Idea for stopping the oil leak in the gulf.

I propose using the robot to insert a pipe, with an inflatable end, into the well pipe. The inserted end would be quickly inflated with air pressure once it is in place. The inflatable part could be something as simple as a heavy rubber donut shaped bladder, which when explanded, it's outside diameter presses against the inside of the well pipe, and it's inside diameter presses against the inserted pipe.
The inflatable part might also be sophisticated enough that the well pressure will hold it locked in place.
Think of the rubber air bags which some cars had inside their coil springs, which could be inflated or deflated according to the load being carried.
any comments of the idea, and how to get the idea into the hands of BP, or the Corps of Engineers?

I must admit that when I read your first sentence thoughts of giant balloons tied by robot clowns floating to the surface in the shape of various animals.

Decent i dea though. No idea if it would work.

www.deepwaterhorizonresponse.com...

The link above will put you "in touch" with them, if they dont delete it immediately I suppose.

Even though the balloon thing in my imagination sounds alot like shooting golf balls and rubber and mud into a hole. Both sounded crazy to me.

Nice idea, however in reality it couldn't work because as far as I understand it, it is leaking between the casing and the riser, in between the walls of two pipes inserted inside each other as it were.

and how to get the idea into the hands of BP, or the Corps of Engineers?

reply to post by provoker


Do you really think this idea is so unique those engineers couldn't think of it. Hell this is exactly what I purposed in the other thread, early this morning.
I didn't run and make a thread though. I'm just herass'in ya!.

i don't think they should even consider throwing a detonated tampon at it it would just cause a bigger problem and then back to square one.

I mean how do you stop a big bleeding gash from bleeding under water? you can't you have to wait for it calm down itself, perhaps get rid of the whole rig system and plate it off with some kind of heavy plating type material ie titanium and load it with tons and tons of sea boulders the ones that are 8foot odd with a mixture of clay and underwater seal mixed in, i dunno whether its a good idea or not

Wow, you were close to my idea. I was figuring drop a ship on it, then dump a (blank) load of cement around and on the resting ship. I mean ships weight . . what a hundred tons? Seems though that'd be heavy enough to cover the leak. Only problem would be getting a sinking ship to land where you want it well over a mile down. Yeah, yeah, I know crazy.

hmm what about filling the sea hole with something so long that does absorb the oil/sea water and spread its mass as it soaks up, perhaps maybe like sticking a large scale tampon in it and sealing it down there, hmm

News at 10, " obama has nuked the gulf"
guess what
... It failed and will spread....

reply to post by jumpingbeanz
I don't think anything with air would work, but you may have somethings with that tampon thing, would this be using the plastic or the disposable applicator thingie.
And the other question would Tampax take on a job, of this size and depth.

Really I can't see any simple solution to this problem, especially when they say is even a bigger leak 5 miles away, what the heck is going on.
This seems like one of those three stooges show, plug one hole get 4 more.

Air is very dangerous at depth, and I think that is down 100 atmospheres.



[edit on 29-5-2010 by googolplex]

1. I think they should create a long metal boom with inflation points, like car air bags, obviously somewhat stronger than car air bags. They should be inflated at great speed along the boom to seal the oil leak.

2. OR, if the pressure is too great for (1) to be deployed, create a 20 foot metal tube split along the length that can be clamped over a clean area of the existing pipe. The metal clamp can be secured to the original pipe, half way along the new pipe would be a another pipe that would extend to the surface, where a tanker would extract oil. Inside the up pipe would be initially a drill bit, which would cut a whole in the pipe to release the oil up to the tanker. Once the pressure is released from the oil pipe, solution 1 could then be deployed to force all the oil up through the new pipeline.