Project Description
Overview
Strong metocean conditions, such as subsea currents, and natural shifts in the ocean seafloor can have a significant impact on the integrity and longevity of offshore infrastructure. Changes in the ocean environment, such as submarine landslides, can be spurred by strong weather events (e.g., hurricanes) as well as the natural fluctuations in the system over time. These changes can impact safety and cost during oil and gas exploration and production activities, and events to date have been linked to billions of dollars in damage and environmental impacts. As a result, the ever-shifting offshore environment introduces a currently unquantified level of risk and vulnerabilities to a range of offshore energy activities.
This project will leverage historic metocean and bathymetric conditions to develop a new smart technology that will help identify current hazardous metocean and bathymetric conditions as well as forecast changes and potential vulnerabilities that may affect existing or future offshore infrastructure and activities. The result will be a Smart Tool that advances the current state of knowledge of ocean conditions, offering insights to improve infrastructure longevity and support the identification of shallow hazards, thus decreasing cost and improving safety during oil and gas exploration, production, and transportation.
Approach
To successfully develop, train, test, and validate a smart tool requires a significant volume, and often velocity, of data to support the analytics. However, the multi-variate, multi-dimensional and often restricted nature of metocean and bathymetric data has limited the ability of researchers to support these robust analytics until more recently due to the development and broad application of new sensors and sonars.
This project will facilitate the development, training, testing, and validation of a smart technology that uses historic observations of metocean and bathymetric data to identify current hazardous metocean and bathymetric conditions as well as forecast changes and potential vulnerabilities that may impact existing or future offshore infrastructure.
Year 1 will focus on proving the concept — that sufficient, detailed historic data are available to support the development of an analytical framework that uses advanced analytics (such as machine learning, artificial intelligence, and big data capabilities) to forecast and predict metocean and bathymetric hazards and vulnerabilities. If the concept is viable, work in Year 2 will focus on developing the framework and corresponding interactive, online tool to predict potential metocean and bathymetric hazards and vulnerabilities. Year 3 will focus on validating and refining the analytical logic and interactive, online tool based off input from internal and external stakeholders.
Expected Outcome
This project will result in a smart, interactive, online tool to predict potential metocean and bathymetric hazards and vulnerabilities in relation to improving infrastructure longevity, shallow hazard reduction, and offshore EOR innovations. The tool will operate as a plug-in application within EDX’s Geocube, enabling the ability to perform near-real time assessments of current hazards and the support of forecasting areas with higher vulnerabilities. In addition to the tool, key analytical results will also be made available as interactive map layers. Together, this tool and information will aid in the reduction of potential risks to daily oil and gas activities and other offshore energy development (i.e., carbon storage, offshore wind/wave energy, etc.) in the future.
Research Products
Numerical Integrators for Lagrangian Oceanography
Nordam, T. & R. Duran (2020). Numerical integrators for Lagrangian oceanography. Geoscientific Model Development, 13, 5935–5957. https://doi.org/10.5194/gmd-13-5935-2020.
Vertical Transport in Oil Spill Modeling
Nordam T., J. Skancke, R. Duran and C. Barker (under review, 2020). Vertical transport in oil spill modeling. Book chapter in Marine Hydrocarbon Spill Assessments, Elsevier.
https://u.pcloud.link/publink/show?code=XZ3bDokZQdK53lLOjH4e5tTPLINht8RfcHM7
Horizontal Transport in Oil-Spill Modeling
Duran, R., T. Nordam, M. Serra and C. Barker (under review, 2020). Horizontal transport in oil-spill modeling. Book chapter in Marine Hydrocarbon Spill Assessments, Elsevier. https://arxiv.org/abs/2009.12954
Persistent meanders and eddies lead to quasi-steady Lagrangian transport patterns in a weak western boundary current
Gouveia, M. B., R. Duran, J. A. Lorenzzetti, A. T. Assireu, R. Toste, L. P. de F. Assad and D. F. M. Gherardi (accepted for review, revision in progress, 2020). Persistent meanders and eddies lead to quasi-steady Lagrangian transport patterns in a weak western boundary current.
https://arxiv.org/abs/2008.07620
Evaluating Offshore Infrastructure Integrity
Nelson, J., Dyer, A., Duran, R., Romeo, L., Sabbatino, M., Wenzlick, M., Wingo, P., Zaengle, D., and J. Bauer, “Evaluating Offshore Infrastructure Integrity,” in preparation, NETL-PUB XXX, NETL Technical Report Series, U.S. Department of Energy, National Energy Technology Laboratory, Albany, OR.
Environmental Economics and Uncertainty Review and a Machine Learning Outlook
Zhang, R., Wingo, P., Duran, R., Rose, K., Bauer, J., and Ghanem, R., “Environmental Economics and Uncertainty Review and a Machine Learning Outlook,” Oxford Encyclopedia of Environmental Economics (April 23, 2020). Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=3583911.
Connectivity of Deep Waters in the Gulf of Mexico
Maslo, A., et al., “Connectivity of Deep Waters in the Gulf of Mexico,” Journal of Marine Systems (2020), https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jmarsys.2019.103267.
Building an Analytical Framework to Measure Offshore Infrastructure Integrity, Identify Risk, and Strategize Future Use for Oil and Gas
Dyer, A., Rose, K., Bauer, J., Romeo, L., Barkhurst, A., Wingo, P., Sabbatino, M., Nelson, J., and Wenzlick, M., “Building an Analytical Framework to Measure Offshore Infrastructure Integrity, Identify Risk, and Strategize Future Use for Oil and Gas,” AGU Ocean Sciences, February 2020, https://www.agu.org/Ocean-Sciences-Meeting.
