Method for removing oil that floats on water, unmanned aerial vehicle

Abstract

A method for removing oil that floats on water, comprising: - receiving a signal representative for an oil leak, the signal comprising at least a location; - in response, sailing towards the location with an unmanned maritime vessel, while the vessel is equipped with unmanned aerial vehicles and deposition material; - loading unmanned aerial vehicle(s) with deposition material, automatically and without human intervention; - with the unmanned maritime vessel positioned near the oil leak: the unmanned aerial vehicle takes off and positions itself above oil floating on the water; - releasing the deposition material and positioning it on the oil; - when oil is absorbed by the deposition material: loading the oil-containing deposition material into the emptied storage volume of the unmanned aerial vehicle, thereby removing the oil from the body of water.

Description

[0001] Title: Method for removing oil that floats on water, unmanned aerial vehicle.

[0002] Description:

[0003] The present disclosure relates to removing oil from water, and one or more unmanned aerial vehicles to do so.

[0004] In the process of harvesting, transporting, processing and further transporting of oil and gas, accidents unfortunately happen on a daily basis. It would be safe to say that nearly everyone is familiar with the larger accidents that fortunately happen on an infrequent basis, such as the big oil leak of the Deepwater Horizon platform which lasted for almost 5 months and in which millions and millions of liters of oil were released into the sea - per day and over a period of almost three months.

[0005] On a smaller scale, oil leaking into the sea occurs on a (nearly) daily basis. It is internationally accepted that a leak of less than 1183 liters is considered a small leak. Such leaks may result from many different circumstances, the cause of them not being very relevant for the present disclosure. Such oil may be crude oil leaking directly from the oil well or from any installation that it interacts with before it is processed in the refinery, such as piping, oil rigs and the like. However, such oil may also be (partly) processed oil that is broken down into a specific oil product. For example, a vessel sailing the ocean, irrespective of whether it is an oil tanker or not, uses oil as propulsive material. This oil may leak following an accident.

[0006] It is becoming more and more recognized by the oil and gas industry that even such “small” leaks may significantly impact the environment, as oil in the sea has a significant impact on the wildlife in and around the sea. Think of birds that have the oil stick to their feathers, cannot lift off and drown; fish and other sea-bound species that die due to the unavailability of sunlight in the volume of water below the spilled oil and DNA permutations in surviving species leading to all sorts of disfigurations and disadvantages.

[0007] At present, although there is a lot of attention for big oil leaks, such smaller oil leaks occur happen unnoticed. As a result thereof, there is not felt a real need to clean up this spilt oil. As a result of this unfelt need, there are at the present day no solutions available to clean up the oil leaked during such small leaks - especially when the leak occurs offshore. It is an object of the present disclosure to provide a method as well as a system of devices, to allow leaked oil to be removed from the sea, irrespective of the distance between the shoreline and the leak, and in particular when the leak is relatively small.

[0008] Therefore in a first aspect of the present disclosure a method is presented for removing oil that floats on a body of water, the oil typically leaked from a human-made oil-containing structure, the method making use of: one or more unmanned aerial vehicles, each comprising one or more propulsion units for propelling the unmanned aerial vehicle, a storage volume for receiving and storing a deposition material, a release system for releasing fresh deposition material above the oil to be removed, as well as a loading system for loading oil-containing deposition material; an unmanned maritime vessel, comprising a receiver, a loading area for loading one or more unmanned aerial vehicles, a storage volume for storing fresh deposition material, and a loading system for loading the fresh deposition material from the storage volume of the vessel into the storage volume of the vehicle; and a volume of fresh deposition material, the material being capable of absorbing crude oil; the method comprising the steps of: receiving, with the unmanned maritime vessel and / or with at least one of the unmanned aerial vehicles, a signal representative for the occurrence of an oil leak on or in a body of water, the signal comprising at least a geospatial location of the leak; in response to receiving the signal, sailing towards the location of the oil leak with the unmanned maritime vessel, while the vessel is equipped with the one or more unmanned aerial vehicles and the deposition material; loading the at least one unmanned aerial vehicle with the deposition material stored in the storage volume of the unmanned maritime vessel, automatically and without human intervention; with the unmanned maritime vessel positioned near the oil leak: the at least one unmanned aerial vehicle takes off and positions itself above oil floating on the water; releasing, with the release system, the deposition material stored in the unmanned aerial vehicle and positioning it on the oil to be removed, thereby emptying the storage volume of the unmanned aerial vehicle; and when at least a part of oil that floats on the body of water is absorbed by the deposition material, so that the deposition material contains oil: loading the oil-containing deposition material into the emptied storage volume of the unmanned aerial vehicle with the loading system, thereby removing the oil from the body of water.

