WASTE OIL STUDY
PRELIMINARY REPORT TO THE CON6RESS
APRIL, 1973
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WASTE OIL STUDY
PRELIMINARY REPORT TO THE CONGRESS
APRIL, 1973
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Table of Contents
Page
Summary 1
Introduction 2
Generation of Waste Oil 4
A. Quantities of Waste Oil Generated 4
1. Automotive Oil 4
2. Industrial Oils 8
B. Physical and Chemical Chracteristics of
Waste Oils 14
1. Automotive lubricants 14
2. Metalworking lubricants 15
3. Plant and Animal Oils 20
4. Petroleum refining operation wastes 21
C. Present Methods of Collection and Disposal 23
1. Methods of Collection 23
2. Disposal and Recovery of Waste Oils 23
a. Re-Refining 23
b. Use as a Fuel Oil 32
c. Use in Land Application 32
d. Other Disposal Methods 33
D. Biological Effects of Waste Oil 34
1. Origins of Oil Pollution 35
2. Toxic Effects of Oil 39
3. Effects of Treated Oils 43
4. Carcinogenic Effects 44
5. Public Water Supply Effects 44
6. Waterfowl and Wildlife Effects 45
7. Pollution in Media Other Than Water 46
8. Recommendations 46
E. Economic and Legal Aspects of Waste Oil
Pol i cy 48
F. Additional Information Being Developed 51
References 53
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List of Tables & Figures
Tables Pagp
1. National Oil Sales Volumes 5
2. Trends in Motor Oil Consumption 7
3. Annual Per Capita Oil Use in United States 12
4. Typical Waste Automotive Oil Composition 16
5. Used Automotive Lubricating Oils-
Trace Metals Content 17
6. Used Automotive Lubricating Oils-
Selected Properties 18
7. Oil-Based Metal Working Lubricants 19
8. Metal Content of Waste Oil Re-Refining Oil Sludg* 22
9. Data Survey of Selected Oil Re-Refiners 24
Figures
1. Virgin Lube Oil Sales in the United States 9
2. Waste Lube Oils Generated in the United States 10
3. Flov/ Scheme for Acid-Clay Type Re-Refining Process 26
4. Flow Scheme - IFP Propane Classification Process 28
5. National Oil Recovery Corporation Project Flow Sheet 29
6. Solvent Extraction - Waste Oil Treatment 30
7. Waste Oil Hydrotreating - Distillation Process 31
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SUMMARY
Section 104(m)(2) of the Water Pollution Control Act Amendments of 1972
required the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Aqency to
study the problem of the disposal of waste oils and their effect on the
environment. This report is submitted in fulfillment of the requirement
for a preliminary report within six months after enactment of the
leqislation. The report emphasizes the information required in
Section 104(m)(l)(A) and presents the data currently available which
are applicable to Sections (B) and (C).
The report presents the information available to date on the quantities
of waste oils produced and their physical and chemical prooerties. A
review of the current disposal and re-refininq processes is presented
toqether with a brief evaluation of the current state-of-the-art and
anticipated technoloqical improvements. Information on the economic
structure of the waste oil business is also reported. Due to the
limited time available for the preparation of this report, the data on
chronic lonq-term ecoloqical effects of waste oil disposal are not
available. Because of the lack of information available in the
literature and the necessity for time to determine lonq-term bioloqical
effects, it is not possible to report on such effects at this time.
It should be noted that much of the information presented is based on
limited data available in the literature. Additional studies are beinq
carried out by this Aqency and others. The results of this on-qoinq
work will be included in the final report due to be issnetJ in
April 1974. In addition, any recommendations for leqislation or
institutional chanqes will be withheld until that time when the results
of these on-qoinq or anticipated studies are available.
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INTRODUCTION
The Congress, in Public Law 92-500, "Federal Water Pollution Control Act
Amendments of 1972," recognized that waste oil is an environmental hazard.
In Section 104(m), Congress requires the Administrator of the Environmental
Protection Agency to conduct studies leading to the prevention of the
degradation of the environment from the disposal of waste oil. The Admin-
istrator was further required to r.port preliminary results of such studies
to Congress by April 15, 1973. This report details the preliminary results
of the studies undertaken and presents information on the studies to be under-
taken as a partial fulfillment to this requirement.
Oil enters the environment ranging in forms from raw crude to highly refined
machine oil. The routes of entry are as varied as the products. These
include continuous discharges, illegal dumping, accidental spills and
overboard discharges from vessels such as contaminated ballast and tank
washings. At the present time it is estimated that approximately
1.5 billion gallons of spent lube oil and greases from vehicle crankcases
and industrial plants are produced each year. Thl~ volume is expected to
grow at a rate of about 2% per annum. About half of tins waste oil is
disposed of with no assurances made to prevent subsequent pollution of
ground and surface waters. The uncontrolled disposal of any oil to the
environment can cause environmental damage. Because of its heavy metals
content, waste crankcase oil poses the possibility of a serious threat to
all living resources. Waste oil is currently disposed of in a number of
ways. No one use is environmentally superior in every situation. The
local conditions, as well as types of oil to be handled, must be considered
when determining the optimum solution. This situation is further com-
plicated because little or no data are available on long-term ecological
effects of waste oil. These effects can only be tenuously extrapolated
from crude and fuel oil data. Generation and disposal patterns are only
now being studied in detail sufficient to properly define the problem.
About 2.3 billion gallons of lubricating oils and grease are sold for use
in the United States each year. Of this 2.3 billion gallons, about 1.5
billion gallons ends up as waste lube oil. Historically, much of this
waste oil has been used for dust prevention on roads. This use is going
out of fashion and is environmentally unacceptable. Very little
(approximately ten percent) of the 1 billion gallons of motor waste
oil is reprocessed. Some is currently blended into fuel oils and most
of it is currently dumped either on land or into watercourses. A
preliminary analysis of the ecological effects of such dumping is
included in this report and further work in this area is planned.
Industrial waste oils and waste fuel oils can be reprocessed and are usually
easier to recover because of the concentration at the source. However,
a great deal of these materials are not introduced into the reuse cycle.
This report presents a brief analysis of the current waste oil status
and composition. A summary review of the current practices of re-refiners
is presented together with a brief evaluation of the current state-of-the-
art and anticipated developments.
At the present time little can be stated in respect to the biological impact,
i.e., direct or community alteration by sublethal responses within the
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populations. However, it is these bioloaical impact manifestations that must
be addressed for each of the various components of waste oil within a compre-
hensive investigation of the effects on the biotic components of our environ-
ment. Studies now underway or planned for the near future will provide
some of the much needed information on the effects of waste oil disposal
practices. These will be included in the final report next year. A
very brief analysis of the bioloaical effects as we can determine them
on extremely limited data is presented. Work is beinn carried out by other
agencies on the waste oil problem and this is briefly discussed. The
report also presents a discussion of anticipated studies to be carried out
and reported on in detail in the final report.
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Generation of Haste Oil
Waste oil, as defined in this report, is an oil which has served its
useful purpose and no lonqer has the chemical and/or physical properties
required. In addition, some oily non-useable by-product materials
resulting from manufacturing operations are included in this category.
This section of the report is concerned with how much and what kind of
oil becomes waste oil. The quantities and sources of waste oil produced
are identified to the extent that existing data permits.
A Quantities of Waste Oil Generated
1. National Estimates
For the year of 1969, a net amount of 2.29 billion gallons of various
lubricant materials were sold within the United States. On the basis of
linear extrapolation usinq the period of 1967-1971 to determine the rate
of change, the projected total national oil sales for 1975 is estimated to
be 2.42 billion qallons.
Approximately 50 percent of this amount is consumed in the various applica-
tions of these materials (1). The balance of this material, 1.1 billion
gallons, is either available for recycling into various oil products or
requires disposal. The difference between the total lube oil sold and the
total waste oil produced is the consumption by the machine itself (burning
or leakage), discarding of oils in junked machinery and autos, and
similar factors.
The amount and type of oil that remains after use varie? 'with the type of
oil. The amounts of various types of oils sold nationally are shown in
Table 1. Two broad cateqories of waste oil can be identified: automotive
and industrial oils. They will be discussed more fully below.
Automotive Oil
Automotive oils include all crankcase oils, transmission fluid, differential
gear lubricants, hydraulic oil, and small quantities of solvents frequently
used in automotive installations. Sales of automotive oils represents
over 50 percent of total sales.
(a) Crankcase Oil
It is estimated that 66 percent of automotive crankcase oil evantually
is left as waste.
It appears from insoection of the data in Table 1 that there is an
increasinq trend in the use of lubricants. On the basis that 66 percent
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TABLE 1
NATIONAL OIL SALES VOLUMES
Year
Type
Auto
Aviation
Industrial Lube Oil
Other Industrial Oils
Auto & Aviation Grease3)
Industrial Grease3)
TOTAL
%Change*
per year
+ 0.9
- 9.9
+ 1.17
+ 5.5
- 1.7
- 0.6
+ 1.49
1967
1,032
. 13.1
699.1
315.0
52.4
57.2
2,168.8
(Million
1969
1,051
9.9
781.2
342.0
53.2
55.1
2,291.4
Gallons)
1971
1,071
8.4
726
388
49.8
55.7
2,298.9
1975**
1,107
5.9
• 751
450
47.3
'4.7
2,415.9
*Based on 1967-71 sales (average % change per reporting period).
**Projected
a)Volume based on 9 Ibs/gal. density
References: (1), (3)
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of new automotive lube oil becomes waste automotive lube oil, the national
amounts of waste lube oil would be approximately 680 million gallons in
1967, 690 million gallons in 1969, and a projected value of 730 million
gallons in 1975. However, the decreasing consumption of engine oil relative
to fuel oil and the specific consumption of oil per mile travelled has been
noted by several observers (2&3). Table 2 shows the variation in oil
consumption over the period 1950 ^.o 1969. Between the period 1950 to 1955
a decrease of 10-1/2 percent in oil consumption per mile was realized. In
subsequent time periods, this decrease changes to 25 percent for the
period 1955 to 1960; 30.5 percent for the period 1960 to 1965; and 28.5 percent
for the period 1965 through 1969. This drop in consumption can be generally
attributed to increased time between oil changes.
Two trend indicators which influence projections of motor oil consumption
should be explored in more detail. The first of these is the ratio of fuel
to motor oil consumption. In 1969, the total number of registered vehicles
in the U.S. was approximately 107 million units including buses, trucks,
and passenger vehicles. These vehicles required 88.1 billion gallons of
motor fuel; the ratio of fuel to oil for passenger c,c.rs is cited as approx-
imately 227 gallons of gasoline per gallon of oil for passenger cars. On
an overall basis, taking all automotive lubricant oils and comparing them
with the total number of vehicles of all types in the United States, the
ratio of fuel to motor oil is approximately 81 gallons of fuel to one gallon
of motor oil lubricant. The discrepancy between the ratios of 81 and 227
gallons of gasoline per gallon of oil previously cited is apparently due to
the many stationary internal combustion engines, marine engines, and the
many two- and four-cycle low horsepower portable engines currently in use
in the United States. In 1969, about 1 billion gallons j-f motor oils were
sold. Thus, approximately 10 gallons of lubricant oil were sold for each
vehicle registered in the United States.
