Socorristas intensifican tareas de rescate de 33 mineros en Chile
23 Agosto 2010
Para los 33 mineros encontrados vivos luego de 17 días atrapados en el interior de un yacimiento de cobre y oro en Chile, la preocupación principal podría ser ahora preservar la cordura durante los meses necesarios para cavar un túnel suficientemente amplio para rescatarlos.
Milagro en Chile: viven los minerosTras la histórica jornada del domingo, en la que los propios mineros sorprendieron a todos al enviar pruebas de vida adjuntas en una sonda que llegó al fondo del yacimiento, las autoridades definían el plan de rescate que durará meses.
Un grupo de socorristas reforzaba este lunes el ducto por el que se entregará comida y comunicación a 33 operarios atrapados hace 18 días en una mina de Atacama, a 800 kilómetros de Santiago de de Chile.
"Ahora, en la mañana la idea es terminar el aseguramiento del pozo, cerca de las 8:00 a.m. hora local y ahí recién comenzar el descenso de los alimentos", dijo André Sougarret, gerente de la mina El Teniente de Codelco y jefe de los sondajes de rescate.
La idea, explicó, es mantener vivo el "cordón umbilical" con los mineros y en una fase que se podría materializar en las próximas horas o días, ampliar los ductos para apoyar a los mineros.
Para ello, por lo menos tres máquinas de sondaje continúan con sus trabajos de perforación, lo que permitiría establecer un canal de comunicación, otro de ventilación y uno de alimentos.
Una cámara de video que bajó hasta el fondo de la mina comprobó en la jornada previa que los trabajadores a torso desnudo, con casco y muy alegres están en buenas condiciones de salud, pese a que permanecieron incomunicados durante 17 días tras el derrumbe en la zona media de la mina.
Según especialistas, los mineros atrapados habrían perdido unos 5 a 7 kilos, pero no estarían deshidratados ya que contarían con agua proveniente de las mismas perforaciones que hacen las máquinas de sondaje.
En las primeras horas del lunes, partió desde El Teniente, la mina de cobre subterránea más grande del mundo, la enorme maquinaria que se usará para cavar una perforación de diámetro suficiente para sacar a los mineros, un proceso que demorará por lo menos tres meses.
El enorme camión que transporta la perforadora deberá recorrer más de 900 kilómetros hasta la mina San José, de oro y cobre.
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Según el reporte de http://www.portalminero.com/noti/noticias_ver.php?codigo=9834 "los mineros han logrado sobrevivir gracias a que cuentan con agua y con la luz de sus cascos, que se cree cargan desde una batería de una camioneta que quedó en las cercanías del refugio donde se encontrarían". Este se estima que es "uno de los mayores y más complejos rescates en la historia minera de chile"
Accidente minero en Chile
11 Agosto 2010
Santiago de Chile, 11 ago (PL) El presidente de Chile, Sebastián Piñera, pidió hoy la renuncia del director del Servicio Nacional de Geología y Minería (SERNAGEOMIN), Alejandro Vio, y anunció un profundo viraje en el trabajo de ese organismo.
El servicio de fiscalización a la minería va a ser profundamente reforzado, informó el mandatario tras reunirse con el ministro de Energía, Laurence Golborne, para evaluar la marcha de las labores de rescate en la mina de San José, 800 kilómetros al norte de esta capital.
Piñera solicitó asimismo la renuncia del subdirector de Minería de SERNAGEOMIN, Exequiel Llanes, y del director de ese organismo en la región de Atacama, Rodolfo Díaz.
El jefe de Estado se refirió también a las operaciones de sondaje en el yacimiento colapsado, donde se mantienen 33 obreros sepultados, presumiblemente a 800 metros de profundidad, según estimados de autoridades y expertos.
Sobre ese tópico Golborne consideró que las máquinas avanzan a muy buen ritmo. Tenemos 252 metros en una y 200 en otra, precisó.
Aclaró, sin embargo, que en la medida que las sondas penetren la geología del suelo puede entorpecer algo porque las paredes tienden a ser más sólidas.
Paralelamente a las acciones del Ejecutivo, la Cámara de Diputados aprobó el inicio de una investigación que hurgará en las causas del accidente y en las razones para la reapertura de la mina San José en 2008, a pesar de su expediente en hechos trágicos.