[0009] Advantageously, by making use of an unmanned aerial vehicle and an unmanned maritime vessel to clean up the leaked oil, in principle any location on water may be reached, independently of the distance to the coastline I the harbour. Preferably, to allow a global coverage several unmanned maritime vessels pre-loaded with unmanned aerial vehicles and deposition material may be present in different harbours spread across different continents and countries.

[0010] Advantageously, by using an unmanned aerial vehicle to release the deposition material, the unmanned maritime vessel can be positioned at a safe location with respect to the leaked oil and stay clean, with the unmanned aerial vehicle covering the last distance by air. Additionally, the propulsion units of the unmanned aerial vehicle may help to optimally spread the deposition material over the oil as it is being released from its storage volume.

[0011] Advantageously, by using a relatively large-volume unmanned maritime vessel that can store a relatively large volume of deposition material as well as the unmanned aerial vehicles, a large volume of deposition material can easily be transported towards the general position of the oil leak, whereas the unmanned aerial vehicles may accurately position the deposition material on top of the oil in small amounts.

[0012] Advantageously, the deposition material may be transported towards the oil on the water, distributed over the oil, loaded from the water and transported back to the unmanned maritime vessel all by the unmanned aerial vehicle. In the time in between the deposition material being distributed over the oil and being loaded from the water again, it sucks up the oil so that the oil is removed from the sea and the threat to nature incurred by the oil leak is resolved.

[0013] In accordance with the present disclosure the unmanned maritime vessel and / or the unmanned aerial vehicle may have a receiver, for receiving a signal indicating that an oil leak has occurred. This signal can be the starting sign for sailing out with the unmanned maritime vessel. When multiple unmanned maritime vessels as described herein are present in different harbours around the world (and / or potentially when multiple unmanned maritime vessels as described herein are present in the same harbour) some sort of coordination I control step must be implemented to decide which unmanned maritime vessel is to sail out. Decisive criteria may e.g. include shortest distance to the location of the oil leak and shortest sail time to the location of the oil leak.

[0014] It should be understood that, in accordance with the present disclosure, the volume of deposition material that can be stored in the unmanned maritime vessel may be much larger than the combined volumes of the storages of the unmanned aerial vehicles on the unmanned maritime vessel. As such, the unmanned aerial vehicle may make many trips back and forth to the unmanned maritime vessel to load deposition material, fly back to the position of the oil leak and unload the deposition material again.

[0015] In accordance with the present disclosure it may be advantageous when there are multiple unmanned aerial vehicles, with e.g. one unmanned aerial vehicle coordinating the movements of the others and keeping track of the position of the oil on the water due to the presence of waves, so that substantially all oil is covered in deposition material as fast as possible.

[0016] In accordance with the present disclosure the deposition material can be any material that absorbs oil and is preferably a natural material. Further preferably, it may be advantageous when the oil can be separated from the deposition material again, so that at least the deposition material can be reused over and over. Examples of such material can e.g. be found in the class of sponges. In accordance with the present disclosure and following logically from the above, the wording fresh deposition material does not only mean “virgin, never- before-used” deposition material - although such material may be present in the fresh deposition material - but is rather a term to distinguish oil-containing deposition material.

[0017] In an example of the present disclosure the oil-containing deposition material, after it has been loaded by the unmanned aerial vehicle, may be loaded back into the storage volume of the unmanned maritime vessel. Depending on the amount of oil leaked and the absorption grade of the deposition material, more or less nonused deposition material may remain in the storage volume. Preferably, the non-used deposition material and the oil-containing deposition material are not mixed. For example, a temporary barrier may be arranged in between both types of deposition material. In particular, as will be described in the below, the storage volume of the unmanned maritime vessel may comprise a plunger for pushing out the deposition material and loading it in the unmanned aerial vehicle. It we for example say that the plunger moves from the left of the storage volume to the right thereof, an empty space will emerge on the left-hand side of the storage volume, separated from the non-used I not-yet-used deposition material by the plunger. It is this emptied space that may be used to store the oil-containing deposition material in and bring it ashore.

