System and barrier for containing an oil spill

Claim 2

An oil containment barrier module comprising a composite structure having a buoyant, substantially water impervious, upper section and a water absorbent lower section, said lower section when immersed in water representing concurrently the principle ballast for said upper section and the subsurface barrier for the module.

Claim 3

An oil containment barrier module as defined in claim 1 wherein said upper and lower sections are formed from at least one material selected from the class consisting of flexible foam, porous rubber, and sponge, having low density.

Claim 4

An oil containment barrier module as defined in claim 2 wherein said flexible foam is composed of polyurethane.

Claim 5

An oil containment barrier module as defined in claim 3 wherein said upper section is a polyether based polyurethane foam and wherein said lower section is a reticulated polyester based polyurethane foam.

Claim 6

An oil containment barrier module as defined in claim 2 further comprising means for bonding said upper section to said lower section.

Claim 7

An oil containment barrier module as defined in claim 5 wherein said bonding means is a sealing adhesive selected from the class consisting of epoxy resin and elastomers.

Claim 8

An oil containment barrier module as defined in claim 5 wherein said upper section is encased within a substantially water impervious jacket.

Claim 9

An oil containment barrier module as defined in claim 7 wherein said jacket consists of an elastomer surface outer coating.

Claim 10

An oil containment barrier module as defined in claim 7 wherein said lower section comprises two segments having adjacent surfaces, a relatively thin belt-like member located between said adjacent surfaces and means for bonding said member to said adjacent surfaces.

Claim 11

An oil containment barrier module as defined in claim 9 wherein the adjacent surfaces of said segments are substantially parallel to one another and wherein said thin belt-like member is substantially vertically aligned between said parallel surfaces and extends longitudinally along substantially the entire length of the module.

Claim 12

An oil containment barrier module as defined in claim 10 wherein said bonding means is a sealing adhesive selected from the class consisting of an epoxy resin and elastomer.

Claim 13

An oil containment barrier module as defined in claim 10 further comprising a coupling means connected to said belt-like member at each opposite end thereof and adapted to engage other barrier modules to form a barrier system.

Claim 14

An oil containment barrier module as defined in claim 12 wherein the cross sectional geometry of the composite structure is a rhombus consisting of two isosceles triangles having a common base.

Claim 15

An oil containment barrier module as defined in claim 12 further comprising means including a mooring line connected at the center of said belt-like member intermediate the longitudinal surface of said lower section.

Claim 16

An oil containment barrier module as defined in claim 7 wherein said jacket partially covers the longitudinal surfaces of said lower section.

Claim 17

An oil containment barrier module as defined in claim 15 further comprising a relatively thin belt-like member located intermediate the upper and lower sections along substantially the entire length of the barrier.

Claim 18

An oil containment barrier module as defined in claim 16 further comprising coupling means connected at each opposite end of said belt and adapted to engage other barrier modules to form a barrier system.

Claim 19

A barrier system for containing an oil spill in a body of water comprising: a plurality of barrier modules coupled together end to end in a predetermined string formaTion, and at least one mooring line connected to said string of barrier modules for maintaining the relative position of said barrier system within said body of water; each of said barrier modules comprising a composite structure having a buoyant, substantially water impervious upper section and a water absorbent lower section, said lower section representing concurrently the principle ballast for said upper section and the subsurface barrier for the module.

Claim 20

A barrier system for containing an oil spill in a body of water comprising: a plurality of barrier modules coupled together end to end in a predetermined string formaTion, and at least one mooring line connected to said string of barrier modules for maintaining the relative position of said barrier system within said body of water; each of said barrier modules comprising a composite structure having a buoyant, substantially water impervious upper section and a water absorbent lower section, said lower section representing concurrently the principle ballast for said upper section and the subsurface barrier for the module.

Claim 21

A barrier system as defined in claim 18 wherein said upper and lower sections of each module are formed from at least one material selected from the class consisting of flexible foam, porous rubber, and sponge having of low density.

Claim 22

A barrier system as defined in claim 19 wherein the lower section of each barrier module is composed of two segments and a relatively thin belt-like member located in a vertical plane between said segments and extending for substantially the entire length of the module.

Claim 23

A barrier system as defined in claim 20 further comprising coupling means connected to said belt-like member at each opposite end face of said barrier module.

Claim 24

A system as defined in claim 21 wherein the end faces of each barrier module have a recessed surface and wherein said coupling means are connected to said belt-like member within said recessed surface such that upon interconnecting the coupling elements the barrier modules butt against each other to provide a relatively liquid-tight seal

Claim 25

A system as defined in claim 22 wherein said mooring line is connected to the belt-like member in one of the barrier modules of the system at a location intermediate the end faces of the module.