Data-Driven Risk Assessment of Drilling in the Gulf of Mexico
Zhang, R., Wingo, P., Duran, R., Rose, K., Bauer, J., and Ghanem, R., “Data-Driven Risk Assessment of Drilling in the Gulf of Mexico,” accepted for publication in the Oxford Encyclopedia of Environmental Economics.
Connectivity of the Deep Waters in the Gulf of Mexico
Maslo et al., “Connectivity of the Deep Waters in the Gulf of Mexico,” Journal of Marine Systems (2019)
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jmarsys.2019.103267
Physical Oceanography and Meteorology of the Gulf of Mexico: Aspects Relevant to the Offshore Industry
Duran, R., “Physical Oceanography and Meteorology of the Gulf of Mexico: Aspects Relevant to the Offshore Industry,” in preparation, NETL-TRS-X-2019, EPAct Technical Report Series, U.S. Department of Energy, National Energy Technology Laboratory, Albany, OR, 2019, p. XX.
CIAM Climatological Isolation and Attraction Model–Climatological Lagrangian Coherent Structures
Duran, R., Beron-Vera, F.J., and Olascoaga, M.J., “CIAM Climatological Isolation and Attraction Model–Climatological Lagrangian Coherent Structures,” (2019), https://doi.org/10.18141/1558781, DOI: 10.18141/1558781.
Persistent Lagrangian Transport Patterns in the Northwestern Gulf of Mexico
Gough, M.K., Beron-Vera, F.J., Olascoaga, M.J., Sheinbaum, J., Jouanno, J., and Duran, R., “Persistent Lagrangian Transport Patterns in the Northwestern Gulf of Mexico,” Journal of Physical Oceanography, 49 (2019), 353–367, https://doi.org/10.1175/JPO-D-17-0207.1.
Simulation of the 2003 Foss Barge – Point Wells Oil Spill: A Comparison between BLOSOM and GNOME oil-spill models
Duran, R., L. Romeo, J. Whiting, J. Vielma, K. Rose, A. Bunn, J. Bauer (2018). Simulation of the 2003 Foss Barge – Point Wells Oil Spill: A Comparison between BLOSOM and GNOME oil-spill models. J. Mar. Sci. Eng., 6(3), 104; https://doi.org/10.3390/jmse6030104
Extracting Quasi-Steady Lagrangian Transport Patterns from the Ocean Circulation an Application to the Gulf of Mexico
Duran, R., Beron-Vera, F.J., and Olascoaga, M.J., “Extracting Quasi-Steady Lagrangian Transport Patterns from the Ocean Circulation an Application to the Gulf of Mexico,” Scientific Reports, 8, 10 (2018), DOI: 10.1038/s41598-018-23121-y, https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-018-23121-y.
Analysis Of How Environmental Conditions Affect Dispersant Performance During Deep Ocean Application
G.T. Bonheyo, K. Rose, A. Bunn, A. Avila, T. Bays, V. Cullinan, R. Duran, R. Jeters, L-J. Kuo, J. Park, J. Vielma, E.Winder, P.Wingo (2017). Analysis Of How Environmental Conditions Affect Dispersant Performance During Deep Ocean Application. PNNL-26935. Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement, Washington, DC. p 173. https://www.bsee.gov/research-record/osrr-1066-analysis-how-environmental-conditions-affect-dispersant-performance-during
BLOwout and Spill Occurrence Model (BLOSOM)
Sim, L., Vielma, J., Duran, R., Romeo, R., Wingo, P., and Rose, K. (2017). BLOwout and Spill Occurrence Model (BLOSOM).
https://edx.netl.doe.gov/dataset/blosom-release DOI: 10.18141/1420083
Sub-Grid Parameterizations for Oceanic Oil-Spill Simulations
Duran, R. (2016). Sub-Grid Parameterizations for Oceanic Oil-Spill Simulations. NETL-TRS-9-2016; EPAct Technical Report Series. U.S. Department of Energy, National Energy Technology Laboratory: Albany, OR; p 36. https://edx.netl.doe.gov/dataset/sub-grid-parameterizations-for-oceanic-oil-spill-simulations
Developing a Comprehensive Deepwater Blowout and Spill Model
Sim, L., J. Graham, K. Rose, R. Duran, J. Nelson, J. Umhoefer and J. Vielma (2015). Developing a Comprehensive Deepwater Blowout and Spill Model. NETL-TRS-9-2015; EPAct Technical Report Series. U.S. Department of Energy, National Energy Technology Laboratory: Albany, OR; p 44. https://edx.netl.doe.gov/dataset/developing-a-comprehensive-deepwater-blowout-and-spill-model
Explore research products that are related to this project.
Contacts
Jennifer Bauer
Co-Principal Investigator
Rodrigo Duran
Research Applied Mathematician/Oceanographer
Co-Principal Investigator
MacKenzie Mark-Moser
Research Geologist
Co-Principal Investigator
Kelly Rose
Offshore Portfolio Lead
Roy Long
Offshore Portfolio Technical Manager
Effective Resource Development
Grant Bromhal
Senior Fellow
Geological & Environmental Systems
Philip Reppert
Associate Director
Geological & Environmental Systems
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