Designation: F818 – 93 (Reapproved 2009)

Standard Terminology Relating to

Spill Response Barriers1

This standard is issued under the fixed designation F818; the number immediately following the designation indicates the year of original

adoption or, in the case of revision, the year of last revision. A number in parentheses indicates the year of last reapproval. A superscript

epsilon ( ́) indicates an editorial change since the last revision or reapproval.

1. Scope

1.1 This document defines the terminology used in the field

of spill response barriers. Only those terms commonly used or

peculiar to this field have been included; no attempt has been

made to list all terms used. Where a second term is in common

use, “aka” is used to mean “also known as.”

1.2 Design, engineering, and performance terms are listed

separately: barrier design terminology (3.1), barrier engineering terminology (3.2), and barrier performance terminology

(3.3).

2. Referenced Documents

2.1 ASTM Standards:2

F625 Practice for Classifying Water Bodies for Spill Control Systems

3. Terminology

3.1 Barrier Design Terminology—Terms associated with

Spill Response Barrier Design:

General

boom—floating mechanical barrier used to control the movement of substances that float.

boom section—length of boom between two end connectors.

boom segment—repetitive identical portion of the boom

section.

Types

air bubble barrier—special-purpose barrier created by rising

stream of air bubbles and entrained water, produced by

injecting air at some depth below water surface.

bottom-tension boom—boom with tension member located

along the bottom of the skirt.

calm water boom—boom intended for use in calm waters (see

Practice F625 for environmental descripters).

“curtain type” boom—boom consisting of a flexible skirt

supported by flotation.

“fence type” boom—boom consisting of a self-supporting or

stiffened membrane supported by flotation.

fire resistant boom (aka fire containment boom)—boom

intended for containment of burning oil slicks.

ice boom—boom intended for use in ice-infested waters,

designed to withstand effects of ice contact.

inflatable boom—boom that uses inflated gas-filled chambers

as the flotation.

net boom—special purpose boom in which all or part of the

membrane material is netting.

open water boom—boom intended for use in open waters (see

Practice F625 for environmental descripters).

permanent boom—boom intended for long-term or permanent deployment.

plunging water jet barrier—special purpose barrier created

by a series of coherent streams of water directed vertically

downward into a body of water.

protected water boom—boom intended for use in protected

waters with moderate environmental conditions (see Practice

F625 for environmental descripters).

river boom (aka fast water boom)—boom intended for use in

currents greater than 1 knot.

shore seal boom—boom that, when grounded, seals against

the shoreline.

silt barrier—boom with very deep skirt used to control the

movement of suspended sediments.

sorbent boom—sorbent material contained or arranged in the

form of a long cylinder.

special purpose boom—boom that departs from the general

characteristics of “fence type” and “curtain type” booms,

either in design or intended use.

submersible boom—boom that normally resides on the seabed

and is positioned by inflating with air, causing it to rise to the

water surface.

water jet barrier—barrier created by stream of pressurized

water spray directed across the water surface.

1 This terminology is under the jurisdiction of ASTM Committee F20 on

Hazardous Substances and Oil Spill Response and is the direct responsibility of

Subcommittee F20.11 on Control.

Current edition approved April 1, 2009. Published April 2009. Originally

approved in 1984. Last previous edition approved in 2003 as F818 – 93(2003). DOI:

10.1520/F0818-93R09. 2 For referenced ASTM standards, visit the ASTM website, www.astm.org, or

contact ASTM Customer Service at service@astm.org. For Annual Book of ASTM

Standards volume information, refer to the standard’s Document Summary page on

the ASTM website.

1

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weir boom (aka skimming boom/barrier)—boom that has a

weir skimming device(s) built into its face.

Components

accessories—optional mechanical devices used on or in conjunction with a boom system but not included with the basic

boom and end connector; for example, lights, paravanes,

drogues, buoys, anchor systems, storage bags, boxes or reels,

bulkhead connectors or repair kits, and so forth.

anchor point—structural point on the end connector or along

the length of a boom section designed for the attachment of

anchor or mooring lines.

ancillary equipment—mechanical devices essential to the

operation of a given boom system; for example, air pumps,

hydraulic power supplies, control manifolds, and so forth.

ballast—weight applied to the skirt to improve boom performance.

bridle—device attached to a boom to distribute the load

exerted by towing or anchoring the boom.

buoyancy chamber (aka flotation chamber)—enclosed compartment of air or other buoyant material providing flotation

for the boom.

end connector—device permanently attached to the boom

used for joining boom sections to one aother or to other

accessory devices.

external flotation (aka outboard flotation)—flotation element located external to the boom membrane.

external tension—external tension member separated from the

boom membrane by bridles.

fin—portion of the boom membrane above the float.

float—separable component of a boom that provides buoyancy.

flotation—portion of a boom that provides buoyancy.

