Using microemulsion phase behavior as a predictive model for lecithin-Tween 80 marine oil dispersant effectiveness

Ternary phase diagram behavior was measured by millimeter-scale photography in controlled laboratory conditions for samples containing both varying ratios of dispersant:hexadecane:seawater (w:w:w) and dispersant composition; the dispersant was made up of lecithin:Tween 80 (L:T) weight ratio that was varied from 0:100 to 100:0 L:T, with each L:T ratio used in the study creating its own ternary phase diagram. All samples were made following the same procedure as described in the dataset. All of the images at all time points, temperature recordings, and notes are available at original image resolution in the dataset. All calculations pertaining to the complete composition of each sample are also included with the dataset (i.e. total volume and density of dispersant, hexadecane, and seawater in each sample; L:T dispersant composition and density for each sample; synthetic seawater and dispersant preparation procedures). The data in this dataset are useful to correlate to formulations that give varying dispersant effectiveness.