The second major indicator is the mileage factor: A strict evaluation of
the curves for automobile crankcase drainage coupled with the decrease
in consumption per 1000 miles driven would seem to indicate that the
quantities of oil that will be available in the years 1971 through 1975
will decline or at best stay at the levels noted for 1969 and 1970. How-
ever, if the analyses are divided into several elements which include the
impact of other factors, the long-term trend in automotive oil sales will
increase. During the 1960's, automobile sales increased and cars were being
driven more miles per year. This would have shown an increase in the
quantity of oil sold if the overall composition of the oil had not been
dramatically changed.
In the late 1950's oil was drained about every 2000 miles, oil in
the late 1960's was drained between 4000 and 6000 miles. The automobile
manufacturers have since reversed their trend for increased mileage between
oil changes. They now suggest that oil be changed every 3000 to 4000 miles
and filters every second oil change. It is felt that oil life has somewhat
stabilized at this latter figure and that oil sales will parallel automobile
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TABLE 2
*
TRENDS IN MOTOR OIL CONSUMPTION 0)
Gallons 011 per Quarts 011 per
YEAR 100 6aV.QMS Fuel 1000 Miles
1950 1.44 3.81
1955 1.25 3.42
1960 0.91 2.56
1965 0.64 1.78
1966 0.60 1.68
1967 0.54 1.52
1968 0.49 1.40
1969 0.44 1.27
Includes all cars and trucks designed for highway use.
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sales quite closely.
Accordingly, two projections were made for auto lubes: one takinq into
consideration all the data and a second (more conservative) placinn a much
greater weight on oil sales during the previous thre° years. As tho latt°r
produces a higher value for crankcase drainage, it will be utiliz°d to
project the quantities of oils expected in the future.
(b) Automotive Brake Fluid
Statistics (2) show that approximately 10 million gallons per year
of automotive brake fluid have been compounded and sold nationally over the
period 1966 through 1969. A portion of this material is us^d in new
applications while the balance is for replacement purooses. On the basis of
an estimated 10 million new vehicles per year (2) and an assumed value of
0.1 gallon of hydraulic brake fluid per vehicle on the average, the balance
yields an estimated amount of replacement brake fluid of 1 million gallons
per year. This would be the maximum expected value of this category which
might be recovered in a given year providing adcnuat° measures were taken
to collect this material.
Industrial Oils (Ballast and Bilge Wastes not included)
Industrial Lube Oils and Other Industrial Oils
Similar calculations may be made for the category comorising industrial lube
oils and other industrial oils. As previously described, this category
yielded 29.6 percent waste material. On this basis, 300 million gallons of
waste industrial oil was produced in 1967, 330 million nylons in 1969,
and 355 million gallons projected for 1975.
Grease
The consumption of "grease" remains relatively constant even in the face
of greater auto and lube oil sales. This can be explained by the expanded
use of non-lubricating fittings in rotating eguipment.
National Trends
A graphic presentation of the total growth in waste oil, including both
industrial and automotive oils, is shown in Figures 1 and 2. These
composite curves are based on linear projections using the data reported
for the periods from 1967 through 1971.
2. Regional Distribution of Waste Oil
Large variances in the generation of the two major categories of
waste oil, automotive and industrial, from region to region are noted. Per
capita consumption is used as an indicator of this distribution. It is
based on a population of approximately 200 million people in 1972, and
a consumption of about 11 gallons of all lubricants per person per year.
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A. NEW AUTOMOTIVE OILS
B. TOTAL EQUIVALENT NEW GREASE VOLUME
(AUTO, AVIATION PLUS INDUSTRIAL)
C. TOTAL NEW INDUSTRIAL PLUS AVIATION LUBE
OILS
D. TOTAL NEW OIL AND GREASE VOLUMES
3000--
5 2500
o
00
2 2000-
1500--
1000--
500-•
0 LL£
+
V
_ 0
*------Jl
B
4-
1947 1950
1955
1960
CALENDAR YEAR
1965
1970
1975
FIGURE 1, VIRGIN OIL SALES IN THE UNITED STATES
REFERENCE (5)
-------
o
I
o
_J
_l
CD
u. 1000,
0
0
1— 1
1
_l
1— 1
2:
UJ
1 500-
0
>•
1
_— 1
^J
•^
0
'*«•
\
^ Q
. -
F
* M
_, ... F
i — i — i — i — i — i — i — i — i 1
E
F
G.
-
•
1965
1970 T975
CALENDAR YEAR
ESTIMATED WASTE CRANKCASE OILS
ESTIMATED WASTE INDUSTRIAL PLUS
AVIATION LUBE OIL
ESTIMATED TOTAL WASTE OILS OF
ALL CATEGORIES
FIGURE 2, WASTE OILS GENERATED IN THE UNITED STATES
REFERENCE (5)
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Of this amount, approximately five gallons is assigned to the automotive
oil category.
The exact causes for the variations in per capita oil consumption are
not known but appear to be linked to regional characteristics such as
degree of urbanization, level of agricultural activity and industrial
output, coupled with the degree of development of public transportation.
The regions or states having the highest proportion of per capita automotive
oil consumption should generate a greater fraction of waste crankcase oil
as compared with regions having higher per capita industrial oil consump-
tion. Such consumption factors will affect the type of waste oils available
for re-refining or other means of disposal. These variations are significant
inasmuch as they affect the design of both the collection system and
reprocessing system. Because of the greater spectrum of virgin oil products
used industrially as compared with automotive uses, those regions having
proportionately more industrial consumption will have more broadly varying
waste oil types. In contrast, waste crankcase oils are found to be more
uniform.
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TABLE 3
ANNUAL PER CAPITA OIL USE IN UNITED STATES (1971)
STATE
Alabama
Alaska
Arizona
Arkansas
California
Colorado
Connecticut
Delaware
District of Columbia
Florida
Georgia
Hawaii
Idaho
Illinois
Indiana
Iowa
Kansas
Kentucky
Louisiana
Maine
Maryland
Massachusetts
Michigan
Minnesota
Mississippi
Missouri
Montana
Nebraska
Nevada
New Hampshire
New Jersey
New Mexico
New York
North Carolina
North Dakota
(REP. 5)
OIL CONSUMPTION(GAL/PERSON/YEAR)
Automotive
5.65
7.05
5.44
6.31
5.47
5.65
3.37
5.52
3.25
4.42
5.57
3.66
7.30
5.08
5.17
6.1
10.0
7.02
6.31
5.10
3.56
3.57
6.40
6.45
6.39
6.91
9.15
9.50
7.38
3.45
3.82
7.10
2.66
4.60
9.70
Industrial
4.88
2.15
2.44
5.42
3.39
2.94
4.07
3.30
Unknown
3.45
5.52
Unknown
1.86
8.02
8.45
2.94
4.62
7.10
11.20
2.8
3.38
3.64
7.45
3.18
4.20
3.35
2.45
3.91
1.78
1.18
8.70
5.15
2.88
3.40
1.45
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Table 3 continued
STATE OIL CONSUMPTION(GAL/PERSON/YEAR)
Automotive Industrial
Ohio 5.21 9.45
Oklahoma 7.28 5.61
Oregon 8.71 4.81
Pennsylvania 4.59 7.97
Rhode Island 3.06 2.75
South Carolina 4.09 2.38
South Dakota 9.79 1.01
Tennessee 5.38 4.79
Texas 6.39 9.89
Utah 6.65 3.39
Vermont 4.54 1.45
Virginia 4.14 2.57
Washington 4.91 2.82
West Virginia 5.32 13.50
Wisconsin 5.92 3.88
Wyoming 11.70 4.79
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B Physical and Chemical Characteristics of Waste nils
The various sources described in the previous section may be classified
into five broad types. These are: waste automotive lubricants, waste
metal working lubricants, waste heavy hydrocarbons (fuels and tars), waste
animal and vegetable oils and fats, and waste industrial oil materials.
Waste Automotive Lubricants
Waste automotive lubricants includes all crankcase oils, transmission
fluids, differential gear lubricants, hydraulic oils, and small guantities
of solvents freguently used in automotive installations.
To a greater or lesser extent, automotive oils contain additives to
improve their properties. These are synthetic organic chemicals and
contain sulfur, nitrogen, oxygen and metals. Typical hiqh grade
automotive lubricating oil formulations contain 75 percent oil and
25 percent proprietary, or additive compounds.
Because of the blow-by in automotive enqines, Wci?te crankcase oils
freguently have an appreciable portion of low boiling materials
originating from gasoline. In addition, many of the constituents
and additives in gasoline are transferred during engine operation to
the crankcase. For example, lead is frequently found in concentrations
of several thousand parts per million (ppm) in waste crankcase oil.
Water is also found because of accidental introduction into waste holding
tanks and because of moisture formed during combustion in the automotive
engine. Freguently, appreciable solid material and sediment accompany
the waste oils.
The contaminants in the waste automotive oil can be classified as volatile
products, materials soluble in oil, and materials insoluble in oil. The
volatile components generally are water and fuel. The soluble materials
include many of the additives oriqinally placed in the oil such as
viscosity index improvers and detergent additives. The insoluble
materials include sub-micron size carbon particles and inorganic materials
such as atmospheric dust, metal particles, metal oxides and lead oxides
originating during fuel combustion (4).
A typical analysis of waste oil is shown in Table 4 (5). In addition to
the metals noted here, there are a large number of other trace metals pre-
sent in used lubricating oils. A typical analysis of used lube oils showinq
the trace metal concentrations is given in Table 5 (6). It is evident from
the entries in the trace metal table that appreciable amounts of lead,
barium, calcium and zinc are found in most used motor oils. The exact
amount reported on a given sample depends to some extent on the analytical
method used as is evident from the differences between values determined
by emission spectroscopy and atomic absorption. Individual samples, and
perhaps many types of waste oil, vary widely in metal content. Load
concentrations may vary by an order of magnitude accordinq to these data.
This has important implications for waste oil processing.
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Additional properties of these samples are shown in Table 6. These values
are important in assessing the degree of contamination of the used lubricant
and in determining methods of processing to convert used oils into useful
products. Used automotive lubrication oils also contain appreciable amounts
of gasoline introduced by means of blow-by as evidenced by the gasoline
dilution test. They also contain relatively large amounts of sediment and
water, and large amounts of ash. Much of the ash is due to additives
originally blended with the oil. However, a large fraction of the ash
originates from the fuel which contains lead and enters the oil by means of
blow-by. These materials generally impair the use of spent lubricant either
for further use as a lubricant or other applications until they are removed.
Table 5 illustrates the large amount of metallic materials present in used
crankcase oils. Although most compounded motor oils for modern internal
combustion engines contain additives of organo-metallic nature, a large
proportion of these compounds are introduced during use. Typically, the
metals introduced by means of wear or combustion and corrosion are aluminum,
copper, iron, lead, silicon and tin as tabulated in Table 5. Sodium,
barium, calcium, zinc and magnesium frequently a;"° added as compounds by
the oil manufacturer to impart specific properties tc the oil. As will
be discussed in greater detail in other sections of this report, these
metallic residues affect the ultimate treatment, use and disposition of
waste crankcase oils.
Table 6 further describes the properties of used crankcase oils and
illustrates the wide variations that may occur in the composition of used
crankcase oils. For example, the gasoline dilution ranges from 0.8 per-
cent to 7.2 percent. These values directly affect the fraction of re-
refined oil that can be obtained from the used oil. Similarly, bottom
sediment and water content (BS&W) affects subsequent reprocessing yields
and methods.
It is interesting to note that the impurities found in used automotive
lubricants are similar the world over. For example, Schilling reports
French waste oils (3) to have a viscosity of 37 to 45 centistokes, bottom
water and sediment of 2 to 8 percent, a water content ranging from 1 to 9
percent, and a gasoline dilution of up to 10 percent. Additional charac-
teristics of used automotive lubricant oils have also been reported (7, 8).