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http://www.prensa-latina.cu/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=212382&Itemid=1
Noticias sobre el derrame de petróleo en el Golfo de Mexico
29 Mayo 2010
Flow Rate Group Provides Preliminary Best Estimate Of Oil Flowing from BP Oil Well
05/27/2010
Contact: Julie Rodriguez, 202-208-6416
USGS Director Dr. Marcia McNutt today announced that the National Incident Command’s Flow Rate Technical Group (FRTG) has developed an independent, preliminary estimate of the amount of oil flowing from BP’s leaking oil well.
In making the announcement, Dr. McNutt, who is the chair of the FRTG, established by Admiral Thad Allen, the National Incident Commander, emphasized that since day one, the Administration’s deployments of resources and tactics in response to the BP oil spill have been based on a worst-case, catastrophic scenario, and have not been contained by flow rate estimates.
Based on three separate methodologies, outlined below, the independent analysis of the Flow Rate Technical Group has determined that the overall best initial estimate for the lower and upper boundaries of flow rates of oil is in the range of 12,000 and 19,000 barrels per day.
The FRTG used three separate methodologies to calculate their initial estimate, which they deemed the most scientifically-sound approach, because measurement of the flow of oil is extremely challenging, given the environment, unique nature of the flow, limited visibility, and lack of human access to BP’s leaking oil well.
Mass Balance Team
The first approach led by the Mass Balance Team analyzed how much oil is on the surface of the Gulf of Mexico. The Mass Balance team developed a range of values using USGS and NOAA analysis of data that was collected from NASA’s Airborne Visible InfraRed Imaging Spectrometer (AVIRIS), an advanced imaging tool. USGS has previously used the AVIRIS tool to discover water on the moon. This is the first time it has been used to measure the volume of an oil spill.
Based on observations on May 17th, and accounting for thin oil not sensed by the AVIRIS sensor, the FRTG estimated that between 130,000 and 270,000 barrels of oil are on the surface of the Gulf of Mexico. It is important to note that the FRTG also estimated that a similar volume of oil to the amount AVIRIS found on the surface has already been burned, skimmed or dispersed by responders or has evaporated naturally as of May 17th.
Given the amount of oil observed and the adjusted calculations for the amount of oil that has been burned, skimmed, dispersed, or evaporated the initial estimate from the Mass Balance Team is in the range of 12,000 to 19,000 barrels of oil per day.
This methodology carried several challenges, including the fact that the AVIRIS plane can only fly over a portion of the spill in a day, meaning that an assumption must be made that the area imaged is representative of the entire spill region.
Plume Modeling Team
The second approach led by the Plume Modeling Team used video observations of the oil/gas mixture escaping from the kinks in the riser and at the end of the riser pipe alongside advanced image analysis to estimate fluid velocity and flow volume. Based on advanced image analysis and video observations the Plume Modeling Team has provided an initial range estimate of 12,000 to 25,000 barrels of oil per day.
This team faced several methodological challenges, including having a limited window of data in time to choose from, getting good lighting and unobstructed views of the end of the riser, and estimating how much of that flow is oil, gas, hydrates, and water.
Riser Insertion Tube Tool Estimate
Both estimates from the Mass Balance Team and the Plume Modeling Team were reality-checked with a basic calculation of the lower limit of possible oil that is spilling. The lower limit was calculated based on the amount of oil collected by the Riser Insertion Tube Tool (RITT), plus the estimate of how much oil is escaping the RITT, and how much oil is leaking from the kink in the riser.
On May 25, 2010, at approximately 17:30 CDT, the RITT logged oil collection at a rate of 8,000 barrels of oil per day, as measured by a meter whose calibration was verified by a third-party. Based on observations of the riser, the team estimated that at least 10% of the flow was not being captured by the riser at the time oil collection was logged, increasing the estimate of total flow to 8,800 barrels of oil per day. Factoring in the flow from the kink in the riser, the RITTI Team calculated that the lower bound estimate of the total oil flow is at least 11,000 barrels of oil per day, depending on whether the flow through the kink is primarily gas or oil. The lower bound estimate calculated by the RITT Team is more than twice the amount of the earlier flux estimate of 5,000 barrels of oil per day and is independent of any calculations or model assumptions made by either team above.
