How to Fill an Oil Tanker
- 1). Extinguish all open flames and pilot lights. Before loading any flammable cargo onto the tanker, all existing pilot lights and open flames must be extinguished to prevent a possible explosion from crude oil fumes.
- 2). Take a measurement of the existing tanker's displacement. As the tanker fills with crude oil, the craft settles deeper into the water. By measuring the tanker's beginning displacement in the water, the crew can use this measurement to determine how much weight and, therefore, how many gallons of crude have been added to the tanker.
- 3). Open all the holds and open circulation pumps and pipelines between holds. The modern oil tanker's hold is built like a honeycomb. Between 10 and 18 individual smaller tanks hold the crude oil. The honeycomb structure adds strength to the tanker's frame. The honeycomb structure also creates a safer environment for the tanker as it travels around the world. By utilizing small holds, the crude oil cannot slosh about, and create ballast imbalance, which could capsize the tanker on open seas.
- 4). Connect the flexible crude oil filling hoses from the oil pumping station to the individual tanker holds. Once the lines are connected, the pumps can be turned on and crude pumped into the tanker. Pumping must be monitored at all times to ensure safe conditions while the oil is pumped from land to the tanker.
- 5). Take a final measurement of the tanker's displacement in the water. The tanker will sit deeper in the water as 5,000 tons of crude oil rest in its holds. By comparing the initial measurement with this final measurement, an accurate cargo manifest is created.
- 6). Close circulation pipelines to isolate each hold as a separate tank within the tanker. Before the tanker leaves shore, the circulation pumps between the holes are closed. By isolating the crude oil in smaller tanks, the oil tanker can travel more safely to the open sea.
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