[0018] Working out this example in more detail: it may be possible to separate the oil from the oil-containing deposition material by moving the plunger back towards its original position. For example the floor of the storage area may be porous, to allow oil to drip down towards an oil trapping container. The recovery of oil from the oilcontaining deposition material on the unmanned maritime vessel is however entirely optional and may alternatively be done on shore after the unmanned maritime vessel has returned to a harbour or may be omitted entirely. Although the separated oil may be re-used when it is clean enough, the main purpose of separating the oil from the oil-containing deposition material may be the re-use of the deposition material.

[0019] In an embodiment of the present disclosure the signal representative for the occurrence of an oil leak is generated based on an image of a body of water, the image generated by a satellite and analysed to recognize the occurrence of an oil leak. A vast number of satellites presently surrounds the earth, in different orbits. This number is expected to grow in the coming years rather than to decrease. With the combined efforts of these satellites it is possible to routinely monitor the surface of the seas and lakes of the earth. Choosing optimal trajectories for each satellite, it should be possible to see each spot on the water at least every half an hour. Computer processing techniques that recognize a volume of oil floating on water exist or may be developed. When such processing techniques are combined with a live feed of what is seen by the satellites, it may be possible to generate a warning signal when a leak has been detected.

[0020] It is noted that once a leak has been recognized, it will be recognized until it has been cleaned. Preferably an unmanned maritime vessel is sent to the place of the leak only once, despite the same leak being recognized at different time instances.

[0021] In an alternative embodiment the signal representative for the occurrence of an oil leak is generated by a human-made oil-containing structure, in response to said human-made construction spilling oil into or onto a body of water. Of course it may not always be needed to actively search for leaks. When it is detected that oil is leaked somewhere, e.g. off of a ship, a natural resource, a oil platform or from any other hardware structure, it may be possible to manually send a signal that is picked up by the unmanned maritime vessel and / or unmanned aerial vehicle as described herein, so that the latter may be deployed to clean up the leak.

[0022] In an embodiment of the present disclosure the deposition material is an at least substantially 100% natural material. The use of a substantially 100% natural material offers many ecological advantages over alternatively produced materials - even though man-made materials might potentially be better at absorbing the oil. First of all, the environmental costs of harvesting, producing, working and transporting a natural material may be significantly lower than for any man-made material. Secondly, a substantially 100% natural material is unlikely to leave a permanently damaging residue behind after it has been used at a certain location, which may not be the same for a man-made material.

[0023] In an embodiment of the present disclosure the deposition material contains or comprises a sponge material. This class of organisms is known to have excellent absorbing qualities, as well as handling properties which allow for the absorbed fluid to be removed from the material again - so that the material may be reused. On top of that, it is or may be a 100% natural material.

[0024] In an embodiment of the present disclosure the step of loading the unmanned aerial vehicle is carried out by a plunger of the unmanned maritime vessel, the plunger compressing the storage volume of the unmanned maritime vessel and driving the deposition material towards an outlet of said storage volume. It is important that loading and unloading of the unmanned aerial vehicle may be carried out without human intervention and preferably takes places with components that are as simple as possible so that there is less chance that a component of the used system breaks when out on the open sea. However, a plunger is only one possible option in that respect.

[0025] When unloading the deposition material from the storage volume of the unmanned maritime vessel in the manner as described in the above, and when an unmanned aerial vehicle is positioned on top of said outlet, the deposition material will naturally be forced into the storage volume of the unmanned aerial vehicle.

[0026] For example, the unmanned aerial vehicle may comprise a screw of the Archimedes type at the storage volume, the deposition material being stored in between the blades of the screw by rotating the screw (in the correct direction) when the unmanned aerial vehicle is being loaded from the unmanned maritime vessel.

[0027] In an embodiment of the present disclosure the unmanned maritime vessel is configured to sail on the open sea so that essentially all (water) locations on the Earth may be reached.

[0028] In an embodiment of the present disclosure the storage area of the unmanned maritime vessel is arranged below a deck thereof, said storage area comprising a hatch that in a closed state protects the unmanned aerial vehicles from the environment and that in an open state allows the unmanned aerial vehicles to take off. Storing the unmanned aerial vehicles below-decks during transport from the harbour to the location of the oil leak has the advantage that salt sea water may not damage the unmanned aerial vehicles.

[0029] In an embodiment of the present disclosure the method comprises, before the step of the at least one unmanned aerial vehicle taking off and positioning itself above the oil floating on the water, the additional step of: - scanning the oil slick with a first unmanned aerial vehicle to determine a shape and magnitude of the oil slick before the unmanned aerial vehicles take off to position the deposition material on the oil to be removed.

