Carmi-based team wins oil spill cleanup challenge | Environment

Carmi-based Team Elastec, an oil spill cleanup business specialist, won the $1 million top prize in the Wendy Schmidt Oil Cleanup X CHALLENGE, the X PRIZE Foundation announced today.

The competitiion was created after last year's BP Gulf oil spill.  Elastec/American Marine, based in Carmi and Cocoa, Florida, devloped a grooved disc system that captured oil in the test tank at a rate of 4,670 gallons (17,677 liters) per minute, with an efficiency of 89.5 percent. (Only 10.5 percent of the oily mix in the recovery tanks was water.)

It was more than three times the industry standard.

You can read more through coverage at National Geographic.