Floating oil enclosure barriers an dispensing means aboard an oil tanker for discharging without the aid of surface vessels
OwnerAnatol Pekelnyinventor
Life of this patent
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Abstract
In order to confine oil spills from a tanker quickly to prevent spreading out over the surface of water as an environmental hazard, enough barrier material is stored on the tanker for discharge to form a floating enclosure for confining the oil, and mechanical aids are provided for quick employment of the barrier material to form the floating enclosure from the deck of the tanker without the help of surface craft. Thus, for example, a stored barrier material such as one or more lengths of hollow plastic tubing may be reeled up until deployed by unreeling and casting overboard to form an enclosure. The tubing may be inflated by pumps located aboard the tanker to float properly in a position above and below the water surface.
Claims15
The method of controlling oil spills comprising the steps of:
- storing in an accessible position about an oil carrying tanker an elongatable, floatable oil encompassing barrier capable of containing oil on the surface of water and having a length great enough to surround the tanker and form an enclosure floating on the water at a predetermined distance away from the tanker,
- providing means on the tanker for aid in discharging the barrier from the tanker into the water and forming it into said enclosure configuration,
- discharging the barrier to control oil discharged from the tanker by catapulting the barrier from the tanker, and
- forming a floating oil containing enclosure about the tanker with said barrier.
The method of controlling oil spills comprising the steps of:
- storing in an accessible position about an oil carrying tanker an elongatable, floatable oil encompassing barrier capable of containing oil on the surface of water and having a length great enough to surround the tanker and form an enclosure floating on the water at a predetermined distance away from the tanker,
- providing means on the tanker for aid in discharging the barrier from the tanker into the water and forming it into said enclosure configuration,
- discharging the barrier to control oil discharged from the tanker by catapulting the barrier from the tanker,
- forming a floating oil containing enclosure about the tanker with said barrier, and
- forming with said barrier material at least two semi-enclosure configurations to be discharged in said discharging step from different positions on the tanker, and joining the configurations together in said step for forming an enclosure.
An oil tanker comprising in combination, a stored quantity of barrier material aboard the tanker capable of forming a floating enclosure about the tanker that retains oil discharged from the tanker, and mechanical discharge catapulting means resident on the tanker for aiding the dispensing of the barrier material from the tanker to form said floating enclosure.
An oil tanker comprising in combination, a stored quantity of barrier material aboard the tanker capable of forming a floating enclosure about the tanker that retains oil discharged from the tanker, and mechanical discharge means resident on the tanker for aiding the dispensing of the barrier material from the tanker to form said floating enclosure wherein said mechanical discharge means comprises at least two reels containing lines for attachment to the barrier material enclosure to retain the material at a position in the water not exceeding a predetermined distance away from a hull wall of the tanker when the lines are dispensed from the reels.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.