Abstract |
Chemical cleaning agents are an option that can be used to mitigate detrimental effects of stranded oil on natural shorelines under appropriate circumstances. Such agents would be used because of biological sensitivity of indigenous fauna and flora to stranded oil, amenity considerations of a shoreline, or concern about refloating of oil and subsequent stranding on adjacent shorelines. However, prior to the use of cleaning agents at a spill site, information regarding the performance of available cleaning agents must be known (e.g., the relative performance of agents for removing stranded oil from surfaces). Experiments were conducted in support of EPA's Risk Reduction Engineering Laboratory with two test methods (the Inclined Trough and the Swirling Coupon) and two substrates (stainless steel and porcelain tile) to evaluate performance of cleaning agents. Tests were performed with two types of oil (Prudhoe Bay crude and Bunker C) and three commercially available cleaning agents (Corexit 9580, Citrikleen XPC, and Corexit 7664). Separate measurements were madein all tests for oil released into the wash water and oil remaining on substrate surfaces. Statistical analyses of the effects of experimental variables (test method, substrate type, oil type, cleaning agent type, and analytical wavelength in UV-visible spectrophotometric measurements) on values of cleaning performance are presented and discussed. |