On-going Calculations
The preliminary estimates provided by the FRTG are based on new methodologies being employed to understand a highly dynamic and complex situation. As the FRTG collects more data and improves their scientific modeling in the coming days and weeks ahead, they will continue to refine and update their range of oil flow rate estimates, as appropriate.
The FRTG is working diligently to ensure all estimates are peer reviewed by independent experts and academics as expeditiously as possible. They will also establish a website to ensure this information is available and reported to the public in a timely fashion.
Response
Below are the resources surged to date to mitigate the impacts of the spill:
•Approximately 1,300 vessels are responding on site, including skimmers, tugs, barges, and recovery vessels to assist in containment and cleanup efforts—in addition to dozens of aircraft, remotely operated vehicles, and multiple mobile offshore drilling units.
•More than 1.85 million feet of containment boom and 1.25 million feet of sorbent boom have been deployed to contain the spill—and approximately 300,000 feet of containment boom and 1 million feet of sorbent boom are available.
•Approximately 11 million gallons of an oil-water mix have been recovered.
•Approximately 840,000 gallons of total dispersant have been deployed—700,000 on the surface and 140,000 subsea. More than 380,000 gallons are available.
•17 staging areas are in place and ready to protect sensitive shorelines, including: Dauphin Island, Ala., Orange Beach, Ala., Theodore, Ala., Panama City, Fla., Pensacola, Fla., Port St. Joe, Fla., St. Marks, Fla., Amelia, La., Cocodrie, La., Grand Isle, La., Shell Beach, La., Slidell, La., St. Mary, La.; Venice, La., Biloxi, Miss., Pascagoula, Miss., and Pass Christian, Miss.
Background
The Flow Rate Technical Group is comprised of federal scientists, independent experts, and representatives from universities around the country. It includes representatives from USGS, NOAA, DOE, Coast Guard, MMS, the national labs, National Institute of Standards and Technology, UC Berkeley, University of Washington, University of Texas, Purdue University, and several other academic institutions. BP is not involved in the FRTG except to supply raw data for the scientists and experts to analyze.
FRTG Members from the Federal Government appointed to date include:
Marcia McNutt, Director, USGS; William Rees, Jr., Los Alamos National Lab, Department of Energy; Darren Mollot, Department of Energy; Franklin Shaffer, Department of Energy; Victor Labson, USGS; Bill Lehr, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration; Austin Gould, US Coast Guard; Richard Brannon, US Coast Guard; Don Maclay, Minerals Management Service (MMS); Gerald Crawford, MMS; David Absher, MMS; and Bill Courtwright, MMS.
FRTG Members from academia and independent organizations appointed to date include:
Omar Savas, Professor of Mechanical Engineering, University of California Berkeley
James Riley, Professor of Mechanical Engineering, University of Washington
Juan Lasheras, Prof. of Engineering and Applied Sciences, University of California San Diego
Poojitha Yapa, Professor of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Clarkson University
Paul Boomer, Senior Lecturer, Petroleum and Geosystems, University of Texas at Austin
Steve Wereley, Associate Professor of Mechnical Engineering, Purdue University
Peter Cornillon, Professor of Oceanography, University of Rhode Island
Ira Leifer, Assoc. Researcher, Marine Science Institute, University of California Santa Barbara
Alberto Aliseda, Assistant Professor of Mechanical Engineering, University of Washington Pedro Espina, National Institute of Standards and Technology.
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Grupo Brasileño montará puerto en la Guajira para exportar carbón
21 Enero 2010
La minera MPX, rama de energía del grupo brasileño EBX del empresario Eike Batista, dijo este jueves que compró 521 hectáreas en la región de Dibulla, La Guajira, para crear un puerto con capacidad de exportación de hasta 20 millones de toneladas de carbón al año.
El área adquirida está localizada aproximadamente a 150 kilómetros de zonas de concesión de MPX.
Según un comunicado de la empresa al mercado, el comienzo de la operación de las minas está previsto para el segundo semestre del 2011.
MPX también informó que el comienzo de la operación de las minas está previsto para el segundo semestre del 2011. En marzo del 2010 se terminará el segundo informe técnico de recursos y reservas de carbón mineral, elaborado por la empresa John T. Boyd.
"MPX pasa a controlar un importante sistema integrado de minería de explotación de carbón mineral en Colombia, que abastecerá los mercados brasileño e internacional", afirmó la compañía a través del comunicado.
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