handhold—any strap, handle, depression, or other provision

for grasping the boom by hand.

hinge—location between boom segments at which the boom

can be folded back 180° upon itself.

internal flotation—flotation element located within the boom

membrane.

lifting point—structural point on the end connector or along

the length of a boom section designed for the attachment of

a lifting device, such as a crane.

membrane—continuous portion of a boom that serves as a

barrier to the movement of a substance.

pressure inflated—inflatable boom that requires pressurized

gas for its flotation.

self-inflating—boom that automatically inflates as it is deployed.

skirt—continuous portion of the boom below the floats.

solid flotation—boom that uses solid buoyant material for the

flotation element.

stiffener—component that provides support to the membrane.

tension member—any component that carries horizontal

(axial) tension loads imposed upon the boom.

Characteristics

boom weight—dry weight of a fully assembled boom section

including end connectors.

compactibility—measure of a boom’s storage volume per unit

length (m3

/m).

draft—minimum vertical depth of the membrane below the

water line.

freeboard—minimum vertical height of the boom above the

waterline.

height—sum of draft and freeboard.

maximum draft—maximum vertical dimension of the boom

below the water line.

overall height—maximum vertical dimension of boom.

3.2 Barrier Engineering Terminology—Terms associated

with Spill Barrier Engineering:

catenary drag force—load imposed on a boom, deployed in a

catenary configuration, resulting from towing, current,

and/or wind forces.

current response—change in freeboard or draft due to current

forces acting to displace the boom from rest.

gross buoyancy—weight of fresh water displaced by a boom

totally submerged.

gross buoyancy to weight ratio—gross buoyancy divided by

boom weight.

heave response—ability of the boom to react to the vertical

motion of the water surface.

maximum dynamic load—sum of all instantaneous dynamic

loads including those due to acceleration, wave forces, and

so forth.

reserve buoyancy—gross buoyancy minus boom weight.

reserve buoyancy to weight ratio—reserve buoyancy divided

by boom weight.

roll response—rotation of the boom from rest due to wave,

wind, or current forces.

straight line drag forces—load on a boom that results from

towing it from one end.

wind response—change in freeboard or draft due to wind

force acting to displace the boom from rest.

3.3 Barrier Performance Terminology—Terms associated

with Spill Response Barrier Performance:

apex (aka pocket)—pocket formed at the downstream end of

a U, V, J, or W shaped configuration.

boom planing—heeling over of a boom and loss of draft.

boom submergence (aka submarining)—containment failure

due to loss of freeboard.

bridging failure—portions of a boom emerging from the

water due to poor wave conformance, with resulting containment failure.

catenary configuration (aka “U,” “J” configuration)—

booming configuration formed by towing or anchoring each

end of a length of boom, resulting in a characteristic“ U” or

“J” shape.

cascading booms—booming configuration formed by positioning two or more booms in a deflection mode such that

successive booms progressively move oil to the desired area.

chevron configuration—booming configuration used in narrow watercourses, formed by positioning two lengths of

boom in a deflection mode, the leading end of each length is

positioned in the middle of the watercourse and the trailing

ends lead to opposite shores.

F818 – 93 (2009)

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conformance—ability of a boom to maintain freeboard and

draft when subjected to a given set of environmental

conditions.

containment mode—placement of a boom to prevent free

movement of a floating substance.

deployment—placing a boom in the water and making it

operational.

diversion mode—placement of a boom to redirect the movement of a floating substance.

drainage loss—oil accumulating and pooling against the boom

skirt and escaping with the flow of water down and along the

skirt.

entrainment loss—oil droplets escaping with the flow of water

diverted under the skirt.

exclusion booming—placement of a boom to protect an area

from the entry of a floating substance.

first-loss tow/current velocity—minimum tow/current velocity normal to the membrane at which oil escapes past a

boom.

gap ratio—sweep width divided by boom length.

loss rate—rate at which oil is lost past a boom (m3

/h).

performance—ability of a boom to contain or deflect oil under

a given set of environmental conditions.

retrieval—removing a deployed boom from the water.

splashover—oil splashing over a boom’s freeboard.

stability—resistance to overturning moment.

sweep width (aka swath)—width intercepted by a boom in

collection mode, the projected distance between the ends of

a boom deployed in a “U,” “V,” or “J” configuration.

sweeping mode—movement of a boom relative to the water

for the purpose of controlling or collecting a floating

substance.

towing—transporting a boom from one place to another by

pulling from one end.

vortex loss—oil escaping past a boom due to drainage vortices

produced at the boom.

“J” configuration—boom positioned in a “J” shape.

“U” configuration (aka catenary configuration)—boom positioned in a “U” shape.

“V” configuration—boom positioned in a “V” shape.

“W” configuration (aka “3” configuration)—boom positioned in a “W” shape.

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