curie · Skłodowska-Curie · Davisson · Fermi · Hahn · Jensen · Lawrence · Mayer · Meitner · Oliphant · Oppenheimer · Proca · Purcell · Rabi · Rutherford · Soddy · Strassmann · Szilárd · Teller · Thomson · Walton · Wigner
v
t
e
In nuclear physics and nuclear chemistry, a nuclear reaction is semantically considered to be the process in which two nuclei, or else a nucleus of an atom and a subatomic particle (such as a proton, neutron, or high energy electron) from outside the atom, collide to produce one or more nuclides that are different from the nuclide(s) that began the process. Thus, a nuclear reaction must cause a transformation of at least one nuclide to another. If a nucleus interacts with another nucleus or particle and they then separate without changing the nature of any nuclide, the process is simply referred to as a type of nuclear scattering, rather than a nuclear reaction.
In principle, a reaction can involve more than two particles colliding, but because the probability of three or more nuclei to meet at the same time at the same place is much less than for two nuclei, such an event is exceptionally rare (see triple alpha process for an example very close to a three-body nuclear reaction). "Nuclear reaction" is a term implying an induced change in a nuclide, and thus it does not apply to any type of radioactive decay (which by definition is a spontaneous process).
Natural nuclear reactions occur in the interaction between cosmic rays and matter, and nuclear reactions can be employed artificially to obtain nuclear energy, at an adjustable rate, on demand. Perhaps the most notable nuclear reactions are the nuclear chain reactions in fissionable materials that produce induced nuclear fission, and the various nuclear fusion reactions of light elements that power the energy production of the Sun and stars.
Nuclear reactions may be shown in a form similar to chemical equations, for which invariant mass must balance for each side of the equation, and in which transformations of particles must follow certain conservation laws, such as conservation of charge and baryon number (total atomic mass number). An example of this notation follows:
6
3Li
+ 2
1H
→ 4
2He
+ ?.
To balance the equation above for mass, charge and mass number, the second nucleus to the right must have atomic number 2 and mass number 4; it is therefore also helium-4. The complete equation therefore reads:
6
3Li
+ 2
1H
→ 4
2He
+ 4
2He
.
or more simply:
6
3Li
+ 2
1H
→ 2 4
2He
.
Instead of using the full equations in the style above, in many situations a compact notation is used to describe nuclear reactions. This style of the form A(b,c)D is equivalent to A + b producing c + D. Common light particles are often abbreviated in this shorthand, typically p for proton, n for neutron, d for deuteron, α representing an alpha particle or helium-4, β for beta particle or electron, γ for gamma photon, etc. The reaction above would be written as Li-6(d,α)α.[1][2]
Contents
[hide]
1 History
2 Energy conservation
3 Q-value and energy balance
4 Reaction rates
5 Neutrons vs. ions
6 Notable types
6.1 Direct reactions
6.1.1 Inelastic scattering
6.1.2 Transfer reactions
6.1.3 Reactions with neutrons
6.2 Compound nuclear reactions
7 See also
8 References
9 Sources
History[edit]
In 1919, Ernest Rutherford was able to accomplish transmutation of nitrogen into oxygen at the University of Manchester, using alpha particles directed at nitrogen 14N + α → 16O + p. This was the first observation of an induced nuclear reaction, that is, a reaction in which particles from one decay are used to transform another atomic nucleus. Eventually, in 1932 at Cambridge University, a fully artificial nuclear reaction and nuclear transmutation was achieved by Rutherford's colleagues John Cockcroft and Ernest Walton, who used artificially accelerated protons against lithium-7, to split the nucleus into two alpha particles. The feat was popularly known as "splitting the atom", although it was not the modern nuclear fission reaction later discovered in heavy elements, in 1938 by the German scientists Otto Hahn and Fritz Strassmann.[3]
Energy conservation[edit]
Kinetic energy may be released during the course of a reaction (exothermic reaction) or kinetic energy may have to be supplied for the reaction to take place (endothermic reaction). This can be calculated by reference to a table of very accurate particle rest masses,[4] as follows: according to the reference tables, the 6
3Li
nucleus has a standard atomic weight of 6.015 atomic mass units (abbreviated u), the deuterium has 2.014 u, and the helium-4 nucleus has 4.0026 u. Thus:
the sum of the rest mass of the individual nuclei = 6.015 + 2.014 = 8.029 u;
the total rest mass on the two helium-nuclei = 2 × 4.0026 = 8.0052 u;
missing rest mass = 8.029 – 8.0052 = 0.0238 atomic mass units.
