In order to meet the demand of local economic development, Fujian Province will implement a shipyard project in Min River Estuary recently. During the shipyard construction period, in Min River Estuary the potential oil spill risk will greatly increase. Based on a 2-D hydrodynamic model of Min River Estuary, an oil spill numerical model by using MIKE is developed, taking into account the variables of wind, the spilling position and the occurrence moment. The results show that the sweeping range and the trajectory of the spilled oil are closely related to the spilling position and the wind condition.
The rapid development of economy makes energy demand grow intensely, which promotes oil exploration industry and the seagoing oil transportation, at the same time also increases the potential risk of the oil spill accident. A major oil spill can contaminate the shoreline, cause long-term damage to the aquatic environment for fishery and wild-life. When the liquid oil is spilled on the surface of the sea it spreads, forming a thin film, the so-called oil slick. Under surface wave action and upper layer turbulence, a coherent oil slick will break up into small particles. The oil particles move horizontally on the surface owing to current, wind-induced surface speed, wave drift and horizontal diffusion. Because of sea-surface agitation, some particles entrain and diffuse in the water column. Once in the water column, the entrained droplets move in the three spatial directions. Vertical displacements are due to buoyancy and turbulent diffusion (Wang and Shen, 2010). Oil spill model is the core part of the oil spill emergency response system, which can predict the change of oil composition, property, stage and fate of the spilled oil and provide scientific information for decision-making such as choosing the proper cleaning method and evaluating the damage.