It is apparent that wide variations in composition may occur thus affecting
the value of the waste oil for subsequent applications and affecting the
ability to reprocess these materials.
One additional factor may come into consideration which will affect the
chemical composition of waste oils. As the consumption of unleaded
gasoline increases, the quantity of lead in waste crankcase oil will
decrease. Since the removal of lead is a major problem in waste oil
re-refining, this decrease in lead concentratior, may make the re-refining
process more economically feasible.
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TABLE 4
TYPICAL WASTE AUTOMOTIVE OIL COMPOSITION
(REF. 5)
Variable
Gravity, "API
Viscosity 0 100 °F
Viscosity 0 210 °F
Flash Point
Water, (By Distillation)
BS & W
Sulfur
Ash, Sulfated
Lead
Calcium
Zinc
Phosphorous
Barium
Iron
Vanadium .
Value
24.6
53.3 Centistokes
9.18 Centistok^s
215 °F (C.O.C. Flash)
4.4 Volume %
0.6 Volume %
0.34 Weight %
1.81 Weight %
1.11 Weight %
0.17 Weight %
0.08 Weight %
0.09 Weight %
568 ppm*
356 ppm*
5 npm*
* ppm = parts per million
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Metal
Aluminum
Copper
Iron
Lead
Silicon
Tin
Sodium
Barium
Calcium
Zinc
Magnesium
TABLE 5
USED AUTOMOTIVE LUBRICATING OILS
TRACE METALS CONTENTS
(REF. 6)
Parts Per Million
Average Range
16
28
361
1524
46
30
64
269
1772
1111
155
10 - 30
5 - 120
150 - 800
960 - 2070
10 - 240
30
20 - 110
10 - 900
1160 - 2690
560 - 1610
10 - 420
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TABLE 6
USED AUTOMOTIVE LUBRICATING OILS
SELECTED PROPERTIES
(REF. 6)
Property Average Range
Specific Gravity 0.917 0.896 - 0.965
Viscosity & 100° F SUS 436.000 262 - 753
Carbon Res. Conradson 6.5 3.8 - 12.6
Ash, % 2.49 1.57 - 3.78
Bomb Sulfur, Wt. % 0.44 0.26 - 0.52
Neutralization No. 6.67 4.00 -14.26
Benzene Insolubles,, % 2.0 1.17 - 3.33
BS&W, % 6.3 3.2 - 9.3
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TABLE 7
OIL-BASED METAL WORKING LUBRICANTS
(REF. 9)
CLASS I. OILS AND OIL BASE FLUIDS
A. Mineral Oils - Uncompounded
B. Fatty Oils
1. Uncompounded
2. Fatty Oils containing Chlorinated Compounds
3. Fatty Oils containing Sulfurized Compounds
4. Fatty Oils made by combining B-2 and B-3
C. Mineral Oils - Compounded
1. Mineral Oil/Fatty Oil Blends
2. Sulfurized and/or Chlorinated Mineral Oil
3. Mineral Oils containing Sulfurized Fatty Compounds and/or
Sulfurized Non-Fatty Compounds
4. Mineral Oils containing Chlorinated Fatty Compounds and/or
Chlorinated Non-Fatty Compounds
5. Mineral Oils containing Sulfo-Chlorinated Fats or Sulfo-
Chlorinated Non-Fatty Compounds
6. Mineral Oils made by combining C-3 and C-4
7. Mineral Oils and/or Fatty Oils containing Nitrogen or
Phosphorus Compounds or Solid Lubricants, etc. in addition
to Compounds from the groups employed in C-l through C-6
CLASS II. AQUEOUS EMULSIONS AND DISPERSIONS
A. Oil in Water Emulsions (Soluble Oils)
1. Mineral Oil - Emulsions of Class I-A
2. Mineral Oil/Fatty Oil - Emulsions of Class I-B(l) or I-C(l)
3. Heavy Duty or Extreme Pressure - Emulsions of Class I-C(2)
through I-C(7)
B. Water in Oil Emulsions
1. Mineral Oil - Emulsions of Class I-A
2. Mineral Oil/Fatty Oil - Emulsions of Class I-B(l) or I-C(l)
3. Heavy Duty or Extreme Pressure - Emulsions of Class I-C(2)
through I-C(7)
C. Colloidal Emulsions
1. Regular - Emulsions of Class I-A
2. Fatty - Emulsions of Class I-B(l) and I-C(l)
3. Heavy Duty or Extreme Pressure - Emulsions of Class I-C(2)
through I-C(7)
D. Dispersions
1. Physical Dispersions of Liquid (Class I) Materials
- 19 -
-------
Haste Metalworkinq Lubricants
Waste :(etalworking lubricants originate from the manufacture of various
machinery articles. These include oil-based fluids used without water,
and emulsified aqueous fluids consisting of physical mixtures of oil and
water plus certain additives. Metalworking lubricants may be classi-
fied (9) into two broad classifications. These are shown in Table 7.
Under use, these coolants and lubricants are subject to deterioration and
degradation caused by bacteria, heat, metal particles, oxidation, introduction
of contaminants from water used to make the so-called soluble coolants, and
the introduction of tramp oil and grease. In many cases, the metal working
fluids are recirculated, settled, filtered and subjected to other forms of
purification enabling their reuse in the plant. Nevertheless, large
quantities of these fluids must be disposed of. Both primary metal
industries performing rolling and shaping of ferrous and non-ferrous
metals, and hardgood manufacturers such as automotive and appliance
manufacturers, generate significant quantities of waste oils. These oils
when disposed of, are heavily contaminated with oxidized lubricant materials,
sediment, and finely divided hard-to-filter particles. In general, used
metalworking lubricants must be handled separately from other waste oils
primarily because of their composition.
Waste Plant and Animal Oils and Fats
Waste plant and animal oils and fats originating from the food processing
and edible oil manufacture generally are recovered as soap stocks, animal
feed additives and similar uses. However, a small amount of these oils
and fats fall into the category of oily waste materials and are not
suitable for further processing. Typically, these waste materials consist
of fatty acids and glycerol esters of saturated and unsaturated fatty acids.
Frequently the melting point of these materials is above room temperature
and they may be discarded along with other "solid" wastes. Oily wastes
from margarine manufacture and cooking operations have been reported to
range from 60 to 80 percent oils and fats; the balance consisting of
water, dirt, salt, milk solids, and other contaminants. The heating value
of the oily fraction of this mixture is approximately 17,000 BTU per pound (10)
Other Oils
The physical and chemical characteristics of a variety of other industrial
wastes depend on the specific application and composition of the original
lubricant or oil. Typically, these wastes consist of spent turbine oil,
spent transformer oil, mixtures of aviation jet fuel and lubricants, gear
,box oils from industrial rotary machinery, heat transfer fluids, railroad
lubricants, and coke oven oils.
A small amount of fireproof transformer oils such as commercial mixtures
,of tri-chloroben/iene and polychlorinated biphenyls enter into the waste
category each year (11). Because of the persistent nature and non-biode-
gradability of these materials, they are not normally discharged into the
environment. Instead they are disposed of by controlled incineration
in approved facilities.
- 20 -
-------
Used gear oils usually are mixed with other plant oily wastes for ultimate
disposal. These gear oils have SAE numbers ranging from 80 UD to 250. They
frequently contain sulfur-bearing or lead-bearing additives, antioxidants,
and other additives. After use, these lubricants become contaminated with
dirt, wear metal, water, and products of oxidation. These waste lubricating
materials have properties similar to automotive crankcase lubricants and
may be included with them for re-refining or other means of disposal (12).
The manufacture of coke for metallurgical and other purposes usually is
attended by a formation of waste oils. These may be accumulated from tar
and'grease separators and by lagooning. These oils are combustible and
may be used either as fuels or incinerated.
Oily Hastes from Refining Operations
Oily wastes from petroleum refining operations can originate in various
steps of the refining process. The total quantity of these waste materials
usually recovered in API separators in a refinery may range from 0.1 to 2
percent of the total crude oil throughput (13). However, a value of some-
what less than 1/2 percent appears to be more frequent.
Because of the large number of products produced in the petrochemical
industry, the composition of recoverable slop oils from petroleum processing
operations varies widely (14). Generally these recovered slop oils may be
reused in some of the processing operations, used as fuels, or incinerated (15)
waste Oily Materials from Re-Refining
Waste oily materials from re-refinina of spent automotive and industrial
lubricants contain many impurities. Typically these materials are the
result of acid and clay treatment procedures, distillation and filtration
operations. The waste oily sludges resulting from these operations have
been reported (16) to have an API gravity of 1 to 2 degrees, a lead con-
centration of 1.9 percent, barium ranging from 500 to 1,000 ppm, zinc
around 2,000 ppm, a pH range of 4 to 8, approximately 50 percent water,
and up to 20 percent dirt. The results of a typical analysis are
shown in Table 8 which lists the metal content of the waste oily sludge
remaining after re-refininq of predominantly used crankcase oils. The
high concentration of metal in this waste oil sludge indicates that this
material must be treated further prior to ultimate disposal.
- 21 -
-------
TABLE 8
METAL CONTENT OF WASTE OIL RE-REFINING OIL SLUDGE
(REF. 16)
Element Concentration
Zinc 2100
Cadmium 9
Arsenic 45
Boron 1 8
Phosphorous 1700
Iron 2200
Molybdenum 18
Manganese 63
Aluminum 560
Beryl 1 i um 0.1
Copper 190
Silver 0.8
Nickel 8
Cobalt 0.8
Lead 19,000
Chromi um 28
Vanadium 18
Barium 740
Strontium 2.7
- 22 -
-------
C. Present Methods of Collection and Disposal
1. Methods of Collection
Waste oil collection methods vary greatly, especially those involving
the collection of automotive oils from service stations. In some areas of the
country, waste oil scavengers remove the materials from the service station
and transport it to a re-refining facility or elsewhere for other uses of
the material. In other areas, no such service exists and the final disposition
of the oil cannot be readily identified. In the case of industrial users,
their waste oil is usually sent to a custom re-refiner and reprocessed before
it is returned to the original user.
2. Disposal and Recovery of Waste Oils
This report discusses the viable options available today for the disposal
and/or recovery of waste oil. These include re-refining, use as fuel oil
and use in land applications. Other illegal or unacceptable methods of
disposal are noted.
a. Re-Refining
Petroleum re-refining is a small industry generally using old process
technology and antiquated equipment. With few exceptions re-refiners
can be considered marginal operations. While no definitive statistics are
available, it appears that the number of processors as well as capacity
is decreasing. Based on limited discussions, the economic squeeze is
partly due to size and. inefficient equipment and partly due to the
increase in additives and the changes in the tax structure on recycled
oil.
A sample of 29 re-refiners indicates that the typical processor has a
28,000 gal/day capacity and operates at 50 percent of that capacity.
Capacities vary between 2,200 and 130,000 gal/day. Reported plant sizes
and limitations are summarized in Table 9.
Feed is obtained from a variety of sources. Many re-refiners will not
accept crankcase oil, sand bottoms or bilge water. That is, they will
only handle relatively uncontaminated feeds. This is an easier, cheaper
process sequence with fewer waste disposal problems and results in cleaner
product. Special custom job re-refiners usually cater to a particular
industry. They take the waste, process it, and return it to the owner.
