The effect of surfactants on weathering of surface oil slicks: an experimental study to improve modelling of surfacing oil after subsea dispersant injection (SSDI)
Per Johan Brandvik·Karina Heitnes Hofstad·Konstantinos Kotzakoulakis·Kaja Cecilie Hellstrøm·Jørgen Skancke·Per S. Daling
Abstract Subsea dispersant injection (SSDI) has become a widely adopted contingency method since its first large-scale application during the Deepwater Horizon oil spill in 2010. In Norwegian waters, where offshore oil and gas production occurs at shallower depths (100–400 m), a significant volume of chemically dispersed oil could surface due to the limited depth and high plume buoyancy from uncompressed gas. This study investigates the weathering behavior of surface oil slicks resulting from SS