Nutrient effects on the biodegradation rates of chemically-dispersed crude oil
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abstract
The release of crude oil into water bodies presents the additional problem of spill containment because it spreads on the water surface. Biodegradation of dispersed crude oil was studied to evaluate whether nitrogen and phosphorus addition would simulate biodegradation. Crude oil was chemically dispersed with Corexit 9500 in Corpus Christi Bay water and various levels of both nitrogen and phosphorus were added to assess the nutrient effects. Nitrogen addition stimulated the biodegradation of both alkane and PAH, while phosphorus addition increased the biodegradation rate of alkanes but not PAH. The rates of biodegradation and the density of petroleum-degrading microorganisms were not affected by the concentrations of chemically-dispersed oil. A strategy of applying oliophilic nutrients along with dispersants could further stimulate biodegradation of petroleum compounds. This is an abstract of a paper presented at the 25th Arctic and Marine Oilspill Program Technical Seminar (Calgary, Alberta 6/11-13/2002).
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Environment Canada Arctic and Marine Oil Spill Program Technical Seminar (AMOP) Proceedings