Typically, transformer oils, railroad and some industrial lubricants
can be handled in this manner. About 50 percent of the re-refiners to
custom re-refining since this is the most attractive business.
- 23 -
-------
TABLE 9 - DATA SURVEY OF SELECTED OIL RE-REFINERS
(1)
COMPANY1
No. 1
No. 2
No. 3
No. 4
No. 5
No. 6
No. 7
No. 8
No. 9
No. 10
No. 11
No. 12
No. 13
No. 14
No. 15
No. 16
No. 17
No. 18
No. 19
No. 20
No. 21
No. 22
No. 23
No. 24
No. 25
No. 26
No. 27
No. 28
No. 29
PROCESS2
ABC Other
X
X
X
X
-
X
X
-
X
X
X
-
X
-
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
_
X
X
-
-
X
X
X
-
X
X
X
X
-
X
days
-
X
X
X
-
X
-
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
_
X
X
-
X
X
X
-
—
X
X
X
X
-
X
X
-
X
X
X
-
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
.- .
__
—
'
Batch Basis
—
3/4 Capacity
1/4 Capacity
HiPres. Dist.
—
w/Steam Strip
—
Dry.HiSpdCent
Caustic Clay
—
Steam Strip
—
—
Steam Strip
—
—
Caustic Clay
— '
—
Caustic Clay
HC1 Act. Clay
—
—
—
—
—
TOTAI.
AVFUAGE ... . .
CAPACITY (gpd)
Design Operating
___
2,200
23,000
—
—
20,000
130,000
62,500
4,300
6,500
12,500
5,250
17,000
20,000
—
12,500
—
12,500
7,500
8,300
40,000
33,000
17,000
25,000
6,700
—
3,600
40,000
33,000
5,000
2,100
13,000
9,000
—
20,000
65,000
50,000
3,200
3,250
12,500
5,250
17,000
10,000
8,300
10,500
20,000
12,500
7,500
8,300
30,000
20,000
10,000
5,000
2,000
1,000
2,000
20,000
—
636,850 372,400
. 28,000 14,000. . .
SOURCES OF FEED3'*
D ' E F G H I J
4,000
2,000
12,000
—
—
16,700
XX
X
2,750
3,000
11,200
4,700
XX
XX
4,100
5,000
12,000
XX
XX
6,250
XX
XX
7,000
4,500
2,000
1,000
2,000
X
X
X
X
X
—
—
—
X
XX
X
—
—
—
—
X
X
X
-
X
-
-
X
X
X
X
-
-
-
X
X
_
X
X
X
-
X
X
-
-
-
X
X
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
—
_
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
_
X
X
-
-
X
X
-
-
-
-
X
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
_
X
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
X
X
X
X
-
6,200
X
X
X
-
X
X
X
X
XX
X
X
X
-
X
X
X
X
X
-
-
X
X
X
_
-
-
-
-
-
X
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
X
-
-
-
-
-
-
X
-
X
-
-
-
-
-
X
-
-
X
X
-
X
X
-
-
-
-
-
-
_
-
X
-
-
-
-
X
X
PRODUCTS4'**
K L M N
XX
XX
XX
X
-
XX
-
X
XX
XX
XX
XX
XX
XX
XX
XX
XX
XX
XX
X
XX
XX
X
XX
XX
XX
XX
XX
-
X
-
X
-
-
X
XX
-
-
-
X
-
-
-
-
X
-
X
-
—
_
-
X
-
-
-
-
-
X
_
-
-
-
-
-
X
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
X
-
XX
-
-
-
-
-
-
X
-
-
X
-
X
-
X
X
-
X
X
X
-
-
X
X
X
-
X
_
X
X
X
-
X
X
-
X
1.2,3,4,*,** - See Legend
Pro<
A -
B -
C -
:ess v
Dehydration
Acid - Clay
Distillation
{-Sources of Feed 4-Products
D
E
F
G
H
- Automotive Crankcase
- Commercial Crankcase (Truck
fleets, Railroad, Aircraft, etc.)
- Hydraulic Fluids '
- Transformer Oils
- Industrial Lubes
- T&Pk Bottoms
- Otner Sources
r
M
M
- Motor lubricants
- Heating Oil
- Diesel Oil
- Other Products
x - Minor Waste Oil Source
xx- Major Waste Oil Source
(1) EPA EWQRL Study of 3/73
**
x - Minor Re-Refining Product
xx- Major Re-Refining Product
-------
Most of 'he waste oil presently reprocessed is sold as motor or industrial
lubes. The motor oil is usually sold through discount or food chains
while industrial lubes are sold in bulk. According to preliminary studies
conducted by the Bureau of Mines, this oil is not compounded (no additives
added) and lacks lubricating power (17).
Waste oil refining, with few exceptions, employs acid-clay treating.
A typical flow scheme may be found in Figure 3. Generally, although
not necessarily, water is removed from the oil in a dehydrator. If
dehydration is omitted, acid requirements increase. Clay without acid
is used in some cases, but requires eiqht times as much clay as the
acid-clay treatment. Contacting with sulfuric acid follows to remove
some of the impurities in an acid sludge which presents the first critical
disposal problem. Contacting with an activated clay at 400-550°F follows
to remove the remaining metal and other inpuritles. The spent clay is
separated from the oil in a filtration step. The filter solid (spent
clay) contains 30-50 percent oil, metal contaminants and other impurities
such as carbon. This material is generally disposed of in a sanitary
landfill; a practice which is environmentally unacceptable. Alternate pro-
cess sequences are being sought because of the disposal problems as well as
high cost and low yields. The high additives content of current, hiqh
detergent, motor oils also present a problem as these additives and some of
their degradation products are not removed.
Several re-refiners use distillation with minimal chemical treatment.
Typically straight distillation yields a fuel oil from relatively
clean feed stocks; i.e., those containing water, some degradation
products, carbon but essentially no metals. Only limited straight vacuum
distillation on waste crankcase oils has been carried out without chemical
pre-treatment since fouling is a difficult operating problem. Moreover,
disposal of the bottoms with their high metals content has in the past
also mitigated against use of this approach.
At least one re-refiner substitutes caustic for acid treatment. This process
was studied under an FWPCA grant (7). This treatment is followed by vacuum
distillation. The operating problems are not significantly different nor
are the sludge disposal problems solved. This sludge may be sold as a
commercial detergent base. The product yield claimed is higher than with
add treatment. This is not conclusive, however, as feed stock will
significantly affect yield. In preliminary laboratory experiments the
higher yields (80 to 90 percent) were confirmed but required special
vacuum fractionation to obtain good yields (17). New approaches are
currently under development. Of these new approaches, solvent extraction
and hydrotreating in combination with distillation appear most promising.
The Institute Francis du Petrole (IFP) is operating a 9 million gal
per year plant incorporating a propane solvent extraction followed by
- 25 -
-------
Flash
Dehydrators(2)
Dry Storage
Tanks (15)
Volatile distillates
to boiler fuel
Sump
Water to sump
Direct Fired Heater
Batch
Reactors(3)
Treating
Chemicals
^—Filters
^> (2 in series)
Treating Tanks (8)
(Steam Jacketed) Sludge
Slurry Colloidal
Mixer Carbon and
Diatomaceous
Earth
V. Additive
Blenders(7)
Additives Storage
Tanks
Product Storage
Tanks
Figure 3 - Flow Scheme For Acid-Clay Type Re-Refining Process
-------
a light \cid clay treatment. A conceptual flow plan of the process is
shown in Figure 4. IFP claims that the process:
- Reduces acid and clay consumption 80 percent
- Reduces acid sludge by 80 percent
- Increases product yield 10 percent
- Produces a higher quality oil.
The process is patented but insufficient data have been published to fully
evaluate the economics. In Europe the process appeals attractive as IFP
is reportedly planning to construct, a second plant (18).
EPA is sponsoring work with the National Oi"! Recovery Corporation (NCRCO)
to develop and demonstrate a process to recover waste crankcase and other
oils. The process as conceptualized will not yield any by-products, such
as spent clay, which present disposal problems. Three approaches are being
studied:
- Straight Vacuum Distillation (Figure 5)
- Solvent Extraction Followed by Distillation (Figure 6)
- Distillation and Hydrotreatlng (Figure 7)
Distillation has been demonstrated and can, under proper operating condi-
tions and in a properly designed unit, produce products which meet
specifications for fuel, lube, or diesel oil. Color stability of the product
and gum formation continues to be a problem. A light hydrotreatment will
solve the problem. Limited laboratory runs have produced a product which
has been color stable for 9 months. Some work soon to be published has
been carried out by Esso in this area and confirms that hydrotreating can
be used successfully if metals content is low (19). Further hydrotreating
pilot plant studies to check catalyst life and operating conditions are
planned for later this year.
The distillation bottoms product containing 25 percent solids includes
essentially all the metals and must be further concentrated to improve
oil yields and disposability. Physical methods of concentration, such as
filtration and centrifugation, do not appear to be applicable based on pre-
liminary laboratory evaluation. Solvent extraction does hold promise.
This may be carried out on the feed or bottoms, with each having process
and economic advantages and disadvantages. An essentially oil and solvent
free solid product is obtained. This solid has about a 10 percent lead
content, higher than any available lead ore. Samples of both dry solid
and oily bottoms have been evaluated by a metal refiner for their potential
value. Preliminary results of the evaluation are favorable; the dry solid
form being the most desirable. Additional work is required with larger
quantities for pilot plant scale testing to confirm these findings.
To date only limited glassware studies have been carried out on solvent
extraction. These include some early work at Armour Research Foundation
and current work underway at NORCO. Others have also carried out.
- 27 -
-------
Spent Lube Oil
Feedstock
PREDISTILLATION
PROPANE CLARIFICATION
no
CO
ACID TREATMENT
DISTILLATION
FINISHING
Reclaimed
Lube Oil
Extraction
Section
Cooler
Propane Separation
Section
Propane
Flash
Drum
A
Furnace
Propane Recovery
Section
Propane
Compression
& Cooling
Make-up
Oil to Acid
'Treating
Cooler
Figure 4- IFP Propane Clarification Process
-------
Ui.'^-Watar
Sapar?.tors
Figure 5 - National Oil Recovery Corporation Project Flow Sheet
-------
CO
o
Feed
HoO
Solvent - H20
Separation System
Solvent
D
Centrifuge
Pb Sludge
-ff-
Solvent - H20
Steam
Stripper
Solvent Recovery
Treated Crankcase
Oil To Vac. Dist.
Figure 6 - Solvent Extraction - Waste Oil Treatment
-------
Lube Cut From
Fractionator
i
CO
Make-up
A
To
Slowdown
Purge
Hydrotreating
Reactor
To
Fuel
Steam
Stripper
Steam
Fractionator
Feed
To
Fractionator
Furnace
Lube To
Tankage
Figure 7 - Waste Oil Hydrotreating - Distillation Process
-------
preliminary studies in this area. No one, to the best of our knowledge,
has considered metals recovery. As a result, the economics when comoared
to the "cid-clay treatment process were always unfavorable. In most cases,
solven. to oil ratios were too high to obtain sufficient sludge removal.
The current work is aimed at finding a suitable solvent system which, with
reasonable solvent to oil ratios, will provide essentially total metals
separation. Once a suitable solvent system has been found, pilot scale
testing will proceed to establish operating criteria. This work is scheduled
for completion during 1974.
There are numerous patents issued on waste oil treatment processes (20).
