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since oil is less dense than water, it floats on top of it. This makes it so much easier to clean. Imagine if oil was denser than water, and all the oil sank to the bottom of the water! Oils spills would be horribly difficult to clean up. That is how oil spills are connected to the concept of density.
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What does density have to do with oil spills?
Oil varies considerably in density. Some oil is so thick that it sinks in water. However, it is very uncommon for an oil well to produce very heavy oil. A light oil will have higher rates of evaporation, which means that some of the oil will be lost due to evaporation when it is on the surface. For evaporation, the density or really the composition of the oil is an important factor. Water temperature, air temperature, hours of sunlight, and wave action are additional factors. Loss by evaporation was considerably higher in the BP oil spill than in the Alaskan oil spill (Exxon-Valdez spill). Note that the Alaskan spill, the oil was low density. BP used controlled burns to destroy some of the oil. If the oil was heavier and there was more wave action, this might not have been possible.
When was the last oil spill?
the last oil spill was the oil spill in the Gulf Of Mexico
What are the other names of BP oil spill?
The 'Deepwater Horizon oil spill', also called the 'BP Oil Spill', the 'Gulf of Mexico oil spill' or the 'Macondo blowout'... ---- Wikipedia
What was the most rescent oil spill?
Deepwater Horizen oil spill.
Was there an oil spill in New Mexico?
No, there was an oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico.
When did the gulf war oil spill occur?
The Gulf War oil spill occurred on January 23, 1991, and was the largest oil spill to date. It was the largest purposely created oil spill in history.
What is the same or differences about the Exxon Valdez and the BP oil spill?
the Exxon Valdez spill happened before the BP oil spill. and the they are the same because they are both an oil spill
What scientific concept explains why oil floats on water?
Density of oil is less than water, all objects having density lower than water float in water.
How do you get oil spill in the ocean?
It could spill out of a tanker (Exxon Valdez), it could be from a wrecked oil derrick (BP Gulf Oil Spill).
Was the oil spill in the gulf of Mexico capped?
yes the oil spill was capped
When did Greenpoint oil spill happen?
Greenpoint oil spill happened in 1978.
When did Montara oil spill happen?
Montara oil spill happened in 2009.
