A cross-scale numerical modeling system for management support of oil spill accidents.
A flexible 2D/3D oil spill modeling system addressing the distinct nature of the surface and water column fluids, major oil weathering and improved retention/reposition processes in coastal zones is presented. The system integrates hydrodynamic, transport and oil weathering modules, which can be combined to offer different-complexity descriptions as required by applications across the river-to-ocean continuum. Features include accounting for different composition and reology in the surface and water column mixtures, as well as spreading, evaporation, water-in-oil emulsification, shoreline retention, dispersion and dissolution. The use of unstructured grids provides flexibility and efficiency in handling spills in complex geometries and across scales. The use of high-order Eulerian-Lagrangian methods allows for computational efficiency and for handling key processes in ways consistent with their distinct mathematical nature and time scales. The modeling system is tested through a suite of synthetic, laboratory and realistic-domain benchmarks, which demonstrate robust handling of key processes and of 2D/3D couplings. The application of the modeling system to a spill scenario at the entrance of a port in a coastal lagoon illustrates the power of the approach to represent spills that occur in coastal regions with complex boundaries and bathymetry.
National Laboratory for Civil Engineering, Av. do Brasil 101, 1700-066 Lisbon, Portugal. Electronic address: aazevedo@lnec.pt.
Alberto
A
Azevedo
National Laboratory for Civil Engineering, Av. do Brasil 101, 1700-066 Lisbon, Portugal.
Anabela
A
Oliveira
National Laboratory for Civil Engineering, Av. do Brasil 101, 1700-066 Lisbon, Portugal.
André B
AB
Fortunato
Center for Coastal Resources Management, Virginia Institute of Marine Science, 1375 Greate Road, P.O. Box 1346, Gloucester Point, VA 23062, USA.
Joseph
J
Zhang
NSF Science & Technology Center for Coastal Margin Observation & Prediction, Oregon Health and Science University, 3181 SW Sam Jackson Park Road, Portland, OR 97239-3098, USA.
António M
AM
Baptista
D004784:Environmental Monitoring / Q000379:methods*; D052918:Environmental Restoration and Remediation; D008956:Models, Chemical; D010578:Petroleum / Q000032:analysis*; D059392:Petroleum Pollution / Q000032:analysis / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D014874:Water Pollutants, Chemical / Q000032:analysis*
D010578:Petroleum; D014874:Water Pollutants, Chemical
Coastal pollution; Eulerian–Lagrangian methods; Oil spill modeling; Oil weathering processes; Unstructured grids