Essentially all the processes are variations of those discussed above and
are not being used commercially at present.
b. Use as a Fuel Oil
Another use of waste oil is its utilization as a fuel oil as the waste oil
contains essentially the same BTU content per pound as does the virgin oil.
The Environmental Protection Agency funded a study (21 ) to determine the
feasibility of utilizing waste crankcase oil as a fuel for solid waste
incinerators. These incinerators currently use heating oil as a fuel when
burning wet refuse. Preliminary results of the study indicate that
incineration equipment is available which can utilize waste crankcass oil
as a fuel without clogging the burner heads and that the waste crankcase
oil has a sufficient heat content for the process. However, before utilizing
this technology on a full scale incinerator, it will be necessary to develop
a method for the removal of the lead present in the waste oil. Preliminary
testing indicated there is severe fouling of the boiler interior with in-
organic ash. Moreover, about 50 percent of the inorganics in the waste oil
were emitted in the flue gas as submicron range particles high in lead
content (22). Additional work must be done to either demetallize the oil
prior to burning or provide adequate effluent scrubbing, systems. This
can be done either by pretreatment of the oil prior to burning or by
installing suitable stack gas scrubbing equipment. If this is not done,
the lead entering the atmosphere may cause an air pollution problem.
Others are also studying the application of waste oil as a fuel. At
the Aberdeen Proving Ground in Maryland, waste oil is being mixed with
virgin fuel in ratios up to ten percent to determine the effect on
combustion equipment. A group in Massachusetts is planning to utilize
.waste oil as a fuel in a steam generating plant on an experimental basis.
This experiment will be monitored to determine if any increase in air
pollutants is noted.
c. Use in Land Application
Waste oils are being used to oil roadways for dust control. Limited
experimental work has been carried out at the EPA's Edison Research
- 32 -
-------
Laboratory (22) to evaluate the environemntal significance of this disposal
method. It appears that about 30 percent of the oil volatilizes and is
biodegr?ded. Only 1 percent of the oil remains on the roadway after morp
than ttn years. The remaining 70 percent of the oil apparently leaves the
roadway either on dust particles or in water runoff. Thus, a major portion
of the metal contaminants in the waste oil may also be expected to enter
the ecosphere.
Another method of disposal is by burying in a sanitary landfill or otherwise
spreading on land. If this method is employed, extreme care must be exercised
to assure that ground water supplies are not contaminated by oil leaching
through the soil.
d. Other Disposal Methods
It has previously been indicated that only about 10 percent of the waste
crankcase oil produced is handled by re-refiners. Similarly, only a small
portion is used as a fuel or as a road oil. The remainder of the waste
crankcase oil is presently unaccounted for. Although we are unable to
cite specific examples, it is known that a portion of this material is
accidently or intentionally dumped either on land or in the water. These
dumping incidents range from the automobile owner who has changed his engine
oil and dumps the waste oil into a sewer or directly into a stream to the
waste oil scavenger who picks up at service stations and then proceeds to
dump his truckload of waste oil illegally.
- 33 -
-------
D Biological Effects of Haste Oil (24, 25. 26)
1. Haste Oil in the Aquatic Environment
The biological effects of the introduction of waste oils into the
freshwater and marine environments have received only a cursory
scientific review. Comprehensive laboratory and field investigations
of waste oils have not been conducted. A reasonable amount of
quantitative data exists on the effects of crude oils on the flora
and fauna of estuaries ond inshore areas. The data reported are
primarily for benthic organisms, rooted and attached aquatics, and
waterfowl. Based on those data, the effects of waste nil on the biology
of freshwater and marine organisms can only be addressed in the most
general terms. In fact, it must be pointed out that, until sufficient
data are generated ?ns;:ifically on waste oil effects, we will not know
if we are even in the right ball park as to recommendations.
Public Law 92-500 Section 104(m)(l)(B) requires studies of long-term
chronic biological effects of waste oils. It should be clearly recognized
that valid quantitative long-term chronic data on effects of waste oil
are not available; and within the time frane of the required preliminary
report, no information on waste oil can be presented. Only limited
quantitative information will be available for the final report. In
light of the above, tho Agency is forced to make recommendations regarding
waste oil based on the availability of information on the effects of
crude oil and limited numbers of refined oils. Furthermore, only
precarious assessments can be made on the suspected metals contained
in waste oils. The effects on aquatic life of heavy metals singly
and in combination currently are being evaluated. Preliminary results
in both acu«;e and chronic tests show that effects of heavy metals on
aquatic organisms are as variable as the chemistry of the aquatic
environment; tnat is, additive synergistic and antagonistic effects are
obscure for various irotals combinations.
Although accidental oil noil Is are spectacular events and attract the
most public attention, they constitute only about 10 percent of the
total amount of oil entering the environment. The other 90 percent
originates from the normal operation of oil-carrying tankers, other ships,
offshore production, rovinory operations, and the disposal of waste-oil
materials.
Two other sources of HI contamination of the sea are the seepage of oil
from natural hydrocarbon seeps and the transport of oil in the atmosphere
from which it precipitates on the surface of the sea. The natural seepage
source is probably small compared to man-made inputs to the ocean; but the
atmospheric transport, which includes hydrocarbons that have evaporated or
been emitted by engines after incomplete combustion, may be greater than
the natural direct input.
- 34 -
-------
Origins of Oil Pollution
Some of fiese sources of oil pollution can be controlled more rigorously
than others, but without application of adequate controls wherever
possible the amount of petroleum hydrocarbons entering the waters will
increase. Existing technology is based upon an expanding use of petroleum.
The production of oil from submarine reservoirs and the use of shipping
to transport oil to meet this need will both increase. It is estimated
that the world production of crude oil in 1969 was nearly 2 billion tons; on
this basis total losses to the sea are somewhat over 0.1 percent of the
world production. Some losses in the exploitation, transportation, and
use of a natural resource are inevitable; but if this loss ratio cannot be
radically improved, the oil pollution of the ocean will increase as
utilization increases.
Principal sources of oil pollution are listed in order of their destruc-
tiveness to ecosystems; these sources are:
1. Sudden and uncontrolled discharge from oil and gas wells.
2. Spillage of oil during loading and unloading operations, leaky
barges, and accidents during transport.
3. Discharge of oil-contaminated ballast and bilge water into
coastal areas and on the high seas.
4. Cleaning and flushing of oil tanks at sea. On the average, a
ship!s content of such wastes is estimated to contain 2 to 3 percent oil
in 1,000 to 2,000 tons of waste.
5. Spillage from various shore installations, refineries, railroads,
city dumps, garages, and various industrial plants.
Losses of oil that can have an adverse effect on water quality and
aquatic life can occur in many of the phases of oil production, refining,
transportation, and use. Pollution may be in the form of floating oils,
emulsified oils, solution of the water soluble fraction of these oils,
or precipitated oils.
The problem of oil pollution has received considerably more attention
in the marine environment than in the freshwater environment. However,
the consequences of a large oil spill in a confined area such as a
river or a lake could be far more serious than those of a spill in open
waters. The threat of such a disaster is increasing because of the
increased use of oil as a substitute for coal. The continuous or
intermittent release of lesser quantities of petroleum products to inland
waters as a result of refining, transportation, and use can be equally as
important and merits special attention in freshwater ecosystems.
Additional research is needed to determine:
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1. Safe levels of sedimented oils.
2. Th': biological implications of the ability of sedimented
oils to concentrate other toxic substances such as chlorinated hydro-
carbons.
3. The effects of oil dispersents on aquatic life.
4. The variability in toxicity of different crude oils.
5. The effects of oil on other toxicants.
Toxic Effects of Oil
Oil is a mixture of many compounds, and there are conflicting views
concerning its toxicity to marine organisms. Crude oils differ markedly
in their chemical composition and in such physical properties as
specific gravity, viscosity, and boiling-point distribution. The
hydrocarbons in oil cover a wide range of molecular weights from 16
(methane) to over 20,000. Structurally, they include aliphatic
compounds with straight and branched chains, olefins, and the aromatic
ring compounds. Crude oils differ mainly in the relative concentra-
tions of the individual members of these series of compounds. The
various refinery processes to which oil is subjected are designed
to isolate specific fractions of the broad spectrum of crude oil
compounds. However, the refined products or fractions themselves
remain complex mixtures of many types of hydrocarbons.
In spite of the many differences among them, crude oils and their
refined products all contain compounds that are toxic to species of
marine organisms. When released to the marine environment, these
compounds react differently. Some are soluble in the water; others
evaporate from the sea surface from extensive oil slicks; and some settle
to the bottom if sand or detritus becomes incorporated in the oil
globule. More complete understanding of toxicity and the ecological
effects of oil spills will require studies of the effects of individual
components, or at least of classes of components, of the complex mixture
that made up the original oil. The development of gas chromatography
has made it possible to isolate and identify various fractions of oil
and to follow their entry into the marine system and their transfer from
organism to organism.
When an oil spill occurs near shore or when an oil slick is brought to
the intertidal zone and beaches, extensive mortality of marine organisms
occurs. When the Tampico Maru ran aground off Baja, California, in
1957, about 60,000 barrels of spilled diesel fuel caused widespread
death among lobsters, abalcnes, sea urchins, starfish, mussels, clams,
and hosts of smaller forms.
The,oil spills from the wreck of the tanker Torrey Canyon and the Santa
Barbara oil well blowout both involved crude oil.In both cases,
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oil reached the beaches in variable quantitites some time after release.
The oil may thus have been diluted and modified by evaporation or sinking
before it cached the beach. In the Santa Barbara spill, many birds died
and entirt. p^ant and animal communities in the intertidal zone were killed
by A layer of encrusting oil often 1 or 2 centimeters thick.
In September 1969 a relatively small oil spill in West Falmouth, Massachusetts,
occurred within a few miles of the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution.
An oil barge, the Florida, was driven onto the Buzzards Bay Shore where it
released between 650 and 700 tons of No. 2 fuel oil into the coastal waters.
Studies of the biological and chemical effects of this spill still are
continuing three years after the event. Massive destruction o* a wide
range of fish, shellfish, worms, crabs, other crustaceans, and invertebrates
occurred in the region immediately after the accident. Bottom-living
fish and lobsters were killed and washed ashore. Dredge samples taken in
10 feet of water soon after the spill showed that 95 percent of the animals
collected were dead and the others moribund. Much of the evidence of this
immediate toxicity disappeared within a few days either because of the
breaking up of the soft parts of the organisms, burial in the sediments,
or dispersal by water currents. Careful chemical and biological analyses
reveal, however, that not only has the damaged area been slow to recover
but.the extent of the damage has been expanding with time. A year and half
after the spill, identifiable fractions of the source oil were found in
organisms that still survived on the perimeter of the area. Hydrocarbons
ingested by marine organisms may pass through the wall of the gut and
become part of the lipid pool. When dissolved within the fatty tissues
of the organisms, even relatively unstable hydrocarbons are preserved.
They are protected from bacterial attack and can be transferred from food
organism to predators and possibly to man.
The catastrophic ecological effects of the oil spills of the Tampico
Maru, and the Florida appear to be more severe than those reported from
other oil spills such as the Torrey Canyon and the Santa Barbara
blowout. The Tampico Maru and the Florida accidents both
released refined oils (in one case diesel oil and in the other, No. 2 fuel
oil) and both occurred closer to shore than either the Torrey Canyon
or the Santa Barbara accidents which released crude oil. The difference in
the character of the oil and the proximity to shore may account for the
more dramatic effects of the first two accidents, but it is clear that
any release of oil into the marine environment carries a threat of
destruction and constitutes a danger to world fisheries.
