Oil spills occur when oil is accidentally released into the marine environment from tankers, pipelines, platforms, and drilling rigs. They pollute oceans and harm wildlife like birds and marine animals. The largest oil spills include the BP Deepwater Horizon spill in 2010 that released over 200 million gallons of oil into the Gulf of Mexico, and the Persian Gulf spill in 1991 when Iraqi forces spilled 380-520 million gallons of oil into the Persian Gulf. Oil spills have significant environmental impacts such as destroying habitats, contaminating food sources, and killing many sea birds and marine animals through poisoning and hypothermia. Controlling spills involves containment booms, burning, dispersants, and bioremediation to break down the

2. INTRODUCTION
 Oil is an important source of energy in the world. It is transferred from one place to
another by the ships in the sea and through the pipes. Due to some kinds of
problems, the pipes leaked and the oil spread in the oceans. This is called an oil
spill.
 The release of petroleum in the marine ecosystem is pollution. It occurs in the oceans
occurs in the oceans but also spreads to nearby lands. This happens because of
because of several reasons like transferring oil to other containers, breaking pipelines
breaking pipelines through which oil is transported from one place to another and at
another and at the time of drilling in the earth's crust.
 According to the data of Marine Insights, the production of petroleum products
products increased from 500 mn tons to 2500 mn tons from 1950 to mid-1990s which
mid-1990s which leads to huge transportation as well as oil spills. Though the number

3. PROPERTIES OF CRUDE OIL [PETROLEUM]
 CHEMICAL PROPERTIES
Petroleum is a complex mixture of paraffinic, naphthenic and
aromatic hydrocarbons ranging in carbon number from C1 to
>C60. Petroleum typically also contains smaller amounts of
heteroatom compounds, metals and hydrogen sulfide.
Among these compounds, cyclic (aromatic) hydrocarbons that
low boiling point are more dangerous, such as benzene,
toluene and xylene. Naphthalene and Phenanthrene are more
poisonous for fishes than the mentioned compounds. Aromatic
compounds are more soluble in water than saturated
hydrocarbons; therefore creatures may become poisoned
without direct contact with the oil by the polluted water.
Fortunately these compounds are volatile; their harmful
effects will decrease with time.

4.  PHYSICAL PROPERTIES
Petroleum is not a uniform
substance since its physical
properties vary from oilfield to
oilfield and can even vary
within wells at the same
oilfield. At one extreme, it is a
light, mobile, straw-colored
liquid. At the other extreme, it
is a highly viscous, semi-solid,
black substance. The lower
molecular weight components
of petroleum possess moderate
to high water solubility while
higher molecular weight
fractions tend to form
emulsions in water.

5. OCEAN WATER
 Ocean water is made up of 96.5% water (H20, an oxide
of hydrogen) and 3.5% solids. The main chemical
ingredient in these solids is salt (sodium chloride, NaCl) a simple
chemical compound found in the tissue of all living organisms.
Other chemicals include Magnesium, Sulfate, Calcium, Potassium, Carbon, Bromine,
Boron, Strontium, Fluorine and ions of Nitrogen. Since most scientists agree that life
began in the sea, it is not surprising that a number of these chemicals (Magnesium,
Sulfate, Calcium, Potassium, Carbon and the Nitrogen ions) are essential to life.
PHYSICAL PROPERTIES
 Density : One of the most important physical properties of ocean water is its
weight, or density. Which depends on two things – temperature and salinity.
The density of ocean water ranges from 1.026 to l.028 grams per centimeter.
High-salinity seawater is denser than low-salinity seawater. Cold seawater is denser than
warm seawater.

