GOSCA: Oil Spill Cleanup

Alexa Funahashi, Lara Glendening,

and Marilynn Hunt
Effect of Oil Spills
Respiration, feeding, thermo-regulation
harmed in animals
Chemicals found in oil are breathed in by
the organisms in the water and slowly
suffocate them
Oil that covers the organism's feathers and
fur to reduce the ability to maintain body
heat
The loss of organisms can disrupt an
environment
GOSCA
G lobal
O il
S pill
C leanup
A pparatus
GOSCA Schematic
Machine

Solar powered
GPS remote controlled
Mobile
Microbes are inside
Takes in oil-polluted water and churns it to make the oil drops
smaller, microbes eat the oil, and clean water is released back
into the ocean
Contains some form of fertilizer with nitrogen and phosphorous
Outer design based on SAROS desalination machine
Alcanivorax Borkumensis

Eats oil, lives in polluted oceans

Eats it faster when it is in small droplets

Nitrogen and phosphorous (fertilizer) allows them to eat

more and survive
Tests

To build:

1. Fertilizer and microbe effects on ocean life

a. Make an aquarium of simulated ocean life (fish, ocean-dwelling bacteria) and put in the microbes
and fertilizer
i. View for a few weeks
i. Test with samples of ocean life from places frequently hit with oil spills such as the Gulf of
Mexico
ii. This will potentially harm our test animals, but it is better than not testing it and harming
an entire ocean ecosystem
iii. If all fertilizers tested are too toxic, make something of our own (nitrogen and
phosphorous are needed for the bacteria to be more effective)
2. Oil cleanup effectiveness of microbes
a. Number of microbes
i. Put different numbers of microbes in oily water
1. See which amount cleans the fastest
a. Not too many, or too little
b. How often to replace them (lifespan)
i. We will need to run tests to determine the lifespan of the bacteria. This will involve
examining samples of the bacteria in a lab. We should examine samples with oil to eat as
well as samples that dont have oil to eat (used as a control)
1. We should run this experiment for about 1-2 weeks with multiple samples to make
the results more credible
ii. From this data, we will calculate the frequency with which we will need to replace the
bacteria during oil spill cleanup. Since bacteria also multiply, we will have to take that into
account.
iii. The multiplication of bacteria is exponential, so we can start out with a smaller number of
bacteria and have the population grow fairly quickly
iv. Some bacteria may not be filtered out before the water returns to the ocean, so a monitor
to measure the amount of bacteria in the machine may be a good idea
3. Material for buoyancy of machine
a. Some materials to test: Polyurethane elastomer, Typical surface foam, and Steelword
b. Put these materials through multiple tests that simulate different weather conditions and
see which one does the best
i. Test in conditions such as strong and weak rain, strong and weak wind, harsh sun,
regular sun
ii. Test multiple times, record results, see which material does better on average
c. Then test in the ocean for wear and tear
i. Test in strong, weak, and average waves
ii. See how the materials hold up after being beat by waves and see how the salt affects
each material
4. Materials for machine (erosion)

5. How effective wave power is in small vs big waves

6. Fertilizers that allow microbes to survive

7. Microbe effects on ocean life

8. How much water churning is required

a. Is there a certain amount of churning that is the most effective?

9. Effectiveness of filters
b. Keeping microbes in machine
Finished Product:

1. Effectiveness in cleaning the oil (How many needed to clean average oil spill)
a. Test in a water tank
i. Put certain amounts of oil in the water and then see how effectively the GASCA removes
the oil
1. One tank with small concentration of oil, one with medium concentration, and one
with large concentration
2. Leave machines in for a week, see what percentage of the oil is removed in that
amount of time
3. Repeat experiment
ii. This can also help us determine how many machines are needed
2. Rust/Oil resistance
a. Put the metal used for the machine in different tanks filled with salt water (control)
i. Same salt concentration in multiple tanks
b. Put the metal used for the machine in different tanks filled with salt water
i. Different salt concentration to simulate different ocean locations/environments
c. Put the metal used for the machine in different tanks filled with salt water and varied levels of oil
i. Same amount of salt in each
ii. Different levels of oil
1. Leave the metal in the oil for a week
2. See how it holds up in that time
3. If needed, find/test a different type of metal or some kind of protective coating
3. Solar power effectiveness
a. Test machines in areas with full sun and partial sun
b. Put them in tanks of the exact same size with the exact same amount of oil and fill them with the
same amount of microbes and fertilizer
c. Run the machines for two days, monitoring how much the machine is on and running
d. Look at how effective the machines in each area were in cleaning up the oil
e. Repeat
f. Test alternative power sources if necessary
g. A backup battery that stores excess energy and uses it when there is no sun will probably be
needed
4. Possible ocean pollution

5. GPS distance and accuracy

6. How many needed to clean average oil spill

7. Cost to run and build the machine (cost efficiency)

a. Put machine in a tank of with ? gallons of water and oil

8. How to replace parts when needed

Maritime Law
We would have to obtain the necessary permits to operate in both US and
international waters.

It is unclear at this point what our machine classifies as, but if it classifies as a vessel,
it will need to be registered under the US in order to travel internationally.
Cost

Due to the necessary tests that need to be done, no costs

can be estimated at the moment.
Consumer

Oil rig companies

Oil shipping companies
Can be used to clean up the leakage from tankers
Other organizations
Nonprofit or otherwise
Competition
The Canadian company Peat Sorb manufactures peat moss that is dried to
7-10% moisture content. This makes the peat moss hydrophobic while still
soaking up oil.
Boron nitride nanosheets are used to soak up oil and can hold up to 33 times its
weight
Some people burn off the oil
Thank
you!