Dynamics of oil slicks on wavy water surfaces

Lukyanov, A. V., Hozan, H., Sialounas, G. and Pryer, T. (2024) Dynamics of oil slicks on wavy water surfaces. Environmental Fluid Mechanics. ISSN 1573-1510 doi: 10.1007/s10652-024-10007-z

Abstract/Summary

We hypothesize that the spread of oil slicks on the water's surface during oil spills is significantly influenced by water wave motion at the initial or intermediate spreading stages, well before emulsification processes have a substantial impact on the oil film's state. We demonstrate that the spreading dynamics of an oil slick on the water surface are facilitated by water waves, employing the thin film approximation. It is shown that water wave motion can rapidly deplete any oil slick, reducing the oil layer's thickness to nearly zero. This mechanism may act as a precursor to emulsification processes, leading to the accelerated depletion of oil spills into a distribution of droplets that form an emulsion.

Item Type	Article
URI	https://reading-clone.eprints-hosting.org/id/eprint/117881
Identification Number/DOI	10.1007/s10652-024-10007-z
Refereed	Yes
Divisions	Science > School of Mathematical, Physical and Computational Sciences > Department of Mathematics and Statistics
Publisher	Springer
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