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BP Inserts Siphon Into Oil Leak

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748704614204575245810666495600.html

›MAY 16, 2010, 4:13 P.M. ET
By GUY CHAZAN, MARK PETERS and MIKE ESTERL

BP PLC successfully inserted a tube into the broken pipe leaking oil into the Gulf of Mexico early Sunday and siphoned off some of the spilling oil to a vessel on the water's surface, increasing the chances that the company will be able to siphon off much of the oil now gushing into the sea.

The crude oil was stored on a drill ship. Natural gas that accompanied the crude-oil flows was flared using a system on board.

…Earlier efforts to contain the spill ran into a series of setbacks. BP made a first attempt to insert the tube late Saturday, but it fell out following a collision between two subsea robots. Before that, a huge dome that was to be lowered onto the leak got clogged up with gas crystals or hydrates.

It's still unclear whether the new siphoning operation will work. Even in the best-case scenario, the tube won't capture all the leaking oil.

The pipe connected to the tube is full of nitrogen, which will gradually be pulled back to allow oil and gas to flow into it. But the process must be done slowly to avoid seawater entering. Seawater could form hydrates that might block the pipe and stop the flow of oil to the surface.

BP has also received permission from federal authorities to resume spraying chemical dispersants into the leaking oil underwater, a method it says has proved effective in curtailing the oil slick.‹