Something is Happening in Top Kill Process [LIVE THREAD]

http://www.bp.com/ ^ | 5/26/2010 | Self

[Positive]

I have been monitoring the live feed of the "Top Kill" apparatus from BP.com and after about three hours there is a definite change of events down there.

For the first couple of hours we could see several views of a very complex device rocking around in clear water.

Now there is gushing of what I presume is the "mud" plumeing.

We may get some incite as to progress soon.

[deport]

Reporting from Foxnews, the top kill is working and has stopped the flow.

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Now if they can only keep the fluids going down hole and get a cement plug in place for a permanent stop.

[a real Sheila]

This guy has a nice, calm soothing tone which makes him believable and instills confidence.

He may be full of “peepee-caca” but he sounds believable.

Best of luck to bp and PRAYERS UP!

[Sudetenland]

FYI YOu are largely correct. The basic mud is bentonite clay and water. The weighting agent is barium sulfate, or barite, specific gravity 2.9 (water is 1.0 or 8.33lbs./gal.). They will also put various chemicals in it like dispersants such as lignite, lignin, sodium acid pyro-phosphate, etc. to keep the mud from becoming too thick.

You have now had a brief introduction to mud.:)

[downwdims]

I agree with you on both points

[a real Sheila]

YOU CAN BE SURE that IF this works, the press will credit Obama’s “boot to the throat of BP” in getting this fixed “QUICKLY!”

Then he will be back on the golf course.

[unkus]

Once the well is killed the msm will then abandon any mention of the millions of gallons of oil spilling onto our shores and pretend that O saved the day!

Or is it saved the planet from a mess he inherited from Bush/Cheney.

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Yep.

[penelopesire]

Given BP’s demonstrated duplicity, I’ll believe it when I see it. Praying it’s true and if it is...it begs the question, why this wasn’t done 30 days ago?

Why didn’t Obama send in tankers to begin sucking this crap up 30 days ago?

[Sudetenland]

No, the methane crystals form in the flow coming out of the well. Methane is a gas which is part of the fluid in the reservoir. At the high pressures in a reservoir and in the pipe, it is a liquid. As the pressure is relieved from the fluid, the gas and oil components separate and the gases expand. Problem is that it is very cold at that depth in the ocean, and as gases like methane expand they cool. This causes the ice crystals to form plugging the lines they use for collecting the fluid.

What they are doing with the topkill, is forcing a heavy mud to backflow down the pipe to plug the well. This will keep the reservoir fluid (oil and gas) in the reservoir (formation) and there will be not gas or oil flowing out to form those crystals.

Hope this helps.

[chessplayer]

“More and more I am finding the cult backing of these industries by conservatives to be not unlike the blind loyalty to Obama,”

Yup. I was thinking the same thing.

[pillut48]

I’m just now getting to watch the live stream of this—what is the ROV doing now? Is it checking the pipe to see if there are any more leaks? What’s stirring up all the silt on the bottom?

[a real Sheila]

I think we all are waiting with “tightened sphincters” right now!

Random thoughts-

This has been a REAL MESS beyond comprehension and I think it has changed a lot of opinions about offshore drilling, environmentalism, etc. among conservatives.

We’ve all learned more than we ever wanted to know about drilling, pressure, ROVs, and what the heck a BOP is!

All that to say that while I agree with the fact that we NEED the oil, I am starting to be of the opinion that companies need to stay the heck out of the DEEP water until they have MULTIPLE containment plans, emergency plans, the needed emergency equipment, and a FOOL PROOF method of getting at the oil! We are now reading about shortcuts to save money, a seal not being in place, a dead BOP battery, etc. NONE of that should have been allowed to happen and heads should have rolled on the spot!

An “oops” moment in a regular work environment equates to a huge inconvenience to people, but we get on with our lives.
An “oops” moment on an oil platform equates to loss of life and an environmental catastrophe as we are seeing.

Yes this is the first accident in YEARS, but the gulf and the gulf states cannot afford any more accidents.

ONe has to wonder how much oil would have made it to LA if the drilling operation would have been surrounded with a boom for a 10 or 20 mile radius at all times while drilling was going on AND what if they had constantly been burning the oil contained in those booms.

I know the smoke would have been horrendous, but would THAT have been worse than what we now have? WHich is the lesser of 2 evils?