6.  SALINITY:
Salinity is the amount of salt that’s dissolved in an ocean's water – and it's different in
different places.
The salinity of ocean water varies between 3.0 and 3.7 percent, so it averages out at
about 3.5%.
 TEMPERATURE:
The temperature of ocean water is highest at the Equator (where it is warmed by the
Sun) and coldest toward the poles.
There are three temperature zones in the oceans.
• The Surface Zone (which begins at the Earth's surface and goes down to about 400
meters) is 22 degrees Celsius on average.
• The Thermo cline (begins at about 400 meters and extends down to about 800
meters). Temperatures drop rapidly from warm surface conditions to frigid deep-water
conditions.
• The Deep Zone (which starts at about 800 meters and extends down to the ocean
floor). Temperatures hover just above the freezing point of water (0-4 degrees Celsius).

7. CAUSES OF OIL SPILL
• It happens on the land or sea because of the leaks
from ships, wells, pipelines and other carriers of the
oil.
• It can be caused by some accidents which include
tankers, refineries and drilling rigs.
• It can be caused by the storage facilities.
• Due to the production in millions, it will result in
massive transportation and oil spills.
• Spills can be caused by the people who make
mistakes and sometimes they become careless.
• It happens because of the breaking of equipment.
• It can also happen because of disasters.
• It can also occur because of the people who do
illegal work.

8. EFFECTS OF OIL SPILL
ENVIRONMENTAL
EFFECTS:
The impacts of oil pollution on marine ecosystem can be
categorized into long term and short term effects.
Suffocation cause by oil spills and oil poisoning are
among the first group. Because oil floats on top of water,
less light penetrates into the water, limiting the
photosynthesis of marine plants and phytoplankton. Oil
spills reduce oxygen absorption of the water, causing
oxygen dissolution under oil spills to be even less than
the deep sea levels.
Suspended oil can gain weight by bonding with minerals
and settle on the sea floor and harm the ecosystem. Also
causes sediments adherence to the sea floor,
destabilizing plants. Usually it has been observed that
sediments begin to move after oil settles on the sea floor.

9.  OIL SPILLS KILL BIRDS:
• Oil-covered birds are practically a universal
symbol of the environmental damage wreaked by
oil spills. Any oil spill in the ocean is a death
sentence for sea birds. Some species of shore
birds may escape by relocating if they sense the
danger in time, but sea birds that swim and dive
for their food are sure to be covered in oil. Oil
spills also damage nesting grounds, which can
have serious long-term effects on entire species.
They can even disrupt migratory patterns by
contaminating areas where migrating birds
normally stop.
• By coating the feathers, oil not only makes it
impossible for birds to fly but also destroys their
natural waterproofing and insulation, leaving
them vulnerable to hypothermia or overheating.
As the birds frantically try to preen their feathers
to restore their natural protections they often
swallow some of the oil, which can severely
damage their internal organs and lead to death.

10.  OIL SPILLS KILL MARINE ANIMALS
Oil spills frequently kill marine mammals such as whales,
dolphins, seals and sea otters. The deadly damage can take
several forms. The oil sometimes clogs the blowholes of
whales and dolphins, making it impossible for the animals to
breathe properly and disrupting their ability to communicate.
Oil coats the fur of otters and seals, leaving them vulnerable
to hypothermia.
Even when marine mammals escape the immediate effects,
an oil spill can cause damage by contaminating their food
supply.
OIL SPILLS DESTROY
BREEDING GROUNDS AND
HABITATS
The long-term damage to various species, and to
the habitat and nesting or breeding grounds those
species depend upon for their survival, is one of
the most far-reaching environmental effects caused
by oil spills.

11. SOME OTHER EFFECTS OF OIL SPILL:
 When oil spills occur in the ocean, the oil does not mix with the water and it spreads on the surface. Because of
the thick layer present in the ocean which is also known as slick expands because of which the sunlight does not
reach the ocean animals and plants.
 It affects the food chain of the whole ecosystem.
 When oil spills occur, it will break down a moderate amount of oil and deposit on the bottom.
 When oil spreads in the ocean, it breaks and sinks into the ocean which deteriorates the health of the ocean life.
 It contaminates the natural habitat of the ocean.
 Oil spills have harsh effects on the coastlines. The birds and the sea mammals are covered by the oil.
 Oil is so damaging to the whole ecosystem as it covers everything which is nearby the coastlines like sand,
animals, grass and soil etc.
 It destroys everything near the coastline.
 The oil that spills into the ocean can have a great impact on people's health who consume seafood.
 It can be damaging for those marine animals who swim in the ocean and if they ingest oil then it will be
destroying them.