[0030] This step of first investigating the shape and magnitude may make the process of cleaning the oil more efficiently. Preferably, this scanning of the oil slick is carried out during the entire process of removing the oil, to keep track of where the oil slick is moving. It may however not be required to monitor the size and shape continuously, although one unmanned aerial vehicle, having a dedicated software package, may be designated for this task.

[0031] In an embodiment of the present disclosure the method comprises the additional steps of:

[0032] - releasing the oil-containing deposition material from the storage volume of the unmanned aerial vehicle into a compartment of the storage volume of the unmanned maritime vessel; and

[0033] - re-loading the unmanned aerial vehicle with fresh deposition material.

[0034] It is not necessary that these steps are caried out in this order. For example, it may be more efficient to first cover all the oil with deposition material and only then start removing it. This will depend inter alia on the absorption grade of the deposition material. However, when after removing the oil-containing deposition material from the oil it is learned out that oil which has not been sucked up by the deposition material remains, it may be required to distribute a fresh load.

[0035] A second aspect of the present disclosure relates to an unmanned aerial vehicle for releasing and loading a deposition material, the unmanned aerial vehicle comprising:

[0036] - a storage volume for storing a deposition material, the storage volume comprising an outlet at the lower side thereof, so that the deposition material may be released from the storage volume, to lower said storage volume;

[0037] - one or more propulsion units for propelling the unmanned aerial vehicle, the propulsion units positioned to spread the deposition material over an area below the unmanned aerial vehicle after the deposition material is released from the storage volume; and - a screw of the Archimedes type, extractable with respect to the storage volume, wherein a tip of the screw is configured to make contact with deposition material that was previously released from the storage volume, the screw configured for transporting the deposition material back into the storage volume.

[0038] For example, the deposition material may be an oil-absorbing deposition material, so that the unmanned aerial vehicle may be used in the method as described in the above. However, it is not excluded that the unmanned aerial vehicle may be used for other purposes as well.

[0039] It is noted that the outlet of the unmanned aerial vehicle’s storage volume, through which the deposition material is released - typically when the unmanned aerial vehicle is airborne - may also be the opening through which the storage volume of the unmanned aerial vehicle is loaded - typically when it is stationary.

[0040] Any screw has blades, wherein an Archimedes screw has the special inherent property that it may transport material in the screw upwards or downwards through the screw when rotating it. Hence, by extending such a screw from a storage volume by about one pitch at the most, and dipping it in a fluid on which a material to be picked up floats, it may be possible to pick up said material. When the blade tip of the screw contacts the material, and the screw is slowly rotated, the material will travel upwards inside the screw and enter the storage volume.

[0041] In an embodiment of the present disclosure the screw comprises holes and / or a water-permeable portion, for separating the deposition material and water during the transport of the deposition material back into the storage volume of the unmanned aerial vehicle. It may be desirable to store only the deposition material and leave the water where it was, for which holes and / or a water-permeable portion may be a suitable solution. Preferably, any such holes and / or water-permeable portion are arranged at or near the tip of the screw that in use faces the deposition material.

[0042] It should go without saying that any features described as advantageous for the unmanned aerial vehicle used in relation to the method of the first aspect, may likewise be implemented on the unmanned aerial vehicle as defined as the second aspect of the present disclosure. A third aspect of the present disclosure relates to a system for releasing and reloading a deposition material, in particular in a body of water at a position that is located at least 10 nautical miles away from a coastal line, the system comprising:

[0043] - the unmanned aerial vehicle as defined in the second aspect of the present disclosure, and

[0044] - an unmanned maritime vessel comprising a loading area for loading one or more of the unmanned aerial vehicles, a storage volume for storing fresh deposition material, and a loading system for loading the fresh deposition material from the storage volume of the vessel into the storage volume of the vehicle.

[0045] With the system defined in the third aspect of the present disclosure, the method as defined by the first aspect of the present may be carried out, so that advantages obtainable with the system according to the third aspect are similar as the advantages obtainable with the method according to the first aspect and so that features described as advantageous for the method according to the first aspect may likewise be implemented on the components of the system of the third aspect.

[0046] For a better understanding of the invention in the present disclosure, reference may be made to examples shown in the following drawings. The components in the drawings are not necessarily to scale and related elements may be omitted, or in some instances proportions may have been exaggerated, so as to emphasize and clearly illustrate the novel features described herein. In the drawings, like reference numerals designate corresponding parts throughout the several views.

