Because insomnia has turned me into a pessimistic creature filled with vile loathing...
Occasionally, I go on Wiki hunts of Doom. Here is tonight's: What happens to large quantities of crude coming to shore and sitting in the humid sun of the Gulf Coast?
Petroleum
An oil well produces predominantly crude oil, with some natural gas dissolved in it. Because the pressure is lower at the surface than underground, some of the gas will come out of solution and be recovered (or burned) as associated gas or solution gas.
The hydrocarbons in crude oil are mostly alkanes, cycloalkanes and various aromatic hydrocarbons while the other organic compounds contain nitrogen, oxygen and sulfur, and trace amounts of metals such as iron, nickel, copper and vanadium.
Aromatic Hydrocarbons
The configuration of six carbon atoms in aromatic compounds is known as a benzene ring, after the simplest possible such hydrocarbon, benzene.
Benzene
As a gasoline (petrol) additive, benzene increases the octane rating and reduces knocking. Consequently, gasoline often contained several percent benzene before the 1950s, when tetraethyl lead replaced it as the most widely-used antiknock additive. With the global phaseout of leaded gasoline, benzene has made a comeback as a gasoline additive in some nations. In the United States, concern over its negative health effects and the possibility of benzene entering the groundwater have led to stringent regulation of gasoline's benzene content, with limits typically around 1%.
Health Effects
Benzene exposure has serious health effects. Outdoor air may contain low levels of benzene from tobacco smoke, wood smoke, automobile service stations, the transfer of gasoline, exhaust from motor vehicles, and industrial emissions.[21] Vapors from products that contain benzene, such as glues, paints, furniture wax, and detergents, can also be a source of exposure, although many of these have been modified or reformulated since the late 1970s to eliminate or reduce the benzene content. Air around hazardous waste sites or gas stations may contain higher levels of benzene.
The short term breathing of high levels of benzene can result in death, while low levels can cause drowsiness, dizziness, rapid heart rate, headaches, tremors, confusion, and unconsciousness. Eating or drinking foods containing high levels of benzene can cause vomiting, irritation of the stomach, dizziness, sleepiness, convulsions, and death.
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I never really got to find out what Crude + Salt Water + Heat + Pressure Differential would equal. But I would imagine some heavy duty fumes.
Conclusion:
We're all fucking doomed. The people out trying to clean this up are going to die. If an oilcane hits land and taints the water supply... well. Yeah. Doom.
Actually, its hard to say how bad that impact will be. Certainly a rise in birth defects and cancers. But when that crude/fumes mixture seeps into and onto humid swampy land, I'd imagine some of the effects might be a bit more immediate.
I've no idea what happens when oil and salt and chemical dispersant get mixed together, but it can't be good.
I know I don't know all the science, but Benzene is one chemical element of a mixture of crude and gasses that are currently sitting on our shores. I don't think the others are Vitamin C.
What the hell do we do now?
Petroleum
An oil well produces predominantly crude oil, with some natural gas dissolved in it. Because the pressure is lower at the surface than underground, some of the gas will come out of solution and be recovered (or burned) as associated gas or solution gas.
The hydrocarbons in crude oil are mostly alkanes, cycloalkanes and various aromatic hydrocarbons while the other organic compounds contain nitrogen, oxygen and sulfur, and trace amounts of metals such as iron, nickel, copper and vanadium.
Aromatic Hydrocarbons
The configuration of six carbon atoms in aromatic compounds is known as a benzene ring, after the simplest possible such hydrocarbon, benzene.
Benzene
As a gasoline (petrol) additive, benzene increases the octane rating and reduces knocking. Consequently, gasoline often contained several percent benzene before the 1950s, when tetraethyl lead replaced it as the most widely-used antiknock additive. With the global phaseout of leaded gasoline, benzene has made a comeback as a gasoline additive in some nations. In the United States, concern over its negative health effects and the possibility of benzene entering the groundwater have led to stringent regulation of gasoline's benzene content, with limits typically around 1%.
Health Effects
Benzene exposure has serious health effects. Outdoor air may contain low levels of benzene from tobacco smoke, wood smoke, automobile service stations, the transfer of gasoline, exhaust from motor vehicles, and industrial emissions.[21] Vapors from products that contain benzene, such as glues, paints, furniture wax, and detergents, can also be a source of exposure, although many of these have been modified or reformulated since the late 1970s to eliminate or reduce the benzene content. Air around hazardous waste sites or gas stations may contain higher levels of benzene.
The short term breathing of high levels of benzene can result in death, while low levels can cause drowsiness, dizziness, rapid heart rate, headaches, tremors, confusion, and unconsciousness. Eating or drinking foods containing high levels of benzene can cause vomiting, irritation of the stomach, dizziness, sleepiness, convulsions, and death.
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I never really got to find out what Crude + Salt Water + Heat + Pressure Differential would equal. But I would imagine some heavy duty fumes.
Conclusion:
We're all fucking doomed. The people out trying to clean this up are going to die. If an oilcane hits land and taints the water supply... well. Yeah. Doom.
Actually, its hard to say how bad that impact will be. Certainly a rise in birth defects and cancers. But when that crude/fumes mixture seeps into and onto humid swampy land, I'd imagine some of the effects might be a bit more immediate.
I've no idea what happens when oil and salt and chemical dispersant get mixed together, but it can't be good.
I know I don't know all the science, but Benzene is one chemical element of a mixture of crude and gasses that are currently sitting on our shores. I don't think the others are Vitamin C.
What the hell do we do now?