Best available techniques (BATs) for oil spill response in the Mediterranean Sea: calm sea and presence of economic activities

Abstract

An oil spill is the accidental or intentional discharge of petroleum products into the environment due to human activities. Although oil spills are actually just a little percent of the total world oil pollution problem, they represent the most visible form of it. The impact on the ecosystems can be severe as well as the impact on economic activities. Oil spill cleanup is a very difficult and expensive activity, and many techniques are available for it. In previous works, a methodology based on different kinds of criteria in order to come to the most satisfactory technique was proposed and the relative importance of each impact criterion on the basis of the Saaty's Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP) was also evaluated. After a review of the best available techniques (BATs) available for oil spill response, this work suggests criteria for BATs' selection when oil spills occur in the Mediterranean Sea under well-defined circumstances: calm sea and presence of economic activities in the affected area. A group of experts with different specializations evaluated the alternative BATs by means of AHP method taking into account their respective advantages and disadvantages.

Advanced Switchable Molecules and Materials for Oil Recovery and Oily Waste Cleanup

“…Containing oil spills requires restricting the spread and removing the oily pollutants in the first stage of the spill to minimize the consequences. Typical methods for an oil cleanup involve controlled in situ burning, [ 174 ] use of dispersants, [ 175 ] or absorbents, [ 4a,176 ] mechanical recovery (blooms, skimmers, or vessels), [ 177 ] and bioremediation. [ 178 ] However, some of these methods have been known to cause severe secondary pollutions, e.g., air pollution from in situ burning and algal blooms (also known as the “red tides”) caused by dispersants.…”

Application of the Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP) to select the best oil spill cleanup method in marine protected areas for calm sea condition

“…According to these data, the authors estimated the cost of the material to be around 119 US $/t. This value, even though without logistics, is significantly lower than the ones associated with mechanical methods (13,774.58 US $/t) and magnetic nanocomposites (1,000 -2,250 US $/t) (Guidi et al 2016). The cost of these latter materials is expected to fall, reaching the same order of magnitude as the cost of sorbents (Mahajan 2011).…”

“…It is crucial to select and deploy a technique as soon as possible. Advanced technology for oil spill cleanup has developed considerably in recent years (Guidi et al 2016;Khushrushahi, Zahn and Hatton 2013;Calcagnile et al 2012). Two techniques based on magnetic nanocomposites and superabsorbent materials seem to be suitable for application in Specially Protected Areas of Mediterranean Importance (SPAMI).…”

Macroporous Oil-Sorbents with a High Absorption Capacity and High-Temperature Tolerance Prepared Through Cryo-Polymerization

“…They are appropriate for large-scale cleanup, but residues are usually left. (2) Chemical methods, including in-situ burning and the usage of chemical dispersants and solidifiers, are frequently utilized together with other methods because of their limitations [3,10,11]. (3) Sorbents are more widely available to clean up small areas and/or the final traces of waste hydrocarbons in water and on land.…”