[0047] Fig. 1 shows schematically an embodiment of a method according to a first aspect of the present disclosure, for removing oil that floats on a body of water;

[0048] Fig. 2 shows schematically the step of receiving a signal by an unmanned maritime vessel according to the method of Fig. 1 ;

[0049] Fig. 3 shows an isomorphic view of an embodiment of a system according to the third aspect of the present disclosure, wherein unmanned aerial vehicles take off;

[0050] Fig. 4 shows an isomorphic view of an embodiment of an unmanned aerial vehicle according to the second aspect of the present disclosure; Fig. 5 shows a cross-sectional view of the system of Fig. 3, wherein a vehicle is loaded with the deposition material;

[0051] Fig. 6 shows a cross-sectional view of the unmanned aerial vehicle according to Fig. 4, wherein the storage volume of the unmanned aerial vehicle is loaded with deposition material;

[0052] Fig. 7 shows a cross-sectional view of the unmanned aerial vehicle according to Fig. 4, wherein fresh deposition material is released from the storage volume of the unmanned aerial vehicle;

[0053] Fig. 8 shows a cross-sectional view of the unmanned aerial vehicle according to Fig. 4, wherein oil-containing deposition material is loaded into the storage volume of the unmanned aerial vehicle;

[0054] Fig. 1 shows schematically an embodiment of a method 100 according to a first aspect of the present disclosure. The method 100 is arranged for removing oil 2 that floats on a body of water 4, wherein the oil 2 is typically leaked from a human- made oil-containing structure 6, like an oil tanker 6.

[0055] The method 100 in the shown embodiment makes use of four unmanned aerial vehicles 1 according to a second aspect of the current disclosure, although the precise number of unmanned aerial vehicles is of course non-limiting and may vary from anywhere in between 1 and several hundreds or even more. An embodiment of one of the unmanned aerial vehicles 1 is shown in isomorphic view in Fig. 4. Each unmanned aerial vehicle 1 may comprise four or any other number of propulsion units 3, for propelling the unmanned aerial vehicle 1. The unmanned aerial vehicles 1 are arranged for receiving and storing a deposition material 7A, 7B in a storage volume 5. The situation wherein the storage volume 5 of the unmanned aerial vehicle 1 has been loaded with deposition material 7A, 7B is shown in a cross-sectional view of the unmanned aerial vehicle 1 in Fig. 6.

[0056] The deposition material 7A, 7B is an at least substantially 100% natural material, that e.g. contains or comprises a sponge material, wherein fresh deposition material 7A is capable of absorbing crude oil 2 that floats on the body of water 4. The unmanned aerial vehicle 1 is arranged for releasing fresh deposition material 7A above the oil 2 to be removed from the body of water 4 by a release system 9. The situation wherein fresh deposition material 7A is released from the storage volume 5 of the unmanned aerial vehicle 1 is shown in isometric view in Fig. 4 and in cross-sectional view in Fig. 7. The storage volume 5 comprises an outlet 19 at the lower side thereof, so that the fresh deposition material 7A may be released from the storage volume 5. The release system 9 comprises a screw of the Archimedes type 21 , wherein the screw 21 is extractable with respect to the storage volume 5. When the screw 21 is rotated in direction D1 , the fresh deposition material 7A is released from the storage volume 5, via the outlet 19.

[0057] Due to a rotational airflow F generated by each propulsion units 3, the fresh deposition material 7A is spread over an area below the unmanned aerial vehicle 1 , thereby spreading the fresh deposition material 7A over the oil 2 that floats on the body of water 4 for absorbing the crude oil 2 into the sponge material of the deposition material.

[0058] Furthermore, the unmanned aerial vehicle 1 is arranged for loading oilcontaining deposition material 7B by a loading system 13. The situation wherein oilcontaining deposition material 7B is loaded into the storage volume 5 of the unmanned aerial vehicle 1 is shown in cross-sectional view in Fig. 8. The release system 9 and the loading system 13 can be separate elements of the unmanned aerial vehicle 1 , or can be combined into one element 9, 13 as shown in the embodiments of the present disclosure.