In a nuclear reaction, the total (relativistic) energy is conserved. The "missing" rest mass must therefore reappear as kinetic energy released in the reaction; its source is the nuclear binding energy. Using Einstein's mass-energy equivalence formula E = mc², the amount of energy released can be determined. We first need the energy equivalent of one atomic mass unit:
1 u c² = (1.66054 × 10−27 kg) × (2.99792 × 108 m/s)²
= 1.49242 × 10−10 kg (m/s)² = 1.49242 × 10−10 J (joule) × (1 MeV / 1.60218 × 10−13 J)
= 931.49 MeV,
so 1 u c² = 931.49 MeV.
Hence, the energy released is 0.0238 × 931 MeV = 22.2 MeV.
Expressed differently: the mass is reduced by 0.3%, corresponding to 0.3% of 90 PJ/kg is 270 TJ/kg.
This is a large amount of energy for a nuclear reaction; the amount is so high because the binding energy per nucleon of the helium-4 nucleus is unusually high, because the He-4 nucleus is "doubly magic". (The He-4 nucleus is unusually stable and tightly bound for the same reason that the helium atom is inert: each pair of protons and neutrons in He-4 occupies a filled 1s nuclear orbital in the same way that the pair of electrons in the helium atom occupy a filled 1s electron orbital). Consequently, alpha particles appear frequently on the right hand side of nuclear reactions.
The energy released in a nuclear reaction can appear mainly in one of three ways:
kinetic energy of the product particles (fraction of the kinetic energy of the charged nuclear reaction products can be directly converted into electrostatic energy);[5]
emission of very high energy photons, called gamma rays;
some energy may remain in the nucleus, as a metastable energy level.
When the product nucleus is metastable, this is indicated by placing an asterisk ("*") next to its atomic number. This energy is eventually released through nuclear decay.
A small amount of energy may also emerge in the form of X-rays. Generally, the product nucleus has a different atomic number, and thus the configuration of its electron shells is wrong. As the electrons rearrange themselves and drop to lower energy levels, internal transition X-rays (X-rays with precisely defined emission lines) may be emitted.
Q-value and energy balance[edit]
In writing down the reaction equation, in a way analogous to a chemical equation, one may in addition give the reaction energy on the right side:
Target nucleus + projectile → Final nucleus + ejectile + Q.
For the particular case discussed above, the reaction energy has already been calculated as Q = 22.2 MeV. Hence:
6
3Li
+ 2
1H
→ 2 4
2He
+ 22.2 MeV.
The reaction energy (the "Q-value") is positive for exothermal reactions and negative for endothermal reactions. On the one hand, it is the difference between the sums of kinetic energies on the final side and on the initial side. But on the other hand, it is also the difference between the nuclear rest masses on the initial side and on the final side (in this way, we have calculated the Q-value above).
Reaction rates[edit]
If the reaction equation is balanced, that does not mean that the reaction really occurs. The rate at which reactions occur depends on the particle energy, the particle flux and the reaction cross section. An example of a large repository of reaction rates is the REACLIB database, as maintained by the Joint Institute for Nuclear Astrophysics.
Neutrons vs. ions[edit]
In the initial collision which begins the reaction, the particles must approach closely enough so that the short range strong force can affect them. As most common nuclear particles are positively charged, this means they must overcome considerable electrostatic repulsion before the reaction can begin. Even if the target nucleus is part of a neutral atom, the other particle must penetrate well beyond the electron cloud and closely approach the nucleus, which is positively charged. Thus, such particles must be first accelerated to high energy, for example by:
particle accelerators;
nuclear decay (alpha particles are the main type of interest here, since beta and gamma rays are rarely involved in nuclear reactions);
very high temperatures, on the order of millions of degrees, producing thermonuclear reactions;
cosmic rays.
Also, since the force of repulsion is proportional to the product of the two charges, reactions between heavy nuclei are rarer, and require higher initiating energy, than those between a heavy and light nucleus; while reactions between two light nuclei are the most common ones.
