Biodegradation of oil films with different thicknesses in marine environments - Hydrocarbon degradation and microbial communities

Abstract

The purpose of this study is to examine the effect of different oil film thicknesses on the biodegradation rate and microbial communities, focusing on medium sized oil films (50-500 µl). Initially, three approaches for generation of oil films are tested, using cylindrical tubes inside a foam element, floating on seawater in beakers. Tube materials tested are glass, teflon and fluortex fabrics, and samples are analyzed chemically (GC-MS/GC-FID) and microbiologically. From this, an additional experiment is conducted, using only the Fluortex approach, focusing on the oil film thickness effect.