[0059] A tip of the screw 21 is configured to make contact with the deposition material that was previously released from the storage volume 5 and that has absorbed the crude oil 2 into the sponge material of the deposition material. By rotating the screw 21 in the direction D2, opposite to the direction D1 , the oil-containing deposition material 7B is transported back into the storage volume 5 of the unmanned aerial vehicle 1. In order to separate the deposition material and water 4 during the transport of the deposition material back into the storage volume 5 of the unmanned aerial vehicle 1 , the screw 21 comprises holes and a water-permeable portion. The method 100 furthermore makes use of an unmanned maritime vessel 11 configured to sail on the open sea. The unmanned maritime vessel 11 and the unmanned aerial vehicle 1 according to the second of the present disclosure form a system according to a third aspect of the present disclosure, for releasing and reloading a deposition material 7A, 7B above oil 2 to be removed from the body of water 4. In particular in a body of water 4 at a position that is located at least ten nautical miles away from a coastal line 10. The situation, wherein unmanned aerial vehicles 1 take off from the unmanned maritime vessel 11 is shown in isomorphic view in Fig. 3. Furthermore, the situation wherein the storage volume 5 of one of the unmanned aerial vehicles 1 is loaded with fresh deposition material 7A by the unmanned maritime vessel 11 is shown in cross-sectional view in Fig. 5.

[0060] The unmanned maritime vessel 11 comprises a receiver 12 for receiving a signal 15 representative for the occurrence of an oil leak on or in a body of water 4. Fig. 2 shows schematically an embodiment of receiving the signal 15 by the unmanned maritime vessel 11. The signal 15 comprises at least a geospatial location and can be generated based on an image of a body of water 4, wherein the image is generated by a satellite 17 and analysed to recognize the occurrence of an oil leak. Furthermore, the signal 15 additionally can be generated by the oil tanker 6, in response to spilling oil 2 into or onto a body of water 4. The signal 15 generated by the oil tanker 6 can either be directly received by the receiver 12 of the unmanned maritime vessel 11 or can be received by the receiver 12 of the unmanned maritime vessel 11 via a signal 8 received by the satellite 17 and via the satellite 17.

[0061] Additionally and / or alternatively, the signal 15 can be received by a transceiver (not shown) comprised in the unmanned aerial vehicles 1 , wherein the signal 15 is forwarded to receiver 12 of the unmanned maritime vessel 11.

[0062] The unmanned maritime vessel 11 furthermore comprises a loading area 14 for loading the unmanned aerial vehicles 1. The loading area 14 is arranged below a deck of the unmanned maritime vessel 11 and comprises a hatch (not shown) that in a closed state protects the unmanned aerial vehicles 1 from the environment and that in an open state allows the unmanned aerial vehicles 1 to take off. A volume of fresh deposition material 7A is stored in a storage volume 16 of the unmanned maritime vessel 11. The fresh deposition material 7A is loaded from the storage volume 16 of the unmanned maritime vessel 11 into the storage volume 5 of the unmanned aerial vehicle 1 by means of a loading system 18 comprising a screw of the Archimedes type and a plunger 20 of the unmanned maritime vessel 11. During the loading of one of the unmanned aerial vehicles 1 , the inlet 19 of the storage volume 5 of the unmanned aerial vehicle 1 is positioned above an outlet 22 of the storage volume 16 of the unmanned maritime vessel 11. While the plunger 20 compresses the storage volume 16 of the unmanned maritime vessel 11 and drives the fresh deposition material 7A towards the outlet 22 of the storage volume 16, the screw 21 of the loading system 13 of the unmanned aerial vehicle 1 and the screw 24 of the loading system 18 of the unmanned maritime vessel 11 are rotated in the direction D2 for transporting the fresh deposition material 7A from the storage volume 16 of the unmanned maritime vessel 11 into the storage volume 5 of the unmanned aerial vehicle 1 .

[0063] The method 100 for removing oil 2 that floats on a body of water 4 is initiated by receiving 101 the signal 15, indicating the occurrence of an oil leak on or in a body of water 4, by the receiver 12 of the unmanned aerial vehicles 1 and / or the receiver 12 of the unmanned maritime vessel.

[0064] In response to receiving 101 the signal 15, during a next step of sailing 103, the unmanned maritime vessel 11 sails towards the location of the oil leak, while the vessel 11 is equipped with the unmanned aerial vehicles 1 and a volume of fresh deposition material 7A stored in the storage volume 16 of the unmanned maritime vessel 11.

