My project hypothesis is that among the various methods used to separate oil on water nanoparticles will be one of the most effective. This will demonstrate that nonoparticles are one of those efficient solution for cleaning up oil spills.

Oil plays a vital role in our daily lives. It is one of the primary sources of energy in the world and is used to power vehicles, heat houses, and other buildings, and produce electricity. Derived from petroleum, a naturally occurring liquid formed millions of years ago beneath the Earth’s surface, oil is essential for transportation, industry, and everyday products. Sometimes, the pipelines or carriers that transport petroleum or the rigs themselves can malfunction or break, leaking tons of oil into nature, including the ocean, rivers, lakes, and other water sources. The pollution of the environment with crude or mineral oil or their by-products is called an oil spill. These are massively damaging to ecosystems, marine life, and coastal habitats. They pollute water, destroy natural habitats, and disrupt the food chain. 

Oceanic oil spills emerged as a significant environmental issue in the 1960s due to the expansion of petroleum exploration and production and the introduction of supertankers, which could transport over 500,000 metric tons of oil, increasing the risk of large-scale spills. An oil spill is the accidental release of liquid petroleum hydrocarbon products into a body of water, either by an oil tanker ship, offshore oil rig, pipelines, or even recreational vehicles.

These are some ways that oil spills happen

• Accidents: It is the most common cause and occur due to collision, grounding, or sinking of oil ships or tankers
• Rig Leaks: Oil rigs can have blowouts, equipment failures, corrosion, or leaks.
• Pipeline Breaks – Corrosion, damage, or poor maintenance can cause pipelines to rupture.
• Refinery Accidents – Spills can occur during the extraction, refining, or transportation.
• Improper Disposal – Dumping oil waste into oceans or rivers, often illegally, contributes to spills.
• Natural disasters: Earthquakes, storms or tsunamis can cause infrastructure causing oil spills  
• War and Sabotage – Oil infrastructure can be targeted during conflicts, vandalism or terrorist acts

Environmental Effects

• Water Contamination 
• Soil and Shoreline Damage 
• Air Pollution 

Wildlife Effects

• Marine Life Suffocation 
• Birds and Marine Mammals 
• Food Chain Disruption 

Human and Economic Impact

• Fisheries and Livelihoods Lost 
• Tourism Declines 
• Health Risks 
• Expensive cleanup 

Cleaning up oil spills in oceans and seas has burdened industry, government, and environmentalists for decades. The cleanup is almost always difficult, involving great amounts of time, resources, and money to remove the oil from the water, and still is often only partially successful.  Cleaning up an oil spill is challenging and requires different methods depending on the type of oil, spill size, environment, and weather conditions.

1. Physical Methods 

• Booms – Floating barriers that prevent oil from spreading further in water. 
• Skimmers – Machines that remove oil from the water’s surface. 
• Absorbents – Materials like sponges, sawdust, or synthetic pads soak up the oil. 
• Vacuum Trucks – Large vehicles that suck up oil from shorelines and water surfaces.

2. Chemical Methods

• Dispersants – Chemicals sprayed on oil to break it into smaller droplets, allowing natural degradation.
• Solidifiers – Turn oil into a solid, making it easier to remove.

3. Biological Methods (Bioremediation)

• Oil-Eating Microbes – Special bacteria that break down oil into non-toxic substances.
• Nutrient Additives – Help natural bacteria grow and speed up oil degradation.

4. Burning & Washing

• In-Situ Burning – Oil is burned off the water’s surface to reduce the spill quickly 
• High-Pressure Washing – Sprays hot water to remove oil from shorelines (but can harm wildlife).

5. Manual Cleanup

• Shoveling & Scraping – Workers manually remove oil from beaches and rocky areas.

6. Nano-Absorbents

• Nanoparticles like silica, carbon nanotubes, iron-based nanoparticles, nano-enhanced bacteria and graphene-based materials can absorb large amounts of oil due to their high surface area.

Prepare Water

Prepare Oil Mixture

Test Material 1 - Cotton Pad (Absorbent)

Test Material 2 - Sponge (Absorbent)

Test Material 3 - Coffee Filter Paper (Absorbent)

Observation 1 - Interaction of oil with water

• I observed that the oil forms a layer on top of the water and slowly spreads across the surface. This thin layer is called an oil slick. It sometimes forms small bubbles as well. 
• This happens because oil is hydrophobic, so it fails to mix with the water. Oil is also less dense.
• Once it is thin enough, it will take on that sheen and rainbow look - signs of pollution.
• Even if you mix oil and water, it separates

Test Material 1 - Cotton Pad (Absorbent)

• The cotton pad had good absorbency and absorbed the oil from the water but absorbed a lot of water in the process.

