SOLICITATION NOTICE
A -- DISPERSION OF CRUDE OIL AND PETROLEUM PRODUCTS IN FRESHWATER
- Notice Date
- 4/18/2006
- Notice Type
- Solicitation Notice
- Contracting Office
- Environmental Protection Agency, Acquisition Management Branch, 26 W Martin Luther King, Cincinnati, OH 45268
- ZIP Code
- 45268
- Solicitation Number
- RFQ-OH-06-00118
- Response Due
- 5/3/2006
- Archive Date
- 6/3/2006
- Description
- NAICS Code: 541710 This is a combined synopsis/request for quote (RFQ) for commercial items prepared in accordance with the format in FAR Subpart 12.6, as supplemented with additional information included in this notice. The identifying RFQ number is RFQ-OH-06-00118. The RFQ and incorporated provisions/clauses are those in effect through Federal Acquisition Circular 05-08. A firm fixed price purchase order is anticipated to result from the award of this RFQ. The NAICS code is 541710, and the size standard is 500 employees. STATEMENT OF WORK Dispersion of Crude Oil and Petroleum Products in Freshwater I. Period of Performance: 14 months from date of award. II. Background and Objectives: Dispersants are not used to treat oil spills in freshwater in the U.S. This is partly due to the absence of dispersants that are effective in freshwater on the NCP Product Schedule and partly due to the perception that dispersion of oil in freshwater would cause unacceptable harm to valuable resources (e.g., public water supplies, endangered species). In addition, there appears to be a perception that dispersants cannot work in freshwater, but this may be due (at least in part) to attempts to use dispersants that were optimized for use in seawater. At least six commercial dispersants have been approved for freshwater use in France. So, it may be possible to optimize dispersant formulations to promote effectiveness in freshwater. The environmental consequences of oil-spill dispersion will be determined in part by the dilution potential of the affected water body and partly by the long-term fate of the dispersed oil (e.g., stability of the dispersed oil droplets, biodegradation rate, and tendency to interact with sediments and other surfaces). Since several important water bodies (e.g., the Mississippi River, the Great Lakes) have sufficient dilution potential to accommodate dispersion of relatively large oil spills, a blanket prohibition against the use of dispersants in freshwater may be ill advised. Oil dispersants consist of one or more surfactants dissolved in a compatible solvent. Surfactants are amphipathic molecules that contain hydrophilic and hydrophobic (or lipophilic) regions that interact with water and oil, respectively. The presence of hydrophilic and hydrophobic functional groups in the same molecule causes surfactants to accumulate at the oil-water interface and lower the interfacial tension, which reduces the energy required to create new interfacial area. For nonionic surfactants, the relative contributions of the hydrophilic and lipophilic regions to the properties of the molecule can be quantified by the hydrophile:lipophile balance (HLB). The HLB can vary from 0 (100% lipophilic) to 20 (100% hydrophilic). Most commercial dispersants have an HLB in the range of 9 to 11 (Clayton et al., 1993). Dispersants that are optimized for use in seawater tend to have HLBs greater than 10, but optimal performance in freshwater requires the HLB to be less than 10. The desired HLB can be obtained using a single surfactant or by mixing two or more surfactants with HLBs lower and higher than the desired average value. The latter approach is believed to more effective because it allows closer packing of the surfactant molecules at the oil-water interface (Porter, 1991). The objective of this research is to investigate the relationship between dispersant composition and effectiveness of dispersion of fresh and weathered crude oil in freshwater. The effectiveness of several commercial dispersants, that are purported to be effective in freshwater, will be evaluated and compared to mixtures of surfactants with known composition. III. Tasks Task 1: Development of QAPP Within 15 business days after award, a Quality Assurance Project Plan (QAPP) shall be submitted to the EPA Project Officer (PO) in accordance with EPA's quality assurance guidelines for a basic research project plan (attached). The contractor shall comply with all the requirements as delineated in the section entitled NRMRL's Quality System Specifications on Attachment #1. Following the review by the EPA PO/QAQC Office, specific comments will be provided to the Contractor. The contractor shall revise the QAPP in accordance with the changes identified by the PO. Task 2: Development of Freshwater Dispersants. The Contractor shall determine the oil-dispersion effectiveness of surfactant mixtures with a range of HLBs using the