The process of crude oil storage tank cleaning, or what is commonly called as Crude Oil Washing (COW), is the procedure followed when cleaning this kind of storage using oil itself. Before strict regulations for environmental reasons became mandatory, jets that sprayed seawater was used in cleansing these containers. Also, prior to the introduction of ballast tanks, water had to be stored on the same place to properly immerse the ship for its propeller.
Overtime, multiple regulations were introduced to ensure proper disposal of waste from the process of cleansing the tanker after trips. Private institutions also found ways to take advantage of these changes by using readily available fluids and by lessening waste of their products, which equates to additional savings for the company. We will be covering the changes and improvements for the past decades that led to the regulations being followed today.
Every day, a great number of tanker vessels carry petroleum to refineries from oil platforms for processing. Thus, it is ideal to make sure that there is profit on every trip and to decrease cost whenever possible. One commonly followed procedure for cost efficiency in the industry is the regular cleaning of the tanks storing the fuels. If this is skipped, the petroleum will form a sticky layer from the walls that would add unnecessary weight to the vessel when emptied for its return trip.
Early methods used in the removal of the layers of oil on the container walls involved the heating and spraying of seawater inside these tanks, and were then released overboard. This, unfortunately, also released the petroleum that was mixed in the process and were simply discharged without ensuring its safety.
In 1954, the Oil Pollution Convention (OILPOL) was adopted as a measure to lessen pollution through the prohibition of the release of waste within 50 miles from the nearest land. On some instances, this limit was extended to 100 miles on environmentally protected sites, where the spillage may have very grave impacts.
The OILPOL measure did not really eliminate the waste produced and only moved to different areas, which was the main reason why a new process called Load on Top was introduced where pressurized heated water was still used, but instead of simply discharging the mix back at sea, they store it in specialized slop tanks. While the vessel is on its way back to the platform, the lighter oil would float on top of this mixture, while the heavier water would settle at the bottom and then be returned to the sea.
With the new process, an estimated 8 million tons of fuel per year had been prevented from being dumped into the sea. This also meant that the salvaged petroleum could be reused and mixed on a fresh batch of crude oil, thus, resulting in additional profits to the owner.
The crude oil storage tank cleaning process was once again improved by using pressurized crude oil and was sprayed onto the sediments sticking on the tank walls. This process, that eliminated the need for slop tanks, was named Crude Oil Washing. This resulted in a cleaning procedure that eliminated the possibility for waste water and only involved the fuels that were also being delivered.
Overtime, multiple regulations were introduced to ensure proper disposal of waste from the process of cleansing the tanker after trips. Private institutions also found ways to take advantage of these changes by using readily available fluids and by lessening waste of their products, which equates to additional savings for the company. We will be covering the changes and improvements for the past decades that led to the regulations being followed today.
Every day, a great number of tanker vessels carry petroleum to refineries from oil platforms for processing. Thus, it is ideal to make sure that there is profit on every trip and to decrease cost whenever possible. One commonly followed procedure for cost efficiency in the industry is the regular cleaning of the tanks storing the fuels. If this is skipped, the petroleum will form a sticky layer from the walls that would add unnecessary weight to the vessel when emptied for its return trip.
Early methods used in the removal of the layers of oil on the container walls involved the heating and spraying of seawater inside these tanks, and were then released overboard. This, unfortunately, also released the petroleum that was mixed in the process and were simply discharged without ensuring its safety.
In 1954, the Oil Pollution Convention (OILPOL) was adopted as a measure to lessen pollution through the prohibition of the release of waste within 50 miles from the nearest land. On some instances, this limit was extended to 100 miles on environmentally protected sites, where the spillage may have very grave impacts.
The OILPOL measure did not really eliminate the waste produced and only moved to different areas, which was the main reason why a new process called Load on Top was introduced where pressurized heated water was still used, but instead of simply discharging the mix back at sea, they store it in specialized slop tanks. While the vessel is on its way back to the platform, the lighter oil would float on top of this mixture, while the heavier water would settle at the bottom and then be returned to the sea.
With the new process, an estimated 8 million tons of fuel per year had been prevented from being dumped into the sea. This also meant that the salvaged petroleum could be reused and mixed on a fresh batch of crude oil, thus, resulting in additional profits to the owner.
The crude oil storage tank cleaning process was once again improved by using pressurized crude oil and was sprayed onto the sediments sticking on the tank walls. This process, that eliminated the need for slop tanks, was named Crude Oil Washing. This resulted in a cleaning procedure that eliminated the possibility for waste water and only involved the fuels that were also being delivered.
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