[Sudetenland]

Because the probablility for success was relatively low, plus preparations had to be completed before it could be attempted. The well head had to be repaired to the extent it could be, plus there was tremendous pressure to collect the oil being released.

In a situation like this, where conditions are extreme, every move must be carefully evaluted. A mistake could exacerbate the already terrible problem. If, for example, they used too heavy a mud, they could possibly fracture the formation and cause a catastrophic release, or even a collapse of the sea floor and well (called "cratering").

You should also realize that there would have been a great deal of denial, of scape-goating, turf wars, all the wonderful things you see in a government bureaucracy, you will find in a corporate bureaucracy as well.

The corporate culture at BP has had a questionable safety reputation for some time. They have had a sorry reputation for safety in their refineries and as we have found out now, they were skimping on the safety equipment on this rig.

Don't forget that BP has had a cozy relation with the Dems and with Obama.

The quick answer to your question is, people are fallible.

[HereInTheHeartland]

“I think it has changed a lot of opinions about offshore drilling, environmentalism, etc. among conservatives.”

It has shown that there is not adequate technology available to stop a disaster scenario. That technology needs to be developed quickly, so we can keep drilling for the oil our nation needs.

We have the best and most creative engineers in the world and I am confident we can do much better and contingency planning.

[Sudetenland]

The fact that this is such a shock to so many people speaks to the phenomenal safety record and luck we have experienced in offshore drilling, the ignorance of most people as to how hazardous oil production is and what risks are involved. It also shows how a corporate culture that eschews prudent practices for the sake of profit can lead to major disasters.

Oil companies are under tremendous pressure to produce (due to our demand for cheap energy) and when places like ANWAR are closed off, it leads us to deep water drilling.

It tells us conservatives that not all regulation is bad, that government bureaucracies aren't the only solution (as the people responsible were taking "gifts" and surfing porn) and that not all greed is good.

Corners were cut for profit and those responsible for assuring that that didn't happen were inattentive or negligent.

We should also note that not all tin-hat theories are crazy. The timing of this incident is highly suspicious, given that there was a big push to expand offshore drilling around other coasts. There needs to be an investigation into that possibility in the off chance that there was more to this than simple equipment failure.

Returning from the tin-hat realm though, it is clear that BP was negligent in their choice of techniques to close the well with sea-water, that they were negligent in the failure of the BOP to function and their refusal to add other safety equipment.

The inertia of success and luck can be a soporific to safety precautions. The idea of "It ain't never happened so it won't happen" can lead to bad decisions and lax precautions. Corporations with strong safety records, like Shell and Dow, understand that safety is a primary priority and that they must be aggressive and ever vigilent in it's pursuit. At Shell, we always had the attitude that there are not accidents. There is always a root cause for an incident and it was always a result of someone not doing what they should or not being properly informed, i.e., cut fingers don't occur just because s#!t happens, but because someone wasn't paying attention or doing what they should.

[east1234]

The plan was to burn it, but the Govt. dropped the ball. They also failed to properly inspect instead staying in their offices surfing porn. BP continued on using a known defective BOP and then made more “mistakes” in other words they took shortcuts. I hope the 2 relief wells are instead turned into production wells but that won’t happen with these Marxists. This is a perfect opportunity to cripple our economy and they will not pass it up.

[a real Sheila]

“Obama is useless unless you need your Country ruined ASAP. Congress is deciding on much more tax is needed on a barrel of oil to cover cleanup costs in the gulf and BP will walk scott free because they are to big to fail..”

WOW, you absolutely summed it all up in that statement!
I guarantee the tax payers will be on the hook for the clean-up when the smoke clears.

It has been clear that Obama wants to ruin this economy (to replace it with communism) and spend as much money as quickly as possible in the short time he has before Congress is overtaken by “those waskally wepublicans” once again!

[chessplayer]

Yup. Then they can ignore the oil in the wetlands/marshes and ignore the oil covered birds, etc.

[Williams]

That video was excellent, I had no idea of the size of the response. Thank you.

[unkus]

Yup. Then they can ignore the oil in the wetlands/marshes and ignore the oil covered birds, etc.

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More “selective indignation”. This time it’s on the environment and all the other treachery under 0bama. The selective indignation It was the same with BJ Clinton and his escapades.

[Indy Pendance]

My bad, Haliburton. Sorry for that faux pas.