Post #5285

Scientists Create Giant Fire Tornadoes That Could Save Our Oceans In the critical hours after an offshore oil spill, response teams must make a difficult choice: allow the slick to spread or set it on fire. When responders ignite the oil, they create what is known as an ‘in-situ’ fire pool. This method can prevent oil from drifting and contaminating fragile marine ecosystems — but it comes at a heavy cost. Thick smoke rises into the air, soot and other pollutants spread through the atmosphere, and a layer of partially burned residue remains on the ocean surface. In a first-of-its-kind large-scale experiment, scientists tested a different strategy: enormous fire whirls, spinning columns of flame that rise vertically like a tornado instead of spreading across the water. Fire Whirls: A Cleaner, Faster Oil Spill Solution This rotating column acts like a powerful engine. As it spins, it pulls in extra oxygen, which allows the flame to burn hotter and more efficiently than a traditional fire pool. The improvement was dramatic. Compared with standard in-situ fires, the fire whirl generated 40 percent less soot and burned up to 95 percent of the oil, leaving behind far fewer hazardous particles and toxic remnants. Source:SciTechDaily @EverythingScience