[0065] During and / or after the step of sailing 103 the unmanned aerial vehicles 1 are loaded 105 automatically and without human intervention, with the fresh deposition material 7A stored in the storage volume 16 of the unmanned maritime vessel 11. In a next step 107, with the unmanned maritime vessel 11 moving towards the location of the oil leak or when the unmanned maritime vessel 11 is positioned near the location of the oil leak, the oil slick is scanned with a first unmanned aerial vehicle 1 to determine a shape and magnitude of the oil slick, before the other unmanned aerial vehicles 1 take off to position the deposition material 7A on the oil 2 to be removed.

[0066] With the unmanned maritime vessel 11 positioned near the oil leak, the unmanned aerial vehicle 1 takes off and positions itself 109 above the oil 2 floating on the water 4.

[0067] During a next step 111 of the method 100, the fresh deposition material 7A, stored in the storage volume 5 of the unmanned aerial vehicle 1 , is released with the release system 9 and positioned on the oil 2 to be removed, thereby emptying the storage volume 5 of the unmanned aerial vehicles 1.

[0068] When at least a part of oil 2 that floats on the body of water 4 is absorbed by the deposition material, so that the deposition material 7B contains oil 2, the oilcontaining deposition material 7B is loaded 113 back into the emptied storage volume 5 of the unmanned aerial vehicle 1 with the loading system 13, thereby removing the oil 2 from the body of water 4.

[0069] After the step of loading 113 the oil-containing deposition material 7B into the storage volume 5 of the unmanned aerial vehicle 1 , the unmanned aerial vehicle is flying back to the unmanned maritime vessel 11 for releasing 115 the oilcontaining deposition material 7B from the storage volume 5 of the unmanned aerial vehicle 1 into a compartment 24 of the storage volume 16 of the unmanned maritime vessel 11. The oil-containing deposition material 7B is for example stored into the compartment 24 of the storage volume 16, to the left of the plunger 20, that is vacated by loading fresh deposition material into the unmanned aerial vehicles 1.

[0070] As the volume of fresh deposition material 7A that can be stored in the storage volume 16 of the unmanned maritime vessel 11 is much larger than the combined volumes of the storage volumes 5 of the unmanned aerial vehicles 1 , the storage volume 5 of the unmanned aerial vehicles 1 are re-loaded 117 with fresh deposition material 7A and the unmanned aerial vehicles 1 fly back to the location of the oil leak for releasing the fresh deposition material 7A.

[0071] The steps of loading 105 the fresh deposition material 7A, taking off and positioning 109, releasing 111 the fresh deposition material 7A, loading 113 the oilcontaining deposition material 7B, releasing 115 the oil-containing deposition material 7B, and re-loading 117 the fresh deposition material 7A, are repeated multiple times until substantially all spilled oil 2 is absorbed by the deposition material.

[0072] During a final step 119 of the method 100, the oil 2 is separated from the oil-containing deposition material 7B, to obtain crude oil 2 and fresh deposition material 7A, for example on a location onshore.

Claims

CLAIMS1. A method (100) for removing oil (2) that floats on a body of water (4), the oil (2) typically leaked from a human-made oil-containing structure (6), the method (100) making use of: one or more unmanned aerial vehicles (1), each comprising one or more propulsion units (3) for propelling the unmanned aerial vehicle (1), a storage volume (5) for receiving and storing a deposition material (7A, 7B), a release system (9) for releasing fresh deposition material (7A) above the oil (2) to be removed, as well as a loading system (13) for loading oil-containing deposition material (7B); an unmanned maritime vessel (11), comprising a receiver (12), a loading area (14) for loading one or more unmanned aerial vehicles (1), a storage volume (16) for storing fresh deposition material (7A), and a loading system (18) for loading the fresh deposition material (7A) from the storage volume (16) of the vessel (11) into the storage volume (5) of the vehicle (1); and a volume of fresh deposition material (7A), the material (7A) being capable of absorbing crude oil (2); the method (100) comprising the steps of: receiving (101), with the unmanned maritime vessel (11) and / or with at least one of the unmanned aerial vehicles (1), a signal (15) representative for the occurrence of an oil leak on or in a body of water (4), the signal (15) comprising at least a geospatial location of the leak; in response to receiving the signal (15), sailing (103) towards the location of the oil leak with the unmanned maritime vessel (11), while the vessel (11) is equipped with the one or more unmanned aerial vehicles (1) and the deposition material (7A); loading (105) the at least one unmanned aerial vehicle (1) with the deposition material (7A) stored in the storage volume (16) of the unmanned maritime vessel (11), automatically and without human intervention;with the unmanned maritime vessel (11) positioned near the oil leak: the at least one unmanned aerial vehicle (1) takes off and positions itself (109) above oil (2) floating on the water (4); releasing (111), with the release system (9), the deposition material (7A) stored in the unmanned aerial vehicle (1) and positioning it on the oil (2) to be removed, thereby emptying the storage volume (5) of the unmanned aerial vehicle (1); and when at least a part of oil (2) that floats on the body of water (4) is absorbed by the deposition material (7B), so that the deposition material (7B) contains oil (2): loading (113) the oil-containing deposition material (7B) into the emptied storage volume (5) of the unmanned aerial vehicle (1) with the loading system (13), thereby removing the oil (2) from the body of water (4).