The oil and sewage pollution effects on aquatic organisms of the Novorossiyak
Bay, (Black Sea, U.S.S.R.) were recently studied. For a number of years, this
bay has been receiving a mixed daily discharge of 15,000 to 30,000 cubic
meters of petroleum refinery wastes and domestic sewage. There is marked
decrease of various valuable species of mollusks (Spisula substrumcata, Tapes
rugates, Pecten ppnticus) and complete destruction of oyster beds (Ostrea
taurica) due to the combined effect of pollution by a carnivorous gastropod
(Rapana). Samples were collected 1 to 25 meters from the outfall. Copepods
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(Acartia clausi) placed in sample? token 25 meters from the outfall were
killed in 24 hours. Larvne of decapods and gastropods in samples taken
10 to 25 meters out perished in 3 to 4 days. Calanus was killed in 5
days in samples taken 1 meter out, but survived the 10-day test in the
samples taken 5, 10, and 25 meters from the outfall. There also was a
noticeable change in the distribution and species composition of benthic
algae.
It has been found that unburned fuel oil escaping through the funnels of
oil-burning ships may comprise 1 to 2 percent of the total oil consumed
and it may be deposited on the sea surface. British investigators
attributed the riisaopo-irance of rel crass (Zostero) to minute quantities
of oil. Oil weakens tho ;Viant and make? it susceptible to attacks of a
parasitic protozoan (l.abyrinthula). Observations made several years ago
at Woods Hole showed tnat young Zostera that began to reappear in local
bays after several years of absence were already infected by this micro-
organism even though they appeared to be healthy.
As mentioned, oil can ^c 1 noested by marine organisms and incorporated
into their lipid pool. Hydrocarbons in the sea are also degraded by
marine microorganisms. Very little is known as yet about the rate of
this degradation., but 'It. is kr.own that no single microbial species will
degrade any whole crucJo oil. Bacteria are highly specific, and several
species will probably be necessary to decompose the numerous types of
hydrocarbons in r. crude oil. In the process nf decomposition, intermediate
products will be formed and different species of bacteria and other micro-
organisms mny be required to attack theso decomposition products.
The oxygen requirement of microbial oil decomposition is severe. The
complete oxidation of or.o gallon of crude oil requires all the dissolved
oxygen in 320,000 gallons of air-saturated sea water. It is clear that
oxidation might be slow in ?.r\ area where previous pollution has depleted
the oxygen content. Fvc~n when decomposition of oil proceeds rapidly,
the depletion of the oxygen content of the water by the microorganisms
degrading the oil may have secondary deleterious ecological effects.
Unfortunately, the most recdily attacked fraction of crude oil is the
least toxic, i.e., the normal paraffins. The more toxic aromatic
hydrocarbons, especially the carcinogenic polynuclear aromatics, are
not rapidly degraded.
That our coastal water? ore nr.t devoid of marine life, after decades
of contamination with oil, indicates that the sea is capable of recovery
from this pollution. However, increasing stress is being placed on the
estuarine and coastal environments due to more frequent oil pollution
incidents near shore. Once the recovery capacity of an environment
is exceeded, deterioration may be rapid and catastrophic. It is not known
how much oil pollution the ocean can accept and recover from, or whether
the present rate of addition approaches the limit of the natural system.
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There is a dearth of accurate observations on the toxicity of oil to
marine organisms. It is difficult to evaluate the toxicity of this
comolex mixture of compounds which is not miscible with sea water. A
variety of techniques have been used which are not intercomparable. In
some experiments, oil is floated on the water in the test container,
and the concentration given is derived from the total quantity of oil
and the total quantity of water. This is clearly not the concentration
to which the organism has been exposed. In other experiments, extracts
of oil with hot water or with various solvents have been added to the
test jar without identification of the oil fraction being tested. In
still oth^r cases, care has been taken to produce a fine emulsion of oil
in sea wa*.er more representative of the actual concentration to which
the test organism is exposed. Considering the differences in the meaning
of "concentration" in these tests and the variation in sensitivity of
the tost, r.rganisms, it is not surprising that the range nf toxic effects
that c^n be found in the literature vary by several orders of magnitude.
Invostigabion of the toxic biological effects of oil have been reviewed.
Toxicity studies by comparable techniques using a variety of marine
organisms have been completed. In testing eleven species of phytoplankton,
it was found that coll division was delayed or inhibited by concentrations
of crude nil (unspecified type) ranging from 0.01 to 1000 ppm. Some
copspods were sensitive to a 1 ppm suspension of fresh or weathered
crude oil and of diesel oil. The larvae of Balanus balanoides (barnacle)
and ndult Calanus copepods maintained in a suspension of crude oil
inanst, without apparent harm, droplets of oil that later appear in the
f.'-cr.s. One hundred percent mortality of developing flounder spawn was
toiin/l at concentrations of three types of oil ranging from 1 to 100 ppm
and an incrsased abnormality of development at longer periods of time
in concentrations as low as 0.01 ppm. In contrast, other experimenters
havo found that concentrations of several percent are necessary to kill
adult fish in a period of a few days.
Ths avidence is clearer that a combination of oil and detergents is more
to.xic than oil alone. This was first definitely established in studies
of the Torrey Canyon spill. The four detergents tested were all more
toxic than Kuwait crude oil, and all showed signs of toxicity between 2
and 10 ppm. The solvents used with these detergents were also highly
toxic but tended to lose their toxicity over time through evaporation.
A Mr.nssay test was carried out and revealed that the least toxic
detergent mixed with oil could be a hundred times as concentrated (1800
ppm) as the most toxic (14 ppm) and cause the same toxic effect.
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The toxirity of crude oil has been difficult to interpret since crude oil
may contain many different organic compounds and inorganic elements. The
composition of such oils may vary from region to region and petroleum
products produced can be drastically different in character in line with
their different intended uses. The major components of crude oil can be
categorized as aliphatic normal hydrocarbons, cyclic paraffin hydrocarbons,
aromatic hydrocarbons, naphtheno-aromatic hydrocarbons, resins, asphaltenes,
heteroatomic compounds, and metallic compounds. The aromatic hydrocarbons
in crude oil appear to be the major group of acutely toxic compounds.
Free oil or emulsions may adhere to the gills of fish interfering with
respiration and causing asphyxia. Within limits, fish are able to combat
this by defensive mucous secretions. Free oil and emulsions may likewise
coat aquatic plants and destroy them.
Fish and benthic organisms may be affected by soluble substances extracted
from the oils or by coating from emulsified oils. Water soluble compounds
from crude or manufactured oils may also contain tainting substances which
affect the taste of fish and waterfowl.
Toxicity tests for oily substances provide a broad range of results which
do not permit rigorous safety evaluations. The variabilities are due to
differences in petroleum products tested, non-uniform testing proceduures,
and species differences. Most of the research on the effects of oils on
aquatic life has used pure compounds which exist only in low percentages
in many petroleum products or crude oils.
Because of the basic difficulties in evaluating the toxicity, especially
of the emulsified oils, and because there is some evidence that oils may
persist and have subtle chronic effects, the maximum allowable concentra-
tion of emulsified oils should be determined on an individual basis and
kept below 0.05 of the 96-hour TI_5Q for sensitive species. TL^g is defined
as the tolerance limit for 50 percent survival under the specified
period of exposure (i.e. 96 hours).
Investigation of the sediments in the Ottawa River in Ohio downstream from
a refinery consisted of up to 17.8 percent oil. Sedimented oil has been
reported from the Detroit River. It has been reported that the bottom
deposits contain 2.5 percent oils in the Illinois River. While the
reports may be scattered, the evidence is clear that the existence of
sedimented oils in association with oil pollution is widespread.
There is an increasing body of evidence indicating that aliphatic hydro-
carbons are synthesized by aquatic organisms and find their way into
sediments in areas which have little or no history of oil pollution.
Hydrocarbons have been reported in the recent sediments of lakes in
Minnesota and the Gulf of Mexico.
Areas which contain oily sediments usually have an impoverished benthic
fauna; it is not clear to what extent oil contributes to this because of
the presence of other pollutants. However, there are recurring reports
of a probable relationship between sedimented oils and altered benthic
communities. Sedimented oils may act as concentrators for chlorinated
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hydrocarbon pesticides, but the biological implications indicate that
additional study is required.
Direct contact by fish (bass and bream) with crude oil resulted in death
caused by a film over the gill filaments. Crude oil also contains a water-
soluble fraction that is very toxic to fish. Crude oil contains substances
soluble in sea water that produce an anaesthetic effect on the ciliated
epithelium of the gills of oysters. Free oil and emulsions may act on the
epithelial surfaces of fish gills and interfere with respiration. They
may coat and destroy algae and other plankton, thereby removing a source
of fish food, and when ingested by fish they may taint their flesh.
Settleable oily substances may coat the bottom, destroy benthic organisms,
and interfere with spawning areas. Oil may be absorbed quickly by
suspended matter, such as clay, and then due to wind action or strong
currents may be transported over wide areas and deposited on the bottom
far from the source. Even when deposited on the bottom, oil continuously
yields water-soluble substances that are toxic to aquatic life.
Films of oil on the surface may interfere with reaeration and photosynthesis
and prevent the respiration of aquatic insects such as water boatmen,
backswimmers, the larvae and adults of many species of aquatic beetles,
and some species of aquatic Diptera (flies). These insects surface and
carry oxygen bubbles beneath trie surface by means of special setae which
can be adversely affected by oil. Oil films on the lower Detroit River
are a constant threat to waterfowl. Oil is detrimental to waterfowl by
destroying the natural buoyancy and insulation of their feathers.
A number of observations made by various authors in this country and
abroad record the concentrations of oil in freshwater which are dele-
terious to different species. For instance, penetration of motor oil
into a fresh water reservoir used for holding crayfish in Germany caused
the death of about 20,000 animals. It was established experimentally
that crayfish weighing from 35 to 38 g die in concentrations of 5 to 50
mg/1 within 18 to 60 hours. Tests with two species of freshwater fish,
ruff (small European perch) and whitefish (Family Coregonidae), showed that
concentrations of 4 to 16 mg/1 are lethal to these species in 18 to 60
hours.
The toxicity of crude oil from various oil fields in Russia varies
depending on its chemical composition. The oil used by Veselov (1948)
in the studies of the pollution of Belaya River (a tributary in the Kama
in European Russia) belongs to a group of methano-aromatic oils with a
high content of asphalt, tar compounds, and sulfur. It contains little
paraffin and considerable amounts of benzene-ligroin. Small crucian
carp (Carassius) 7-9 cm long were used as the bioassay test animal. This
is considered to be a hardy fish that easily withstands adverse conditions.
The water soluble fraction of oil was extracted by shaking 15 ml of oil
in 1 liter of water for 15 minutes. The oil film was removed by filtration.
Dissolved oxygen was controlled. A total of 154 tests were performed using
242 fishes. The average survival time was 17 days at the concentration of
0.4 ml/1 of oil but only 3 days at the concentration of 4 ml/1. Further
increase in concentration had no appreciable effect on fish mortality.
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The toxicity of Russian oil is due to naphthenic acids, small quantities
of phenol, and volatile acids.
