Meloy Laboratories under EPA funding completed a design and 

 fabrication of a prototype beach sand cleaning device using the froth 

 flotation process [17]. The process is based on the principle that sand 

 is preferentially wetted by water rather than oil. When oil-coated sand 

 is placed in water and agitated violently, the oil particles were dis- 

 persed into the process water for subsequent removal and separation. 

 Testing had indicated that better than 95% of the oil can be removed 

 from the sand. 



P.G. Mikola of the University of California [18] and E.J. Curran of 

 the Standard Oil Company of California investigated another EPA funded 

 phenomenon which occurs when a fluid (liquid or gas) passes upward 

 through a bed of solid particles. When the drag forces caused by the 

 upward motion of the fluid just counter balances the weight of the par- 

 ticle, the bed is said to be fluidized. Cleaning efficiencies in excess 

 of 95% might be expected in a 20-ton/hour model. 



Two basic problems were encountered during operational testing. 

 The broad particle size distribution prevalent in typical beach sand 

 made it difficult to achieve uniform fluidization and stratification, 

 and elutriation resulted. (Elutriation is the selective removal of fines 

 from the bed due to these fines becoming intimately mixed with the 

 recovered oil phase.) When this happened, the density difference 

 between the recovered oil and water was decreased significantly, 

 rendering the gravity oil-water separator ineffective. 



ACCOMPLISHMENTS 



A detailed review of eleven representative oil spill incidents 

 has been completed to extract pertinent information on methods and equip- 

 ment used for beach cleanup. This information was supplemented by personal 

 and telephone interviews with personnel involved in the cleanup operation 

 as on-scene coordinators or as cleanup operators. The study included 

 a review of research efforts, associated with special methods and 

 equipment for beach cleanup. 



The selection of procedures and equipment for beach cleanup was 

 found to depend on the amount of oil, the characteristics of the oil 

 as it hits the beach, and the type of beach contaminated. The charac- 

 teristics of the oil as it reaches the beach is related to the type 

 of oil spilled, the sea environment, and the elapse time the oil is 

 adrift. The slope of the beach was found to be Indicative of the material 

 the beach is composed of and, therefore, related to appropriate methods 

 and equipment that may be most effectively used to decontaminate the 

 beach material. 



Based on the above results, the most effective beach cleanup 

 procedures and equipment have been identified and tabulated in terms 

 of selected beach classifications. Certain deficiencies in adapting 

 existing techniques and equipment have become apparent from this study. 

 Recommendations for future work that could remove such deficiencies 

 have been included. 



