Bioremediation of Marine Oil Spills

Abstract

Bioremédiation des pollutions maritimes pétrolières -À long terme, la biodégradation constitue l'ultime étape du devenir du pétrole déversé en mer qui ne peut être ramassé ou brûlé. La stimulation de cette biodégradation est donc une option importante pour optimiser l'élimination du pétrole de l'environnement et minimiser l'impact environnemental d'un déversement. Pour le traitement de l'huile flottant à la surface de la mer, les produits dispersants sont intéressants car ils augmentent au maximum l'aire interfaciale disponible pour les attaques microbiennes et favorisent ainsi la biodégradation. Si le pétrole se répand sur les côtes, il est probable que la biodégradation soit limitée par des nutriments tels que l'azote et le phosphore, d'autre part, l'application raisonnée d'engrais stimule la biodégradation du pétrole résiduel en place. Ces approches constituent un parfait exemple de technologies environnementales modernes : fonctionner en s'appuyant sur les phénomènes naturels afin d'obtenir un nettoyage rapide tout en minimisant les effets indésirables sur l'environnement.Abstract -Bioremediation of Marine Oil Spills -In the long run, biodegradation is the eventual fate of oil spilled at sea that cannot be collected or burnt. Stimulating this biodegradation is thus an important option for maximizing the removal of oil from the environment, and minimizing the environmental impact of a spill. For handling oil while it is still floating on the sea surface, dispersants are advantageous because they maximize the surface area available for microbial attack, and stimulate biodegradation. If oil beaches on a shoreline, it is likely that biodegradation is limited by nutrients such as nitrogen and phosphorus, and the careful application of fertilizers stimulates the biodegradation of residual beached oil. These approaches epitomize modern environmental technologies; working with natural phenomena to achieve a more rapid clean-up while minimizing undesirable environmental impacts.

Kinetics of petroleum oil biodegradation by a consortium of three protozoan isolates ( Aspidisca sp., Trachelophyllum sp. and Peranema sp.)

“…8 ). Surfactants can act as emulsifying agents that produce micro-droplets of hydrocarbons, thus enhancing the biodegradation of dispersed oil by providing a digestible substrate that stimulates the growth of organisms and finally, makes hydrocarbons available for uptake and use as source of energy [30] . Bioavailability may be the critical limiting factor controlling biodegradation rates for many organic compounds with low water solubility.…”

“…Bioavailability may be the critical limiting factor controlling biodegradation rates for many organic compounds with low water solubility. According to Prince et al [30] , the use of dispersants has been thought to stimulate the natural process of biodegradation, due to the formation of an oil-water interface and the dispersion of the oil, which will dramatically increase the surface area for microbial attack. The results of this study also confirmed the effectiveness of a dispersant in improving bioavailability of hydrocarbons and showed the biodegradation capability of a consortium of Aspidisca sp., Trachelophyllum sp.…”

Dynamics and distribution of bacterial and archaeal communities in oil-contaminated temperate coastal mudflat mesocosms

“…TPH concentrations were normalised with the internal marker 1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8,9,10-decamethyl-anthracene and relative TPH abundance in each sample calculated using the equation: %TPH = (A s /M s )/(A 0 /M 0 ) × 100 (Prince et al 2003) where A s and M s are the concentrations of TPH and internal marker respectively in the tidal mesocosm samples, and A 0 and M 0 are the concentrations at 2-h, considered here as the initial concentration.…”

The Importance of Weathered Crude Oil as a Source of Hydrocarbonoclastic Microorganisms in Contaminated Seawater

“…This response was elected owing to weathering conditions and access to certain areas affected being inaccessible (Mangroves; Era spill). The fate of hydrocarbons in the aquatic environment has been well documented [11,20,26] including details on the influence of abiotic and biological factors. In addition, many biodegradation parameters have been studied including salinity, nutrients, temperature, and oxygen availability.…”