EPA's Baffled-Flask Test (BFT) as the standard operating condition (the detailed procedure for the BFT will be provided by the EPA PO). The surfactant mixtures shall consist of combinations of common commercially available surfactants of the Contractor's choosing. The composition of the surfactant mixture shall be systematically varied to determine the optimal composition. An important difference between seawater and freshwater is that, in general, the interfacial tension between a specific oil and freshwater is greater than the interfacial tension between the same oil and seawater. Therefore, it is important that the Contractor also determine whether the effectiveness of dispersion in freshwater and seawater can be independently predicted by the oil-water interfacial tension (i.e., are the relationships between dispersion effectiveness and interfacial tension similar in seawater and freshwater or does interfacial tension affect dispersion effectiveness differently depending on the water characteristics?). Specific formulations of artificial seawater and freshwater (1 formulation for each) will be provided to the Contractor by the EPA PO. IV. Reporting Procedures: The contractor shall provide detailed monthly reports describing progress made in each task. The Contractor shall provide to the EPA PO the raw data as they become available. At the end of the 12 month period, the Contractor shall summarize all the data developed over the course of the year and deliver its summary to the PO in the form of a draft report or journal article. The draft report or journal article shall be sent electronically to the PO, in Mirosoft Word format. The report shall detail the methods used and the results from all tests performed and provide recommendations for additional work that complement this work. V. Deliverables: (1) Quality Assurance Project Plan submitted to PO within 15 days after award. (2) Draft report shall be submitted to the EPA PO NLT 30 days following the end of the 12-month research period. The PO will review the draft and provide appropriate comments/changes. Such comments/changes shall be submitted to the EPA PO in a final report, NLT 30 days prior to the end of the order. (3) Monthly reports detailing progress. References: Clayton, J.R., Jr., J.R. Payne, and J.S. Farlow. 1993. Oil Spill Dispersants: Mechanisms of Action and Laboratory Tests. CRC Press, Inc., Boca Raton, FL. Porter, M.R. 1991. Handbook of Surfactants. Chapman and Hall, Inc., New York, NY. The following clauses apply to this request for quote: FAR 52.212-1, Instructions to Offerors-Commercial Items; FAR 52.212-2 Evaluation-Commercial Items, and the specific evaluation criteria is as follows: (1) Technical acceptability of the services offered to meet the Government's requirement and (2) Technical acceptability shall be evaluated on a pass or fail basis (with the lowest price technically acceptable receiving award). Offers shall provide descriptive technical literature and other documentation as necessary, in sufficient detail to demonstrate that the items offered meet the minimum requirements specified above; FAR 52.212-3, Offeror Representations & Certifications-Commercial Items, shall be completed by offeror and submitted with quote, unless the offeror's registered with CCR; FAR 52.212-4, Contract terms & Conditions-Commercial Items; The following FAR clauses in paragraph (b) of FAR clause 52.212-5, Contract Terms & Conditions Required to Implement Statutes or Executive Orders-Commercial Items will apply, 52.222-3, 52.222-19, 52.222-21, 52.222-26, 52.222-35, 52.222-36, 52.222-37, 52.225-13. Payment by Electronic Funds Transfer-Central Contractor Registration; all clauses can be found at: http://farsite.hill.af.mil/VFFARA.HTM. In addition, the following US EPA EPAAR clause is applicable to this RFQ: EPAAR 1552.233-70, Notice of Filing Requirements for Agency Protests, and 1552.211-79, Compliance with EPA Policies for Information Resource Management. These EPAAR clauses are available at http://www.epa.gov/oam/ptod/epaar.pdf. The government anticipates award using simplified acquisition procedures of an order resulting from this solicitation to the responsive/responsible offeror whose quote conforms to the solicitation and is most price advantageous to the government. Offers shall submit 1 copy of their quotation that references RFQ-OH-06-00118, no later than May 03, 2006 at 3:00 PM (EST) to Scott A. Fogle, at fogle.scott@epa.gov or via fax at 513 487-2107. Technical questions or comments may also be directed to Scott A. Fogle, at 513 487-2049, or at fogle.scott@epa.gov. For a copy of Attachment #1 and the BFT SOP please contact Scott A. Fogle via email requesting a copy of each document.
- Record
- SN01030469-W 20060420/060418221437 (fbodaily.com)
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