Neutrons, on the other hand, have no electric charge to cause repulsion, and are able to initiate a nuclear reaction at very low energies. In fact, at extremely low particle energies (corresponding, say, to thermal equilibrium at room temperature), the neutron's de Broglie wavelength is greatly increased, possibly greatly increasing its capture cross section, at energies close to resonances of the nuclei involved. Thus low-energy neutrons may be even more reactive than high energy neutrons.
Notable types[edit]
While the number of possible nuclear reactions is immense, there are several types which are more common, or otherwise notable. Some examples include:
Fusion reactions — two light nuclei join to form a heavier one, with additional particles (usually protons or neutrons) emitted subsequently.
Spallation — a nucleus is hit by a particle with sufficient energy and momentum to knock out several small fragments or smash it into many fragments.
Induced gamma emission belongs to a class in which only photons were involved in creating and destroying states of nuclear excitation.
Alpha decay — Though driven by the same underlying forces as spontaneous fission, α decay is usually considered to be separate from the latter. The often-quoted idea that "nuclear reactions" are confined to induced processes is incorrect. "Radioactive decays" are a subgroup of "nuclear reactions" that are spontaneous rather than induced. For example, so-called "hot alpha particles" with unusually high energies may actually be produced in induced ternary fission, which is an induced nuclear reaction (contrasting with spontaneous fission). Such alphas occur from spontaneous ternary fission as well.
Fission reactions — a very heavy nucleus, after absorbing additional light particles (usually neutrons), splits into two or sometimes three pieces. This is an induced nuclear reaction. Spontaneous fission, which occurs without assistance of a neutron, is usually not considered a nuclear reaction. At most, it is not an induced nuclear reaction.
Direct reactions[edit]
An intermediate energy projectile transfers energy or picks up or loses nucleons to the nucleus in a single quick (10−21 second) event. Energy and momentum transfer are relatively small. These are particularly useful in experimental nuclear physics, because the reaction mechanisms are often simple enough to calculate with sufficient accuracy to probe the structure of the target nucleus.
Inelastic scattering[edit]
Main article: Inelastic scattering
Only energy and momentum are transferred.
(p,p') tests differences between nuclear states.
(α,α') measures nuclear surface shapes and sizes. Since α particles that hit the nucleus react more violently, elastic and shallow inelastic α scattering are sensitive to the shapes and sizes of the targets, like light scattered from a small black object.
(e,e') is useful for probing the interior structure. Since electrons interact less strongly than do protons and neutrons, they reach to the centers of the targets and their wave functions are less distorted by passing through the nucleus.
Transfer reactions[edit]
Usually at moderately low energy, one or more nucleons are transferred between the projectile and target. These are useful in studying outer shell structure of nuclei.
(α,n) and (α,p) reactions. Some of the earliest nuclear reactions studied involved an alpha particle produced by alpha decay, knocking a nucleon from a target nucleus.
(d,n) and (d,p) reactions. A deuteron beam impinges on a target; the target nuclei absorb either the neutron or proton from the deuteron. The deuteron is so loosely bound that this is almost the same as proton or neutron capture. A compound nucleus may be formed, leading to additional neutrons being emitted more slowly. (d,n) reactions are used to generate energetic neutrons.
The strangeness exchange reaction (K, π) has been used to study hypernuclei.
The reaction 14N(α,p)17O performed by Rutherford in 1917 (reported 1919), is generally regarded as the first nuclear transmutation experiment.
Reactions with neutrons[edit]
→ T
→ 7Li
→ 14C
(n,α) 6Li + n → T + α 10B + n → 7Li + α 17O + n → 14C + α 21Ne + n → 18O + α 37Ar + n → 34S + α
(n,p) 3He + n → T + p 7Be + n → 7Li + p 14N + n → 14C + p 22Na + n → 22Ne + p
Reactions with neutrons are important in nuclear reactors and nuclear weapons. While the best-known neutron reactions are neutron scattering, neutron capture, and nuclear fission, for some light nuclei (especially odd-odd nuclei) the most probable reaction with a thermal neutron is a transfer reaction:
Some reactions are only possible with fast neutrons:
(n,2n) reactions produce small amounts of protactinium-231 and uranium-232 in the thorium cycle which is otherwise relatively free of highly radioactive actinide products.
9Be + n → 2α + 2n can contribute some additional neutrons in the beryllium neutron reflector of a nuclear weapon.
