Diagrammatic Illustration of BP's Deepwater Horizon Blowout

This is a real service to all of us who are trying to understand the dynamics of the situation and what we can expect from this and future circumstances like it. I had a general concept of the geology of the area but these pictures are a fantastic help. Thanks, BK Lim!

god i hope there's a god.................. *weeps*

These are fabulous drawings! Seeing them larger helps immensely! Thank you!

I can see why you want to do this as a video--

I understand what happened so much better, and thank you so very much for this article-- it IS a real service to the rest of us!

I'm clipping away!

Holy effing crap!

Thanks for this, and thanks to Dowser for directing me here.

And I agree that this would be even more immensely powerful animated. Any Viners out there who are handy with 3D Max or equivalent? I know folks who could do this in Unigraphics, but that's an expensive tool. 3ds Max, I think, is available on a trial basis.....

Clipped!

Thanks. That's a great explanation. I sent this to my brother who is a drilling fluids specialist to see what he has to say. Does it mean the relief wells have little chance of working?

Can see a lot of efforts had been put into it. Helps layman like me to separate the BP's PR noise from the truth. We need more genuine voices like this to speak out. Thanks BK for your effort.

Thank you so much for posting this BK. The visuals helped me to understand what happened. This is so disturbing to say the least.

If sound minds do not prevail over selfish intentions, then all is lost.

This is what I fear the most. :-(

Thank you for these articles and the application of your expertise on a pro bono basis. You have provided a lucid explanation for many of the dynamics observed in MC252.

Good article.

Big salt dome. How fast will it break down ?

Solubility - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

One also speaks of solid solution, but rarely of solution in a gas (see ..... Some ionic compounds (salts) dissolve in water, which arises because of the ...
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WikiAnswers - Can salt dissolve in oil

Science question: Can salt dissolve in oil? Salt cannot dissolve in oil. This is because salt is a non-polar substance, because it's bonds are non-polar ...
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It's been there since the Jurassic, jbdaad, so it's not going to melt away anytime soon and, while some of it does dissolve, part of it is composed of calcium sulfate and forms a cap rock up to 2,000 feet thick. Salt domes in the Gulf are vertically elongated, cylindrical formations that are generally 1-3 miles in diameter. They're buried in sediment that can be up to 20,000 feet thick and commonly feature faults and fractures due to movement from sediment loading. Some contain cavernous voids.

http://freebirdsfine.newsvine.com/_news/2010/08/02/4802194-at-lukoil-an-executives-death-exposes-network-of-inside-dealsfollow-the-yellow-brick-road

eventually you have to marry science with our current conditions.

Great work! Excellent illustrations and explanation. As a complete layman, I was having an awful time making sense of a lot of this stuff. I could not understand how capping this thing off was somehow forcing material out other areas when mother nature had contained things just fine before, but this lays it all out really nice!

Also, do you have any opinion on methane bubble induced tsunami, or surface methane explosion tsunami, or seafloor collapse tsunami. I've heard a lot of talk about possible tsunamis, but one thing I haven't heard is whether a lightning strike could set off a large methane cloud and what might result from that. One more thing: Is there any chance of a sea floor collapse or destabilization that could induce an earthquake, such as New Madrid? TIA.

Mark, I am nowhere near an expert but I am familiar with the area. Seafloor composition - salt dome intrusion into literally thousands of feet of sediment layers, all glued together by methane hydrates - is highly unstable here. Landslides are common, even on slopes with only a slight incline, and the extent of the slides is greater than on land. Some release of methane is to be expected under these conditions, but the scenarios projected, of earthquakes, tsunamis and exploding methane bubbles, are highly unlikely under normal conditions.

That is not to say that an earthquake or tsunami could not happen - NOAA has set up the buoys and included the Gulf in its tsunami watch network - but while earthquakes do occur, most often in the Southern extent of the Gulf, they do not occur to the degree that has been described by doomsayers, and only rarely at all within the Northern Gulf.

A disastrous release of methane gas or an extensive seafloor collapse is not impossible but the possibility is remote. The size of the oil and gas deposit is estimated to be very large and the leak may not stop until the reservoir is depleted. Sinkholes can occur. Those are conditions we need to assess more fully before we can offer a realistic prediction of what could happen. Without the specific knowledge of someone who is an expert on salt domes and the local geology, that is the most any responsible person can say at this point.

POSTED ABOVE: Science question: Can salt dissolve in oil? Salt cannot dissolve in oil. This is because salt is a non-polar substance, because it's bonds are non-polar ...
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Salt cannot dissolve in oil; however water does dissolve salt. Productive sandstone is actually highly consolidated individual grains of sand, with varying sizes and shapes. In between the sand grains are what is called pore spaces. Think of gathering a group of rocks of relatively the same size; and stacking them in a pile. You will see that there are spaces between the rocks. Now in the productive formation these spaces (pore spaces) are contain oil, gas AND what is known as "Interstitial Water." Due to various conditions, within the productive sand and the rate at which the well is produced (I will leave the technical's out); the oil, gas and interstitial water (and possibly sand itself) will be produces out of the pore spaces at different rates. Normally the well will be produced at a reduced rate (choked back) from what the maximum it is capable of producing, in order to reduce or hold back the interstitial water and the production of sand. In a blown out well; it is flowing at the maximum rate at which the well is capable; and thus is producing oil, gas, water and sand. The sand has an abrasive effect on the tubing and casing and the annulus between the production casing and the well bore. The produced water is additive in the erosive effects of an uncontrolled flow. Here is the rub: A blownout well drilled through or near a salt dome (or salt dome overhang) allows the interstitial water to contact the salt and dissolve it; creating a cavernous situation. This in my mind is the absolute worst case scenario; and one which I have worried about since the blowout. There was an incident in S.W. Louisiana; where a well was drilling in Lake Pelto. The well drilled into a salt dome before ever encountering a productive formation. The water from the lake dissolved the salt and a whirlpool effect ensued; resulting in and the entire rig being sucked into the salt dome cavern. Everything around the well was sucked into the vortex. There was one Support Tug Boat that was sucked into the Salt Cavern; but was burped back out. The entire Lake was drained into the salt Cavern.

I believe that long before to make decision to drill, the drilling procedure has to be accepted by a special International Comity to approve the procedure for enough is enough with this kind of accidents that affect the Environment.

It is enough that sometimes happen with means of transportation such as Ships, not also with drilling procedure, I do not like for it to happen again, enough is enough.