Reciprocity wrote:
Diesel_dyk wrote:
When they say nuke it, they don't mean putting a bomb on top of the well like they used to do to blow out fires on rigs on land.
People were saying "nuke it" months ago, as though it would magically solve the problem. If they're drilling down far enough to plug the bastard, why bother with blowing anything up? Is there even a warhead small enough to fit down a relief well with an adequate yield?
From what I've been reading and seeing on TV, it doesn't look hopeful that drilling down to plug the well will work, although it is supposed to be last shot at stopping the leak. after that all that can be done is attach somethig to the well head and bring the oil into production or nuke it.
I posted earlier about some experts on CNBC who basically said that in order for the drill down and plug to work there has to be steel casing left down there in the bottom of the well. Apparrently they did an x-ray or sonagram at the top of the well and on the blow out preventer and found that the casing fromt he bottom of the well was blown out. So there is nothing left down there and so the drill down and plug is going to fail and they already know that.
The other problem is that its been estimated that the pressure in the well is 100,000 psi and there is supposed to be no equipment capable of handling that pressure. That's why it blew out. What the drill down and nuke solution is supposed to do is melt the rock above the reservor and turn it into a giant glass plug. In order to nuke it, they will have to build a bomb that will fit down the well hole, which is why I thought that its intersting that Los Alamos labs was being consulted... and yes I realize that they do more than just nukes.
Now that being said, I wouldn't care if they did something like an underground nuclear test or something like they have down int he past because the risk to safety is nil. But on this one, if they screw up the nuke and crack the layers of rock lying above the reservor which is under high pressure, the whole thing might blow out. And in the original OP there is an article that talks about how a sudden release of pressure on the oil reservor might cause the frozen methyl hydrates that's located down there on the oil reservor to be suddenly released and cause giant expanding gas bubble displacing water as it rises resulting in huge tsunami. If that happens the enitre gulf coast will be destroyed. And since I live right on the coast, I will be taking a little inland vacation on the day they decide to set off the nuke.
Who knows, may be its a dem plot to kill most of the red states in one blow, or may be its final coup de gras on the American economy by the one worlders who want a single world currency and cap and trade. OR may be this will simply be the worst engineering failure in human history, it will kill millions and leave us with a dead sea on our third coast, that will be a real testament to the reaganomic mantra of "no red tape." Oh yah, and if this ends in disaster, it will have been PBO's call and PBO will own it right into his impeachment.