7Li + n → T + α + n unexpectedly contributed additional yield in Castle Bravo, Castle Romeo, and Castle Yankee, the three highest-yield nuclear tests conducted by the U.S.
Compound nuclear reactions[edit]
Either a low-energy projectile is absorbed or a higher energy particle transfers energy to the nucleus, leaving it with too much energy to be fully bound together. On a time scale of about 10−19 seconds, particles, usually neutrons, are "boiled" off. That is, it remains together until enough energy happens to be concentrated in one neutron to escape the mutual attraction. Charged particles rarely boil off because of the coulomb barrier. The excited quasi-bound nucleus is called a compound nucleus.
Low energy (e, e' xn), (γ, xn) (the xn indicating one or more neutrons), where the gamma or virtual gamma energy is near the giant dipole resonance. These increase the need for radiation shielding around electron accelerators.
Further information: Spallation § Nuclear spallation
See also[edit]
Acoplanarity
Atomic mass
Atomic nucleus
Atomic number
CNO cycle
Nuclear chain reaction
Oppenheimer–Phillips process
References[edit]
Jump up ^ The Astrophysics Spectator: Hydrogen Fusion Rates in Stars
Jump up ^ Tilley, R. J. D. (2004). Understanding Solids: The Science of Materials. John Wiley and Sons. p. 495. ISBN 0-470-85275-5.
Jump up ^ Cockcroft and Walton split lithium with high energy protons April 1932.
Jump up ^ a table of atomic masses
Jump up ^ Shinn, E.; Et., al. (2013). "Nuclear energy conversion with stacks of graphene nanocapacitors". Complexity. Bibcode:2013Cmplx..18c..24S. doi:10.1002/cplx.21427.
Sources[edit]
Schmitz, Taylor (1973). Nuclear Physics. Pergamon Press. ISBN 0-08-016983-X.
[hide]
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LCCN: sh85093069
GND: 4030343-3
BNF: cb119786586 (data)
NDL: 00562379
BNE: XX526437
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Petroleum transport
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This article includes a list of references, but its sources remain unclear because it has insufficient inline citations. Please help to improve this article by introducing more precise citations. (April 2015) (Learn how and when to remove this template message)
Petroleum transport is the transportation of petroleum and derivatives such as gasoline (petrol).[1] Petroleum is transported via rail cars, trucks, tanker vessels, and through pipelines. Which method is used to move this oil depends on the amount that is being moved and where it is being moved to. The biggest problems with moving this oil are pollution and the chance that the oil can spill. Petroleum oil is very hard to clean up and is very toxic to living animals.
Contents
[hide]
1 Methods
1.1 Marine vessels
1.2 Pipelines
1.3 Rail cars
1.4 Trucks
2 Pollution concerns
3 References
4 External links
Methods[edit]
Marine vessels[edit]
Marine oil tanker and barges can transport this petroleum all around the world. These vessels are used because they can carry a lot of fuel, so the amount it costs per barrel to move this oil is very cheap. These tankers are also really the only way to move crude oil across the oceans. Usually the larger tankers are used to transport this fuel on a global scale, taking fuel from one continent to the other. Barges are a lot like tankers, however barges are a lot smaller and do not have any method of propulsion to move them. Barges are often pushed or towed by tugs. This makes barges very poor for transporting this oil for long distances. Barges are very poor for traveling across rough seas, so they are used in calmer waters. However, these barges are usually used for transporting the fuel shorter distances.[2]
Pipelines[edit]
Pipelines are used to transport oil from the wells to refineries and storage facilities. Pipelines are viewed as the most cost efficient way to move oil on land. First the oil is collected at the wellhead, or some area where the oil is stored. From the wellhead it is pumped across the land through a pipe, and is discharged at its destination which typically is a refinery. However, pipelines can be used the same way to deliver already refined fuels such as gasoline, diesel and even jet fuel from the refinery to distribution facilities or a consumer. These pipelines are not just a solid line of straight pipe, but have various components on the pipeline. These pipelines will have booster pumps to keep the fuel moving along a long distance, inspection areas to make sure that the fuel is not getting any contaminants, and even other collection and delivery points along the way. Though it costs a lot of money and time to set up these pipelines, the operation cost is significantly less than using any other type of transportation. Also the amount of manpower needed to move this oil is not that much. Pipelines offer the most efficient mode of transporting this oil across a land mass.[3] Even though these pipes are extremely cost effective there are some circumstances where this is not true and it is more logical to use another method. An example of this is how it is cheaper and more logical to use a ship to move the oil across the Atlantic Ocean than a pipeline.
