From lab to field: harnessing multiphase flow dynamics for efficient marine oil spill recovery

Our pursuit for successful approaches to separate and recover oil from oil–water mixture flows have continued from various disciplines including fluid dynamics; but mostly they were based on surface modifications that render materials oleophilic. As experienced in catastrophic events like the Hebei Spirit oil spill near Taean, Korea (2007), the Deepwater Horizon spill in the Gulf of Mexico (2010), and the Wakashio spill in Mauritius (2020), on the other hand, the lack of practical methods applicable to effective operation has led to serious environmental consequences, necessitating proactive response measures. In this talk, it will be covered the development and field application of an automated oil recovery system designed to respond to marine oil spills by leveraging the multiphase flow behavior of oil and water and maximizing separation efficiency based on the density difference between dissimilar fluids. A key idea lies in the oil recovery path system, which was designed to be operated not by the conventional (larger) coast guard response vessels but by small fishing boats, enabling rapid, labor-efficient first-response operations. The research encompassed a comprehensive process—from confirming concepts through computational fluid dynamics analysis, to validation via laboratory experiments and theoretical analysis, scaling up through pilot testing with real-scale (larger) equipment, and finally verifying performance in real (sea) environmental conditions—demonstrating how fundamental and applied research can be systematically integrated for practical impact. Finally, on-going issues related to coping with a low sulfur fuel oil (LSFO), recently enforced by the International Maritime Organization (IMO), will be discussed.