Question

In July, 2003, a single-hulled tanker MT Tasman Spirit was carrying 67000 tons’ light crude oil for Pakistan Refinery.
Due to unfavorable weather conditions this ship was forced off its main course and became grounded about 2.4 Km from Karachi Port, Pakistan. Karachi Port authorities made many attempts to refloat the ship.
The ship had 4 tanks. Tank 1 contained 20,000 tons of oil, Tank 2 contained 12,000 tons of oil, Tank 3 carried 18000 tons of oil and Tank 4 was carrying 19000 tons of oil. After unsuccessful attempts to refloat the ship, Tank 2 was damaged and all its oil drained into the sea.
According to the major newspapers in the country the oil spill spread to the 4 Km2 area of the Clifton Beach, Karachi. (Jahanzeb, 2019)
The thin layer of oil due to leakage is called an oil slick. Explain why an oil slick floats on the surface of the water.
The area of the oil slick was given as 14 km2 and it was about 1.0 x 10-3m thick. Calculate the total volume of the oil that spilled out during the leakage.
The density of light crude oil is 850 kg/m3. Calculate the mass of oil that spilled out during this damage.
Show by calculations that the total mass from part (c) is almost same as the original contents of Tank 2.

Answer 1