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''Dispersit SPC 1000'' or ''Dispersit'' is a
dispersant
A dispersant or a dispersing agent is a substance, typically a surfactant, that is added to a suspension of solid or liquid particles in a liquid (such as a colloid or emulsion) to improve the separation of the particles and to prevent their sett ...
used for oil spill
An oil spill is the release of a liquid petroleum hydrocarbon into the environment, especially the marine ecosystem, due to human activity, and is a form of pollution. The term is usually given to marine oil spills, where oil is released into th ...
s, produced by U.S. Polychemical Corporation.
Composition
It combines a predominantly oil-soluble surfactant (such aspolyethylene glycol
Polyethylene glycol (PEG; ) is a polyether compound derived from petroleum with many applications, from industrial manufacturing to medicine. PEG is also known as polyethylene oxide (PEO) or polyoxyethylene (POE), depending on its molecular wei ...
mono-oleate) with a predominantly water-soluble surfactant
Surfactants are chemical compounds that decrease the surface tension or interfacial tension between two liquids, a liquid and a gas, or a liquid and a solid. The word ''surfactant'' is a Blend word, blend of "surface-active agent",
coined in ...
(such as cocoamide) and a co-solvent for coupling a mixture of the predominantly oil-soluble surfactant and the oil.
Alternatives
Alternative dispersants which are approved by the EPA are listed on the National Contingency Plan Product Schedule and rated for their toxicity and effectiveness.Deployments
2010 Gulf of Mexico oil spill
Dispersit is unique among U.S.Environmental Protection Agency
Environmental Protection Agency may refer to the following government organizations:
* Environmental Protection Agency (Queensland), Australia
* Environmental Protection Agency (Ghana)
* Environmental Protection Agency (Ireland)
* Environmenta ...
-rated dispersants in being the only one rated as 100% effective against South Louisiana crude oil, and it is among the least toxic, according to EPA tests. By comparison, Corexit
Corexit (often styled COREXIT) is a product line of oil dispersants used during oil spill response operations. It is produced by Nalco Holding Company, an indirect subsidiary of Ecolab. Corexit was originally developed by the Standard Oil Comp ...
, the oil dispersant used in the Deepwater Horizon oil spill
The ''Deepwater Horizon'' oil spill was an environmental disaster off the coast of the United States in the Gulf of Mexico, on the BP-operated Macondo Prospect. It is considered the largest marine oil spill in the history of the petroleum in ...
, is rated at 54.7% effective against South Louisiana crude oil and three times as lethal to silverfish and more than twice as lethal to shrimp.
On May 20, US Polychemical Corporation was reported to have received an order from BP for Dispersit SPC 1000. US Polychemical reportedly stated it was able to produce a day in the first few days and increasing up to a day thereafter.{{cite news , url=https://www.nytimes.com/2010/05/21/science/earth/21disperse.html?ref=us , title=Agency Orders Use of a Less Toxic Chemical in Gulf , author=Campbell Robertson and Elisabeth Rosenthal , work=New York Times , date=2010-05-20 , accessdate=2010-05-21
See also
*Corexit
Corexit (often styled COREXIT) is a product line of oil dispersants used during oil spill response operations. It is produced by Nalco Holding Company, an indirect subsidiary of Ecolab. Corexit was originally developed by the Standard Oil Comp ...
* Sea Brat 4
References