Reports following 96-hour 1150 values of naphthenic acid: for blueqill sun-
fish (Lepomis macrochirus) —5.6 mg/1; pulironate snail (Physa heterostropha)-
6.1 to 7.5 rng/1 (in soft water); and diatom (species not identified) —4^.8
to 43.4 mq/1 in soft water and 23,2 to 79.8 mq/1 in hard wnter. Naohthenic
acid (cyclohexane carboxylic acid) is extracted from petroleum and is used
in the manufacture of insecticides, paper, and rubber.
Crude oil in concentrations as low as 0.3 mq/1 is extremely toxic to fresh-
water fish. An intensive study of the toxicity of oil refinery effluents
to fathead minnows was conducted in Oklahoma. By standard bioassay pro-
cedures, mortality varied between 3.1 percent to 20.5 percent after 48
hours of exposure to untreated effluents. They concluded that toxicity
rather th?.n oxyqcn demand is the most important effect of oil refinery
affluents on receiving streams.
Oil may injure aquatic life by direct contact with the organism, by poisoninq
With various water soluble substances that may be leached from oil, or by
emulsion? of oil which m3y smear the gills or be swallowed with water and food.
A heavy oil film on th3 water surface may interfere with the exchange of
gases and respiration.
A number of observations have been recorded of the concentrations of oil
in sea water which are deleterious to various species. Experimental data,
however, are scarce and consequently the toxicology of oil to marine organ-
isms is nut well understood.
The marine clam (My_
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primarily of determining the effect of oil adsorbed on carbonized sand,
on the number of hours the oysters remain open and feeding, and on the
rate of w?'.er transport across the gills. A paste-like aggregate of
oil in carbonized sand (50 ml crude oil to 127 g sand) was prepared,
wiped clean of excess oil, and placed in the mixing chamber. Sea water
was delivered through this chamber to the recording apparatus at a rate
slightly in excess of the rate of water transport by oyster gills. There
was a noticeable decrease in the number of hours the test oysters remained
open and in the daily water transport rate through the gills. The time
open was reduced by 95 to 100 percent during the first 4 days of testing
to only 19.8 percent or, the 14th day. The total amount of water transported
per day, presumably usad for feeding and respiration, was reduced from
207 to 310 litevs during the first 6 days to only 2.9 to 1 liter per day
during the period between the eighth and fourteenth day of continuous testing.
These tests indicate that oil incorporated into the sediments near oyster
beds continues tc leach water-soluble substances which depress the normal
functions of the mo"! I usk.
Critical observations are lacking or, the effecc of oil on pelagic larvae
of marine invertebrates, but there is good, reason to assume that crude
oil and petroleum products are hiuhly toxic to free-swimming larvae
of oysters. They are killed by contact with surface oil film. Laboratory
experience shows that oyster larvae from 5 to 6 days old were killed when
minor quantities of fuel oil we^e spilled by ships in the harbor at '-joods Hole
and the contaminated water penetrated into the laboratory sea water supply.
The tests described above leave no doubt that water-soluble substances
are leached from oil spilled into water and adversely effect marine life.
It is reasonable to assume that the water soluble materials of oil may
contain various hydrocarbons, phenols, sulfides, and other substances toxic
to oyster larvae.
Effects of Treated Oils
Studies of the primary productivity and community respiration in a series
of oil refinery effluent oxidation ponds have shown, that there are
detrimental effects on the biota. These ponds received wastewaters which
had been in contact with the crude oil and various products produced within
the refinery. In a series of oxidation ponds, primary productivity and
community respiration measurements clearly indicated that primary producers
were limited in the first ponds, probably by toxins in the water. Oxidation
ponds further along in the series typically supported algal blooms. Apparently
biochemical degradation and physical weathering of the toxic organic compounds
reduced their concentration below the lethal threshold to the algae. Primary
productivity was not greater than community respiration in the first ponds
in the series. It was also shown that species diversity of phytoplankton
was lowest in the first four ponds of the series of ten. A "slug" of
unknown toxic substance drastically reduced the species diversity in all
ponds. Zooplankton volumes increased in the latter half of the pond series,
presumably as a result of decreasing toxicity. Benthic fauna species
diversity in streams receiving oil refinery effluents was low near the out-
fall and progressively increased downstream as biological assimilation
reduced the concentration of toxins.
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Long-term, continuous-flow bioassays of biologically treated oil refinery
effluents indicated that complex refineries produce effluents which contain
cumulative toxins of substances that cause accumulative deleterious effects.
Subsequent long-term continuous-flow bioassays of biologically treated oil
refinery effluents indicated that passage of the effluent through activated
carbon columns does not remove the fish toxicants. Of the fathead minnows
P.imphales promelas tested, half were killed in 14 days, and only 10 percent
survived 30 days. Trace organic compounds identified in extracts from the
effluent were a homologous series of aliphatic hydrocarbons (C11H22 through
C18H38) and isomers of cresol and xylenol. Since the soluble fractions
derived from oil refineries are quantitatively, and to some extent quali-
tatively, different from those derived from oil spills, care must be taken
to differentiate between these two sources.
Presence of hydrocarbons similar to benzopyrene in oil-polluted coastal
waters and sediments of France in the Mediterranean have been reported.
The effluents from the industrial establishments on the shores at
Villefranche Bay comprise tar substances, which contain bensopyrenes,
benzo-8, 9-fluoranthene, dibenzanthracenes, chrysene, 10-methyl anthracene,
and nitrogenous derivatives such as dimethylbenzacridine. These substances
are carried out into the bay water and settle on the bottom. The pollution
is augmented by incompletely burned oils discharged by turbine ships. The
content of benzopyrene in bottom sediments ranges from 500 micrograms in
100 g samples collected at the depth of 8 to 13 cm to 1.6 micrograms at
200 cm. Similar contamination is of importance in the Gulf of Fos, Etang
de Berne, and in the delta of the Rhone River.
Carcinogenic Effects
Carcinogenic hydrocarbons were found to be stored in plankton of the Bay
of Villefranche in concentrations varying from 2.5 to 40 micrograms per
100 g. Fixation of benzopyrenes were found also in the bodies of holothurians
in a bay near Antibes. The reported concentration in the visceral mass of a
holothurian was slightly higher than that in the bottom sediment.
Observations on storage of carcinogenic compounds found in oil-polluted water
are biologically significant. The important question of biological magni-
fication as these compounds are ingested by plankton feeders remains
unanswered and needs to be investigated.
Public Water Supply Effects
It is very important that water for a public water supply be free of oil and
grease. The difficulty of obtaining representative samples of these materials
from water makes it virtually impossible to express criteria in numerical
units. Since even very small quantities of oil and grease may cause trouble-
some taste and odor problems, none of this material should be present in
public water supplies. An additional problem attributable to these agents
is the unsightly scumlines on water treatment basin walls, swimming pools,
and other containers.
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Waterfow: and Wildlife Effects
Waterbirds, muskrats, otters, and many other wildlife species require water
that is free of surface oil. Egg laying has been inhibited when mallards
ingested small quantities of oil. When oil from the plumage was coated on
mallard eggs, it reduced hatching from 80 to 21 percent, the full significance
of this type of damage to wildlife populations is unknown.
Dramatic losses of waterbirds (ducks, geese, coot, swans, gannets, murres,
and others) result from contamination of the plumage by oil.from the surface
of the water. Once the birds plumage is soaked with oil, the bird loses its
natural insulation to the cold and dies. Many hundreds of thousands of birds
have died from oil pollution in some years in North American waters.
Oil that settles to the bottom of aquatic habitats can blanket large areas
and destroy the plants and animals of value to waterfowl. Reportedly, some
oil sludges on the bottoms of aquatic habitats tend to concentrate pesticides,
thus creating a double hazard to waterfowl that would pick up thse con-
taminants in their normal feedinq process.
The death of marine birds from oiling is one of the earliest and most obvious
effects of oil slicks on the sea surface. Thousands of seabirds of all
varieties are often involved in a large spill. Even when the birds are
cleaned, they frequently die because the toxic oil is ingested in preening
their feathers. Freguently, dead oiled birds are found along the coast
when no known major oil spill has occurred; and the cause of death remains
unknown.
The mortality of seabirds as a result of oil pollution is direct and
immediate, and in a major oil spill, is measured in the thousands. The diving
birds which spend most of their life at sea are most prone to death
from oil pollution, but any bird that feeds from the sea or settles on it
is vulnerable. In oil-matted plumage, air is replaced by water causing
loss of both insulation and buoyance. Oil ingested during preening
can have toxic effects.
Oil has been fed directly to birds by stomach tube and the patholoaical
and physiological effects later analyzed through autopsies. The lethal
dose for three types of oil ranged from 1 ml to 4 ml per kilogram (ml/kg)
when the birds were kept outdoors under environmental stress. The experimenters
concluded that a duck could typically acquire a coating of 7 grams of oil and
would be expected to preen approximately 50 percent of the polluting oil from
its feathers within the first few days. Enough of this could easily be
ingested to meet the lethal dosage of 1 to 4 ml/kg. Thus, birds that do
not die promptly from exposure to cold or by drowning as a result of oil
pollution may succumb later from the effects of ingestion.
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Pollution in Media Other Than Water
Since Public Law 92-500 involves water pollution legislation and
Section 104(m)(l)(B) requires studies of long-term chronic biological effects
of wasce oils, the effects on freshwater and marine biota are discussed
in Section D above. The foregoing is not to be construed as saying there
are no other biological effects of disposal of waste oils. This is an
extremely important point when the engineering scientists are asked to
devise methods to further reduce the input of waste oil into the waters of
the United States. The proposed methods and new technology development must
still address the issue of final placement of the toxic substances in our
environment; i.e., land disposal, recycling, and fuel consumption. Special-
ists in air pollution, land waste disposal, and terrestrial ecology are in
the best position to take the lead in answering these environmental questions.
They should, however, coordinate their recommended activities with aquatic
biologists and aquatic ecologists.
Recommendation
In view of available data, it is concluded that to provide suitable conditions
for aquatic life, oil and petrochemicals should not be added in such quantities
to the receiving waters that they will: (1) produce a visible color film on
the surface, (2) impart an oily odor to water or an oily taste to fish and
edible invertebrates, (3) coat the banks and bottom of the watercourse, or
(4) taint any of the associated biota.
Oil is an especially dangerous substance to waterfowl. Oil and petrochemicals
must be excluded from both the surface and bottoms of any area used by
waterfowl.
The only effective measure for control of oil pollution (crude, refined,
waste oil) in the aquatic environment is prevention of all spills and
release. The time-lag involved in corrective methods means that some
damage will inevitably occur before the corrective measures take effect.
Furthermore, the soluble parts of the oil already in the water will not
be removed by any of the presently known methods of post-spill cleanup.
In the final report, we intend to address the following questions:
1. In regard to land application:
a. Do the altered (used) hydrocarbons act similarly to crude
or refined hydrocarbons; i.e., are they biodegradable?
b. What levels of heavy metals can be tolerated on or in the
land?
c. What will be the effect on ground water?
d. What will be the effect on surface runoff water quality?
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2. In regard to consumption as an additional fuel source:
a. Can the economics and engineering requirements be resolved
to meet f-e secondary air quality standards for heavy metals?
b. What is the effect of these yet undetermined heavy metals
(found in waste oil) emitted from smoke stacks on terrestrial flora
and fauna?
c. What is the effect of combustion of waste oils on the user
equipment?
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E Econo'.ic and Legal Aspects of Waste Oil Policy
Section 104(m)(l)(c) of the Federal Water Pollution Control Act
Amendments of 1972 require the Administrator of EPA to study "...the
potential market for such oils, including the economic and legal factors
relating to the sale of products made from such oils, the level of
subsidy, if any, needed to encourage the purchase by public and private
nonprofit agencies of products from such oil, and the practicability of
Federal procurement, on a priority basis, of products made from such oil."