Rail cars[edit]
Tank cars are another way to move crude oil across a landmass. The oil is loaded into the tank cars, and are moved by a diesel train across the rails to the refinery or the trains planned destination. Trains can carry a mass amount of this oil by using of multiple tank cars. Though each rail car holds a lot less oil than a large marine tanker vessel, when multiple are used a lot of oil can be transported. For example, the DOT-111 tank car is a very common tank car and can hold 34,500 US gallons (820 bbl; 131 m3). If ten tank cars were pulled the train would be carrying 345,000 US gallons (8,200 bbl; 1,310 m3) of oil, so the amount of volume increases rapidly. The locomotive used to pull these rail cars have a massive amount of horsepower and can be hooked up with other locomotives to increase the horsepower, making the rail car a fairly cost effective way to move this oil. These railcars just like the pipelines can be used to carry a refined fuel instead of crude oil from a refinery to a distributing plant.[4] Railcars are a common way to move this fuel a long distance to areas where they do not have pipelines set up.
Trucks[edit]
Tank trucks are used a lot like rail cars are, but they will usually transport refined fuel to a fuel station, like a gas station. Trucks are usually used to carry smaller capacities of oil short distances. Like railcars these trucks can carry several different forms of this petroleum, but they do not really carry the petroleum in its crude oil form because it would take a lot of trucks to deliver the volume of crude that the refineries demand. These trucks can deliver this fuel to gas stations, or deliver the fuel straight to the consumer.[4] These trucks are used in situations where it would be illogical to use railcars, pipelines and tanker ships. Places like gas stations; that are not able to be accessed by marine vessels, and do not demand the volume that is delivered by pipelines or trains, would get their fuel from tanker trucks. This allows a rational and cost effective way to deliver the fuel to the consumers through the gas station.
Pollution concerns[edit]
Every method of transporting this petroleum has the potential for a major oil spill. However, the amount of oil spilt while it is in transport is a surprisingly small percentage of the total oil spilled. Most oil is spilt during loading and unloading and industrial plants accidentally spilling the oil into the ground. Regulations are created to help prevent oil from spilling everywhere. Some of these regulations include forcing marine tankers to have double hulls, and making a minimum of two man crew on trains that are carrying crude oil. Even though the least amount of oil spills happens when the oil is in transit, regulations are still put in. if the oil was spilt while it is in a ship, tank truck, pipeline or rail car, it can result in fire, poising of plants, injuries and fatalities of the crew and citizens. There are also regulations put in place to prevent the spilling of oil and petroleum vapors while loading and unloading these fuels as well as processing the oil.[4] The goal of these regulations is to make sure that all the oil is delivered or processed equals the amount of oil that was received. A simple example of this is the vapor guard on the nozzle of the gas pump at the gas stations.[3] These regulations make sure that the companies watch to see that they do not have leaks in any pipes or equipment. When the oil is being processed is when it has a great potential of being leaked, so constant watch is required. These regulations are constantly changing as more discoveries on how to better control oil spills are being found.[4]
References[edit]
Jump up ^ Edge, Graham (1998). A Century of Petroleum Transport. Roundoak. ISBN 978-1-8715-6527-0.
Jump up ^ "Oil Transportation". PetroStrategies, Inc. Retrieved 29 October 2015.
^ Jump up to: a b Trench, Cheryl J. (December 2001). How Pipelines Make the Oil Market Work – Their Networks, Operation and Regulation (PDF) (Report). New York: Allegro Energy Group.
^ Jump up to: a b c d 5.2 Transportation And Marketing Of Petroleum Liquids (PDF). AP-42, Compilation of Air Pollutant Emission Factors (Report) (fifth ed.). EPA. 2008. Retrieved 21 April 2015.
External links[edit]
Oil Transportation
United States Department of Transportation. (n.d.). Bureau of Transportation Statistics. Table 1-61: Crude Oil and Petroleum Products Transported in the United States by Mode
Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Petroleum_transport&oldid=786332950"
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