Test Material 2 - Sponge (Absorbent)

• It had the maximum absorption but absorbed some water in the process.

Test Material 3 - Coffee Filter Paper (Absorbent)

• The coffee filter paper filtered a lot of oil into the paper, but it was hard to squeeze the oil out.

Test Material 4 - Dish Soap (Dispersant)

• The dish soap dispersed the oil and formed big droplets and moved to the edges of your bowl. The dish soap is the dispersant, and the edges of the bowl act like booms. This is because of its molecular structure. Hydrophobic End: Repels water and binds to oil. Hydrophilic End: Binds to water and pulls oil away.

Test Material 5 - Popsicle Stick / Aluminium Foil (Boom)

• It helped to isolate the oil to a specific area or away from a specific area by creating a physical barrier. This made the cleanup of oil easier.

Test Material 6 - Fine Mesh Sieve (Skimmer)

• The oil-water mix had to be sieved multiple times to remove the oil completely. Adding cheesecloth to the filter increased the absorbency.

Test Material 7 - Ferrofluid

• This was very effective and did not absorb too much water. Ferrofluid is made of tiny magnetic nanoparticles. When mixed with spilled oil, it binds to the oil molecules, making them respond to magnets. The oil can be separated from the ferrofluid afterward, meaning the oil could be collected for reuse instead of being wasted.

Oil to Water Ratio

Oil = 2 teaspoon

Water = ¼ cup = 12 teaspoon

Ratio = 2:12 = 1:6 (one part oil to 6 part water)

Independent Variable (What we change):

Type of cleanup method (e.g., booms, skimmers, absorbents, dispersants, nanotechnology)

Dependent Variables (What you measure):

Amount of oil removed (measured in milliliters or percentage cleaned).

Time taken for cleanup (in minutes).

Effectiveness of the method (visual observation or oil left

in water).

How does oil and water mix?

Water molecules are polar which means one end has a slight negative charge, the other a slight positive charge. Thus the water molecules can form hydrogen bonds and attach to other molecules that are also polar, like each other. Oil molecules are nonpolar which means they can’t form hydrogen bonds with water molecules. 

This results in water and oil not being able to mix. Oil is lighter than water, so it floats on top of the water without mixing in.

Nanotechnology as an efficient oil separation method 

Magnetic nanoparticles (like iron oxide) are mixed with oil, making it magnetically responsive. Strong magnets can then pull the oil away from water without absorbing excess liquid.

Advantages include:

• Targets oil with high precision.
• Quick and more efficient than traditional methods 
• Oil can potentially be recovered and reused
• Prevents water absorbtion

Nanoparticles are one of the most efficient solution for cleaning up oil spills.

Magnetic nanoparticles (like iron oxide) are mixed with oil, making it magnetically responsive. Strong magnets can then pull the oil away from water without absorbing excess liquid.

Advantages include:

- Could have expanded the experiment to other sorbents 

- Better measurement of time for each experiment 

- Different types of oils could have been used 

- More efficient ratio of water to oil to sorbent

- Different types of water 

https://www.sciencing.com/oil-spill-information-kids-5444185/

https://www.britannica.com/science/oil-spill

https://kids.kiddle.co/Oil_spill

https://www.itopf.org/knowledge-resources/data-statistics/oil-tanker-spill-statistics-2024/

https://www.marinebreakawaycouplings.com/oil-spill-statistics-2024-to-2014/

https://www.bing.com/videos/riverview/relatedvideo?q=oil+spill+statistics+2024&mid=E84A467E997602567EAAE84A467E997602567EAA&mcid=CEFA6AD7B9E543FA8153142555F9023A&FORM=VIRE

https://www.bing.com/videos/riverview/relatedvideo?q=oil%20spill%20statistics%202024&mid=477F0871850A3BE6AD42477F0871850A3BE6AD42&ajaxhist=0

https://www.steampoweredfamily.com/oil-spill-cleanup-experiment/

https://www.science-sparks.com/clean-it-up-oil-spill-experiment/

google.com

AI platforms - Chatgpt, Co-pilot

https://kids.earth.org/life-on-land/how-oil-spills-affect-the-environment/

https://kids.kiddle.co/Oil_spill

My Teachers 

My Parents 

• Who challenged me to take up this project
• Helped me in my experiment and its analysis
• Helped me with the slides 

My Sister 

• For always being my inspiration and guide
• For preparing me for the Science Fair 

My School Science Fair Coordinator

• Mr. Greg Neil 

Calgary Youth Science Fair 

For the opportunity and acceptance to present my project