12. HOW OIL SPILLS IS CONTROLLED?
 Firstly, it should be taken care that no such oil leakage happens for which
proper training should be given to the team as well as proper guidelines should
be followed related to carrying such ships as well as carrying these ships to
the ports and passing through various narrow channels and during staying in
the journey at somewhere, etc. The various methods of controlling the oil leak,
if it occurs are mentioned below:
 Oil blooms which are also known as containment bloom are the most common
method in case oil spills occur and used to clean up. This equipment helps in
further spreading the oil. It will be useful if this equipment is present locally
otherwise oil will spread. It works where wave velocity is found constant
otherwise it becomes difficult for it to clean up.
 When the oil is cleaned up and bounded by the oil blooms then the oil can be
skimmed off with the help of skimmers which are also known as oil scoops. It
is the cheapest method to clean up.
 Sorbents are another method that helps in removing the oil. These are liquid
absorbers and for oil leakage, natural sorbents are used such as peat moss,
straw & hay. They help in less wastage as well as less pollution. They are
generally most useful for small spills with high efficiency.
 The next most common and most useful method of removing oil spill is burning.
The oil is ignited similar to the rice husk which helps in removing 98% of the
oil.
 The other method is the usage of dispersants which is considered as the last
option i.e. oil disintegration for which dispersal chemicals are used. This leads
to bonded molecules go deeper into the water where it becomes available for
the microbes which later degrades them.

13. BIGGEST CASES OF OIL SPILLS
PERSIAN GULF OIL
SPILL:
When: January 19, 1991
Where: Persian Gulf, Kuwait
Amount Spilled: 380 to 520 million gallons2
Duration: Three months
 The worst oil spill in history was the Persian
Gulf oil spill, also called the Arabian Gulf or
Gulf War oil spill because it was used as a
defense tactic. In January of 1991, Iraqi forces
attempted to prevent American soldiers from
landing on their shores by opening valves at an
offshore oil terminal and dumping oil from
tankers. The oil resulted in a four-inch-thick oil
slick that spread across 4,000 square miles of
the Persian Gulf.
GULF OF MEXICO OIL
SPILL:
When: April 22, 2010
Where: Gulf of Mexico
Amount Spilled: 206 million gallons4
Duration: Three months
 The BP Deepwater Horizon oil spill is
officially the largest accidental spill in
world history. It began when an oil well
a mile below the surface of the Gulf of
Mexico blew out, causing an explosion
on BP’s Deepwater Horizon rig. The
explosion killed 11 people.

14. CONCLUSION
Thus, we can conclude that oil spills are the leakages of oil or
other petroleum products that happen on the land or water
through ships or wells or oil containers. This spill leads to
another form of pollution i.e. oil spill pollution which can become
an oil disaster as well. It causes a lot of problems not only for the
marine species but for the birds or mammals and coastlines as
well. If it occurs, a lot of methods can be adapted to control the
spill whereas the foremost thing is to prevent the occurrence of
oil spills so that no such disaster occurs and response teams
should be there to control and act on these disasters. This article
will be helpful for you whenever you study ocean pollution or
water pollution or oil spills in the oceans in Environment studies,

15. BIBLIOGRAPHY
• http://etap.org/demo/Earth_Science/es5/instruction4tutor.html
• http://www.epa.gov/chemrtk/hpvis/hazchar/Category_Crude%20Oil_March_2011.p
df
• http://bushehrport.pmo.ir/en/maritimeenvironment/coastalmarine
• http://environment.about.com/od/petroleum/a/oil_spills_and_environment.htm
• http://www.greenpeace.org/international/en/campaigns/climate-change/arctic-
impacts/The-dangers-of-Arctic-oil/