SAN JOSE, Calif. -- An engineer from Intel Corp. claims that he has devised a way to stop the oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico, according to a report from the Rio Rancho Observer.
Steven Laughlin, a semiconductor field service engineer at Intel, said he has devised a ''locking collar that goes over the open pipe that has a steel insert that would be driven into the pipe by the use of a ratcheting system,'' according to the report.
The trouble? He has tried to call the government about his plan, but no one will return his calls. That article can be read here.
On April 22, BP activated an extensive oil spill response in the U.S. Gulf of Mexico following the fire and subsequent sinking of the Transocean Deepwater Horizon drilling rig 130 miles southeast of New Orleans.
BP has taken several but failed measures to fix the problem. U.S. government and independent scientists estimate that the most likely flow rate of oil right now is between 35,000 and 60,000 barrels per day, according to the U.S. Department of the Interior. This is based on a combination of analyses of high resolution videos, remotely operated vehicles and other acoustic technologies.
BP's so-called ''Lower Marine Riser Package (LMRP)'' cap that is currently in place can capture up to 18,000 barrels of oil per day, according to the U.S. Department of the Interior.
''BP is deploying today a second containment option, called the Q4000, which could expand total leak containment capacity to 20,000-28,000 barrels per day. Overall, the leak containment strategy that BP was required to develop projects containment capacity expanding to 40,000-53,000 barrels per day by the end of June and 60,000-80,000 barrels per day by mid-July,'' according to the agency.
On June 16 (Wednesday), BP announced that oil and gas is flowing through a second containment system attached to the Deepwater Horizon rig’s failed blow out preventer (BOP).
''This second system supplements the lower marine riser package (LMRP) cap containment system, which remains in operation,'' according to BP in a statement.
''The new system is connected directly to the BOP and carries oil and gas through a manifold and hoses to the Q4000 vessel on the surface. The Q4000 uses a specialised clean-burning system to flare oil and gas captured by this second system,'' according to BP. ''Neither the new capture system nor the LMRP containment cap system has ever before been deployed at these depths and conditions, and their efficiency and ability to contain the oil and gas cannot be assured.''
