Aggregation and Degradation of Dispersants and Oil by Microbial Exopolymers (ADDOMEx): Toward a Synthesis of Processes and Pathways of Marine Oil Snow Formation in Determining the Fate of Hydrocarbons

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Author(s)Quigg, Antonietta
Author(s)Santschi, Peter H.
Author(s)Xu, Chen
Author(s)Ziervogel, Kai
Author(s)Kamalanathan, Manoj
Author(s)Chin, Wei-Chun
Author(s)Burd, Adrian B.
Author(s)Wozniak, Andrew
Author(s)Hatcher, Patrick G.
Date Accessioned2023-12-08T14:38:41Z
Date Available2023-12-08T14:38:41Z
Publication Date2021-07-19
DescriptionThis article was originally published in Frontiers in Marine Science. The version of record is available at: https://doi.org/10.3389/fmars.2021.642160. © 2021 Quigg, Santschi, Xu, Ziervogel, Kamalanathan, Chin, Burd, Wozniak and Hatcher.
AbstractMicrobes (bacteria, phytoplankton) in the ocean are responsible for the copious production of exopolymeric substances (EPS) that include transparent exopolymeric particles. These materials act as a matrix to form marine snow. After the Deepwater Horizon oil spill, marine oil snow (MOS) formed in massive quantities and influenced the fate and transport of oil in the ocean. The processes and pathways of MOS formation require further elucidation to be better understood, in particular we need to better understand how dispersants affect aggregation and degradation of oil. Toward that end, recent work has characterized EPS as a function of microbial community and environmental conditions. We present a conceptual model that incorporates recent findings in our understanding of the driving forces of MOS sedimentation and flocculent accumulation (MOSSFA) including factors that influence the scavenging of oil into MOS and the routes that promote decomposition of the oil post MOS formation. In particular, the model incorporates advances in our understanding of processes that control interactions between oil, dispersant, and EPS in producing either MOS that can sink or dispersed gels promoting microbial degradation of oil compounds. A critical element is the role of protein to carbohydrate ratios (P/C ratios) of EPS in the aggregation process of colloid and particle formation. The P/C ratio of EPS provides a chemical basis for the “stickiness” factor that is used in analytical or numerical simulations of the aggregation process. This factor also provides a relative measure for the strength of attachment of EPS to particle surfaces. Results from recent laboratory experiments demonstrate (i) the rapid formation of microbial assemblages, including their EPS, on oil droplets that is enhanced in the presence of Corexit-dispersed oil, and (ii) the subsequent rapid oil oxidation and microbial degradation in water. These findings, combined with the conceptual model, further improve our understanding of the fate of the sinking MOS (e.g., subsequent sedimentation and preservation/degradation) and expand our ability to predict the behavior and transport of spilled oil in the ocean, and the potential effects of Corexit application, specifically with respect to MOS processes (i.e., formation, fate, and half-lives) and Marine Oil Snow Sedimentation and Flocculent Accumulation.
SponsorWe thank the editors of this special issue for the invitation to submit a paper. The research presented was made possible by grants from the Gulf of Mexico Research Initiative: Quigg, Santschi, Xu, Ziervogel, Kamalanathan, Chin, Wozniak, and Hatcher: Aggregation and Degradation of Dispersants and Oil by Microbial Exopolymers (ADDOMEx SA15-22 and SA18-13) and Burd: Oil-Marine Snow-Mineral Aggregate Interactions and Sedimentation during the 2010 Deepwater Horizon Oil-Spill. This review was made possible by the dedication of the entire ADDOMEx team (2015–2020), particular co-PI’s Terry Wade, Tony Knap, Jason Sylvan, Zoe Finkel, and Andrew Irwin. We also wish to remember our dear friend and colleague, David Hollander, who we lost unexpectedly in 2020. We will always remember his scientific endeavors that aggregated us together over many a conversation, in recent years, around especially the topic of MOSSFA. His insights, humor and good will be missed. We also thank the reviewers whose suggestion’s helped improve the final manuscript.
CitationQuigg A, Santschi PH, Xu C, Ziervogel K, Kamalanathan M, Chin W-C, Burd AB, Wozniak A and Hatcher PG (2021) Aggregation and Degradation of Dispersants and Oil by Microbial Exopolymers (ADDOMEx): Toward a Synthesis of Processes and Pathways of Marine Oil Snow Formation in Determining the Fate of Hydrocarbons. Front. Mar. Sci. 8:642160. doi: 10.3389/fmars.2021.642160
ISSN2296-7745
URLhttps://udspace.udel.edu/handle/19716/33670
Languageen_US
PublisherFrontiers in Marine Science
dc.rightsAttribution 4.0 Internationalen
dc.rights.urihttp://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
Keywordsmarine oil snow
Keywordsmarine snow
Keywordsexopolymers
KeywordsMOSSFA
Keywordsdeepwater horizon
Keywordsoil
Keywordslife below water
TitleAggregation and Degradation of Dispersants and Oil by Microbial Exopolymers (ADDOMEx): Toward a Synthesis of Processes and Pathways of Marine Oil Snow Formation in Determining the Fate of Hydrocarbons
TypeArticle
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