Preventing the disaster

[HysteryDiagnosis]

From what I am hearing it is possible that the rig lost power due to the generators getting a whiff of methane and running away, probably blew the sections out of the armatures.

What used to be done with detroit diesels back in the day:

They had an air dam, a flapper that could be triggered manually or electrically if the need arose to kill the air to the blower. Problem with that was if the blower seals could not handle the vacuum they would fail and allow air to enter the engine anyway thus allowing the runaway to continue.

What could be done with the large generators on the rig is this:

Either replace them with megawatt fuel cells which have been available for years now, see

www.fuelcellenergy.com
E&ETV Interview - R. Daniel Brdar

FuelCell Energy's stationary fuel cells produce reliable power for commercial and industrial companies as well as government and utilities, 24 hours a day, with higher efficiency and virtually no pollution.

OR: Have compressed nitrogen on board with a trip to dump it into the intakes should a runaway condition occur. Engines will not fire on nitrogen. Nitrogen will not harm an engine. Nitrogen is cheap, a lot cheaper than the Deepwater Horizon. Sometimes I feel that these guys with all the safety garb and whatnot just don't think this stuff through to the end.



http://www.informaworld.com/smpp/content~content=a912939327&db=all
Abstract
The U.S. Coast Guard installed one of the first fuel cells in the New England region, with funding from the Green Power Initiative of the Renewable Energy Trust (administered by the Massachusetts Technology Collaborative), the U.S. Department of Defense's (DOD's) Climate Change Fuel Cell Program, and KeySpan Energy. Beginning in 1998, the Federal Energy Management Program (FEMP) and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers' Construction Engineering Research Laboratory (CERL) provided technical assistance in the form of project economics, analysis, and site selection.

The 250-kW fuel cell combined heat and power plant is located at the U.S. Coast Guard Air Station Cape Cod in Bourne, Massachusetts. The prime contractor, PPL Corporation, was responsible for all engineering and design work. FuelCell Energy of Danbury, Connecticut, was responsible for the manufacture, delivery, and installation of the fuel cell.

Fuel cells produce electricity through an electrochemical reaction rather than combustion. While currently more expensive to purchase than conventional power-generating equipment, fuel cells provide efficient, reliable power with minimal emissions. (For more information on fuel cells, see FEMP's Federal Technology Alert, “Natural Gas Fuel Cells” at www.eere.energy.gov/femp/pdfs/FTA_natgas_fuelcell.pdf).