2. The method (100) according to claim 1 , wherein the signal (15) is generated based on an image of a body of water (4), the image generated by a satellite (17) and analysed to recognize the occurrence of an oil leak.

3. The method (100) according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the signal (15) is generated by a human-made construction (6) containing oil (2), in response to said human-made construction spilling oil (2) into or onto a body of water (4).

4. The method (100) according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the deposition material (7A) is an at least substantially 100% natural material.

5. The method (100) according to claim 4, wherein the deposition material (7A) contains or comprises a sponge material.

6. The method (100) according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the step of loading (105) the unmanned aerial vehicle (1) is carried out by a plunger (20) of the unmanned maritime vessel (11), the plunger (20) compressing the storage volume (16) of the unmanned maritime vessel (11) and driving the deposition material (7A) towards an outlet (22) of said storage volume (16).

7. The method (100) according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the unmanned maritime vessel (11) is configured to sail on the open sea.

8. The method (100) according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the storage area (14) of the unmanned maritime vessel (11) is arranged below a deck thereof, said storage area (14) comprising a hatch that in a closed state protects the unmanned aerial vehicles (1) from the environment and that in an open state allows the unmanned aerial vehicles (1) to take off.

9. The method (100) according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the method (100) comprises, before the step of the at least one unmanned aerial vehicle taking off and positioning itself (109) above the oil (2) floating on the water (4), the additional step of:- scanning (107) the oil slick with a first unmanned aerial vehicle (1) to determine a shape and magnitude of the oil slick before the unmanned aerial vehicles (1) take off to position the deposition material (7A) on the oil (2) to be removed.

10. The method (100) according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the method (100) comprises the additional steps of:- releasing (115) the oil-containing deposition material (7B) from the storage volume (5) of the unmanned aerial vehicle (1) into a compartment of the storage volume (16) of the unmanned maritime vessel (11); and- re-loading (117) the unmanned aerial vehicle (1) with fresh deposition material (7A).

11. The method (100) according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the method comprises the additional step of:- separating (119) the oil (2) from the oil-containing deposition material (7B), to obtain crude oil (2) and deposition material (7A).

12. An unmanned aerial vehicle (1) for releasing and loading a deposition material (7A, 7B), the unmanned aerial vehicle (1) comprising:- a storage volume (5) for storing a deposition material (7A, 7B), the storage volume (5) comprising an outlet (19) at the lower side thereof, so that the deposition material (7A, 7B) may be released from the storage volume (5),- one or more propulsion units (3) for propelling the unmanned aerial vehicle (1), the propulsion units (3) positioned to spread the deposition material (7A) over an area below the unmanned aerial vehicle (1) after the deposition material (7A) is released from the storage volume (5); and- a screw of the Archimedes type (21), extractable with respect to the storage volume (5), wherein a tip of the screw (21) is configured to make contact with deposition material (7B) that was previously released from the storage volume (5), the screw (21) configured for transporting the deposition material (7B) back into the storage volume (5).

13. The unmanned aerial vehicle (1) according to claim 12, wherein the screw (21) comprises holes and / or a water-permeable portion, for separating the deposition material (7B) and water (4) during the transport of the deposition material (7B) back into the storage volume (5) of the unmanned aerial vehicle (1).

14. A system (31) for releasing and reloading a deposition material (7A, 7B), in particular in a body of water (4) at a position that is located at least 10 nautical miles away from a coastal line, the system (31) comprising:- the unmanned aerial vehicle (1) according to claims 12 or 13, and- an unmanned maritime vessel (11) comprising a loading area (14) for loading one or more of the unmanned aerial vehicles (1), a storage volume (16) for storing fresh deposition material (7A), and a loading system (18) for loading the fresh deposition material (7A) from the storage volume (16) of the vessel (11) into the storage volume (5) of the vehicle (1).

Images