Study on the Risk Analysis and Safety Evaluation for Crude Oil Offshore Lightering in Qinzhou Gulf

摘要

Oil lightering is the process of transferring crude oil or oil products between vessels of different sizes, usually between a barge and a bulker or oil tanker. This economic and convenient operating method develops quickly in coastal areas recently, which greatly relieves the contradictory situation between the overlarge tendency of oil tanker with the limited natural conditions of some ports.Whereas, it`s also deemed to be a high pollution risk process, once oil spill occurs, nearby environment of the port tremendously suffering consequently. This paper selects the Qinzhou port, which has the largest oil lightering quantities per year as a study area, calculating the spill probability during the lightering process. Through conducting numerical simulations under different lightering situations, the oil trajectory is obtained, and the pollution area and affecting degree are visually and quantitatively analyzed. So, some precautionary measures are forwarded to minimize the spill probability and lower the impact on the environment during oil lightering process.