'Top kill' effort succeeds in blocking oil leak, Coast Guard admiral says

latimes ^ | 5 27 10

[dennisw]

Reporting from Houma, La. Engineers have succeeded in stopping the flow of oil and gas into the Gulf of Mexico from a gushing BP well, the federal government's top oil spill commander, U.S. Coast Guard Adm. Thad Allen, said Thursday morning.

[Uncle Ike]

” Wonder what they are trying to do? Any experts here know? “

Plug the damn hole??

(Sorry - couldn’t resist... )

;)

[freebird5850]

I am wondering the same thing....earlier there was some sort of box and nothing going on. Now I too see multiple plumes and an arm holding a pipe into one of the plumes.

[a real Sheila]

Is aunt ester farting down the pipe?
That should hold it for awhile!
Then again, there may be another unprecendented methane explosion!

[Right Wing Assault]

Looks like a big pair of vice grips. Is that a hose going into the plume?

[Scythian]

I just looked, the thing is still leaking as bad as ever ...

[jacquej]

I did deserve that, Uncle Ike. I admit it.

[mojitojoe]

A team of U.S. scientists on Thursday significantly raised the estimate of how much oil has been leaking from a damaged well into the Gulf of Mexico. The figures signal that the disaster is at least as big as the Exxon Valdez spill two decades ago, and could perhaps double it in size.

Between 12,000 and 19,000 barrels a day are estimated to be spilling into the waters of the Gulf, said U.S. Geological Survey director Marcia McNutt, the leader of an inter-agency team created to measure the size and rate of the spill following criticism that a previous estimate of 5,000 barrels a day was inaccurate.

The announcement comes as Coast Guard Admiral Thad Allen said Thursday that BP PLC’s effort to stop the flow of oil from a broken well in the Gulf of Mexico has so far “stabilized the wellhead” and stopped the oil and gas from coming up.

But Adm. Allen and a BP executive, in separate appearances Thursday, cautioned that the so-called top kill operation to seal the well, and stop a gusher of crude fouling the Louisiana coast, isn’t complete.

http://www.theoildrum.com/

[djf]

Thats what I was wondering. WTF is that thing? When did it appear? What’s it supposed to do?

[freebird5850]

I can’t tell what the pipe is, as far as what is coming out, I think it is mostly mud.

[Right Wing Assault]

Earlier someone said the brown stuff was mud. I read a minute ago that one ship ran out of it and another was coming in. Maybe that’s when we saw it calm. And maybe now they are pumping the mud in again and some of it is leaking out. Just speculating here. Maybe someone in the biz can clarify.

[Bigun]

I have no way of knowing for sure but suspect that what the ROV is holding there is a probe of some sort, or maybe even a sample collection device. I suspect that they are trying to physically confirm that there are currently no hydrocarbons in that stream.

[ZX12R]

I have no way of knowing for sure but suspect that what the ROV is holding there is a probe of some sort, or maybe even a sample collection device. I suspect that they are trying to physically confirm that there are currently no hydrocarbons in that stream.

Looks to me like just a large combination wrench.

[crusty old prospector]

They are holding back pressure on the cement plug with the mud until it hardens.

[crusty old prospector]

Now, that there is funny.

[mojitojoe]

Interesting article:

Comparisons of the Deepwater Horizon blowout with Exxon Valdez
One footnote to consider when comparing the Deepwater Horizon blowout to the disastrous March 24, 1989 Exxon Valdez spill: the amount of oil spilled in that disaster is usually quoted as 11 million gallons (260,000 barrels.) However, this is the number given by Exxon Mobil, and independent assessments by the State of Alaska came up with a much higher figure—24 to 36 million gallons, with state investigators stressing that the lower number was very unlikely. I’d be inclined to believe Exxon grossly understated the actual severity of the spill, much like BP is attempting to do with the Deepwater Horizon blowout. Steven Wereley, an associate professor at Purdue University, used a computer analysis (particle image velocimetry) to arrive at a rate of 95,000 barrels (4 million gallons) per day since the April 20 blowout, nearly 20 times greater than the 5,000 barrel a day estimate BP and government scientists have been citing. If he is correct, and the State of Alaska’s figures on the Exxon Valdez disaster are correct, the Deepwater Horizon blowout so far has spilled five times the oil Exxon Valdez did.

Storm surge and oil
One of the more unnerving prospects to consider if a hurricane hits the oil spill is what the hurricane’s storm surge might do with the oil/dispersant mixture.

Bringing oil at depth to the surface
Hurricanes act like huge blenders that plow through the ocean, thoroughly mixing surface waters to depths as great as 200 meters (650 feet), and pulling waters from depth to the surface.

http://www.wunderground.com/blog/JeffMasters/comment.html?entrynum=1492

[valkyry1]

//drill another well, or six, into that monster reservoir.//

That will probably happen eventually after all the procedures are revamped.

While its possible that in some point in time another deep water well might blow out, I dont think we will see either the industry or the govt sides caught flat footed like they were on this one.

Wish I had the design for the lastest greatest BOP etc.

[Uncle Ike]

” Wish I had the design for the lastest greatest BOP etc. “

Wish I had the patent....

[lacrew]

BP answered my question:

HOUSTON — BP had to halt its ambitious effort to plug its stricken oil well in the Gulf of Mexico on Thursday afternoon when engineers saw that too much of the drilling fluid they were injecting into the well was escaping along with the leaking crude oil.

The reason the drilling mud behaved like a lighter than water fluid was.....it was oil :)

[lacrew]

From the NY Times:

“HOUSTON — BP had to halt its ambitious effort to plug its stricken oil well in the Gulf of Mexico on Thursday afternoon when engineers saw that too much of the drilling fluid they were injecting into the well was escaping along with the leaking crude oil.”

I think that stuff we see jetting out of the hole still is oil...and BP does also.

[Wonder Warthog]

"Steven Wereley, an associate professor at Purdue University, used a computer analysis (particle image velocimetry) to arrive at a rate of 95,000 barrels (4 million gallons) per day since the April 20 blowout, nearly 20 times greater than the 5,000 barrel a day estimate BP and government scientists have been citing. If he is correct, and the State of Alaska’s figures on the Exxon Valdez disaster are correct, the Deepwater Horizon blowout so far has spilled five times the oil Exxon Valdez did."

"Particle image velocitometry" cannot possibly work without knowing the ratio of gas to oil in the exiting stream, which I very seriously doubt that the professor has access to. Even BP probably doesn't have a actual hard number for that, and it has probably changed with time. So speculations based on that source are worthless.