As described in the next section of this report, "Additional Information
Being Developed," EPA is now initiating research studies to obtain the
necessary information for inclusion in its Final Report to Congress on
Waste Oil due in April 1974.
Since most of the research described in the next section is just starting,
this preliminary report does not contain a detailed description of the
current waste oil problem; nor does it discuss the advantages and dis-
advantages of alternative policies for addressing the problem. Such a
discussion would be premature at this time. The discussion which follows
in this section merely describes the general economic and legal nature
of the waste oil problem, and the principles which EPA has followed
in designing the studies now underway.
As stated in previous sections, a large amount of waste oil is unaccounted
for each year and probably is disposed of in the environment. It is
believed that waste oil dumping into the environment is practiced by
households, industrial firms, gas stations and garages, waste oil
collectors, and even by more waste oil recovery firms. Since this dumping
is usually illegal, it is impossible to obtain reliable information on the
quantities and locations of dumping.
If waste oil had a high economic value for use not involving environmental
damage, there would be little need for a governmental role in this field.
The oil would be transported through a series of profitable transactions
to its new use. Unfortunately, the waste oil recovery business has
declined over the past decade. One task of the EPA studies is to
identify the specific causes for that decline and to make projections of
the future prospects for the industry. In order to prepare for all
contingencies, EPA is studying a broad range of alternatives for resource
recovery and less damaging environmental disposal.
As touched upon before in this report, the waste oil problem is the sum
of many diverse and complex sub-problems; many different types of waste
oil, many alternative modes of disposal into the environment, many
alternative modes of waste oil recovery, alternative incidences of legal
liability for disposal or recovery, and alternative incidences of cost burden
for disposal or recovery. A subject of this complexity requires an
organizing framework to guide the many individual studies underway. To
supply a cohesive framework for further research, EPA is using the
following ten working principles:
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1. The costs of reducing environmental damage from waste oil should
be borne directly by the parties creating the problem, that is, by those
who produce, consume, and dispose of waste oil. Such cost internal ization
may cause minor readjustments in relative prices. Such an outcome is
consistent with the policies expressed by the President in his Environmental
Messages.
2. Some reduction in environmental damage from waste oil may be
achieved by just changing the mix of environmental disposal mcdes used.
Some disposal modes are less damaging than others. Certain disposal
modes may have to be prohibited.
3. There is not one form of waste oil recovery which is environmentally
superior in every circumstance. Waste oil recovery operations have complex
environmental impacts involving interpollutant and intermedia tradeoffs.
A resource recovery alternative which would be superior to another under
one set of environmental conditions might well be inferior under a different
set of conditions. This makes it highly improbable that the Environmental
Protection Agency will ever find one recovery alternative to be preferred
and stimulated under all conditions.
4. When users of waste oil wish to take efforts on their own part
to reduce the environmental damage associated with waste oil, facilities
should be provided to make these efforts inexpensive and convenient for
them.
5. There are probably wide differences in the amount of environmental
damage caused by waste oil in different parts of the country. Different
communities probably also have different conceptions of the size of
benefits to them from reducing waste oil disposal into the environment.
To the extent possible, these differences should be reflected in policies
chosen to deal with the waste oil problem.
6. All waste oil recovery operations now operate under non-market
constraints which impede the expansion of their production relative to
the production of oil products from virgin oils. Among these constraints
are the depletion allowances enjoyed by producers of virgin oil products,
various labeling practices and regulations, treatment of waste products
in rate-setting by the Interstate Commerce Commission, and features of
the Internal Revenue Code which discourage the use of recycled oil by
off-road users. Since most of these constraints emanate from Federal law
or regulation, the Environmental Protection Agency is intensively studying
their effects.
7. In comparing resource recovery alternatives, it is important to
consider the performance characteristics of the recovery product. The
length of product life, for example, is important in determining both the
economic attractiveness and environmental impact of the recovery product.
Product life and other performance characteristics are also being
evaluated in relation to Federal procurement policy.
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8. Waste oil policy should be examined as a component of total
environmental policy. Waste oil policy should be compatible with other
policies concerning disposal of hazardous materials and regulations
covering prevention of oil spills. The legal aspects of analogous waste
oil approaches are now under study. The impact of sulfur oxide emission
controls on the demand for recovered waste oil as a blended fuel oil in
electric power plants is also being studied.
9. In considering waste oil policy options, it should be recognized
that State and local governments may have different and original approaches,
They may also have special legal or administrative capabilities to offer
in resolution of the problem.
10. The experience of other industrialized nations in dealing with
waste oil problems offers value insights. Comparison of the legal
approaches taken in different countries is part of planned EPA research.
It should be emphasized that the above list of working principles does
not represent any firm policy conclusions, but mtr-ely guidance for
research in progress. Discussion of specific policy options is deferred
until the final report.
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F Additional Information Being Developed
Due to the time limitations imposed for the submission of this pre-
liminary report, it was not possible to obtain and analyze sufficient data
on many aspects of the waste oil problem. A concerted effort is now under-
way to provide the necessary information in sufficient time to allow its
inclusion in the final report which will be submitted about one year from
now. These efforts include the ,ollowing:
1. Technology Development and Effects Research
A project currently underway for the development of a process for the
production of a salable re-refined material will be completed. If successful,
this process will provide the technology required for the re-refining of
waste oils from all sources economically. We realize that the project now
underway is only one possible re-refining technique and we, therefore, plan
to study other processes which might be applicable. In addition, the grant
which was made to the State of Maryland will develop a collection and
disposal plan for that State. This data will be extrapolated to allow its
use in other parts of the Nation. An additional stucly will be undertaken to
obtain data on the quantity and quality of waste oil feed stocks, the
processes now employed for re-refining and the economics of these processes,
the present disposal practices and environmental impact of these practices,
and a material balance of waste oils produced and disposed of. The eco-
logical effects of waste oils on marine and fresh water species will be
studied.
2. Economic Study on Factors Affecting Waste Oil Re-Refining
The basic objective of this study is to prepare a Federally based
strategy that will promote and encourage recovery or disposal of waste
lubricating oil in an environmentally sound manner. The research emphasis
will be on waste oil re-refining. In this study, the following aspects
will be considered:
(a) identification of current and potential processes utilizing
waste oils
(b) environmental analysis of the process
(c) analysis of economic and marketing constraints and institutional
barriers to increased marketing of products containing waste oil
(d) analysis of various strategies to overcome these constraints
and barriers
Among the strategies to be considered are Fsdsral procurement, fiscal
and regulatory measures.
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3. Study of the Factors Affecting the Use of Haste Oil as a Blended
Fuel Oil in Streampower Plants
This study will enlist, information on the factors affecting the
industrial demand for blendsd waste oil. Particular emphasis will be
given to steam power plants. Evaluation will be made of the repair and
downtime costs associated with ',iven types of protreated waste oil, given
technologies employed in the Dover plant, and given grades and prooortions
of other fuel oil used for blending. Information will be obtained on the
total impact of environmental restrictions (particularly restrictions on
sulfur oxide emissions) on the relative competitiveness of ordinary fuel
oils and blended waste oils. Information will also be obtained on the
technological and economic factors which determine the profitability of
given types of waste oil pretreatment operations.
4. Study of Alternative Legal and Economic Institutions used to Deal
with the Waste Oil Problem
There is a wealth of accumulated experience in other industrialized
countries on regulatory and economic incentive approaches to the waste
oil problem. The successes and failures of these systems can provide
valuable input to policy discussion in this country. This study will
compare the systems in operation in other countries with the systems
in use and under consideraion in the U. S. This will involve a mixture
of legal and economic analysis. The study will also explore the question
of what legal approaches to waste oil would be most compatible with
current and proposed regulation of other hazardous substances.
5. Miscellaneous Studies
It is recognized that a sizeable percentage of the waste oils
produced originate with the home user and the farm user. A study will,
therefore, be undertaken to determine how this waste oil should be
handled and what effect its disposal has on the environment. In addition,
it is recognized that the wastes produced in ballast and bilge tanks
aboard ships are unique in nature. A study will be made on the best
method to collect and separate these wastes without causing enviromental
damage.
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REFERENCES
1. Bernard, Harold, "Embroiled in Oil," Environmental Protection Agency,
Washington, D. C.
2. "1971 Automobile Facts and Figures," Automobile Manufacturers
Association
3. Schilling, A., "Motor Oils and Engine Lubrication," 2nd Ed., England,
Scientific Publications Ltd., 1968
4. "Oil Purification, Filtration and Reclamation," Lubrication, 1947
5. "Task Force on Waste Oil Disposal, American Petroleum Institute,
Washington, D. C.
6. Wisman, M. L., "Waste Oil Recycling Project B.4 Report," Bartlesville
Energy Research Center, Bureau of Mines, USDT, 3/13/73
7. VWannva University, Water Pollution Control Demonstration Grant,
#WPD-174-01-67
8. Putscher, R. E., "Study of Re-Refining Waste Disposal," Armour Research
Foundation Report #ARF 3808-5, January 1960
9. Ackerman, A. W., "The Properties and Classification of Metalworking
Fluids," Lubrication Engineers, July 1969
10. Private Communication, Mrs. Filberts Margerine Company
11. Conklin, K. E., "Design Philosophy, Turbine Generator Lubricating Oil
Systems," Lubrication Engineering, January 1970
12. Humble Oil Company, Product Bulletin, "Lubetest DG-2C"
13. Beychok, M. R. "Aqueous Wastes from Petroleum and Petrochemical Plants,
Wiley, 1967
14. Petrochemical Plant Effluent Treatment Practices. FWPCA Report 12020,
2/70
15. Skallerup, R. M., "Industrial Oily Waste Control," API, ASLE
16. Private Communication, Region HI, Environmental Protection Agency
17. Wisman, M., Personal Communication, U. S. Bureau of Mines, Bartelsville
Energy Center
18. Bonnifay, P., Dutriay, R. and Andrews, J. W., "A New Process for
Reclaiming Spent Lubricating Oils," presented at the National Fuels
and Lubricants Meeting, September 1972
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19. Bethea, S. R., et al., "A Modern Technique for Automotive Waste
011 Re-Refining - Distillation plus Hydrotreating," Submitted for
Publication in HPI
20. "Waste Oil Recovery Practices, State-of-the-Art"(1972), Prepared
for the State of Maryland and the Environmental Protection Agency
21. The Environmental Protection Agency Contract with GCA Corporation,
Bedford, Massachusetts
22. Chappell, G. A. (Esso Research & Engineering Company), Personal
Communication based on draft report of January 1973, prepared for
Commonwealth of Massachusetts.
23. Freestone, F. J., "Runoff of Oils from Rural Roads Treated to
Suppress Dust," The Environmental Protection Agency Report
EPA-R2-72-054, October 1972
24. Water Quality Criteria - Report of the Nations1 Technical Advisory
Committee to the Secretary of Interior FWPCA, GPO. Washington, 0. C.
1968
25. "Research Needs in Water Quality Criteria," Reoort of the Committee
on Water Quality Criteria, Environmental Studies Board - National
Academy of Sciences, National Academy of Engineering, Washington, D.C.
1973
26. Water Quality Criteria 1972 prepared by Water Quality Criteria
National Academy of Sciences - Natural Academy of Engineering,
GPO, Washington, D. C., 1973 (in press)
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