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Exploring the effects of microalgal biomass on the oil behavior in a sand-water system

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Abstract

This study focused on the impact of microalgal biomass on the oil behavior in a sand-water system. The microalgal biomass was characterized, and the interaction between microalgal biomass and oil was analyzed through Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy. The effects of different conditions including microalgal biomass dose, pH, temperature, and salinity on the oil behavior were investigated. A two-level factorial analysis was also used to further explore the interactions of these conditions. The microalgal biomass was found to be the most influential parameter for the residual crude oil on sand. Higher microalgal biomass dose resulted in less residual oil on sand. The remaining oil decreased with increasing solution pH from 4 to 7, and an increase of remaining oil was observed when the pH was further increased above 7. In addition, temperature and salinity could affect the removal of crude oil in the presence of microalgal biomass. Increasing the temperature could result in less residual oil on sand and there was higher oil removal at the high salinity. The effects of microalgal biomass on the oil behavior could also be impacted by environmental conditions. The results of this study indicate that the presence of algae in the oiled shoreline can be considered in the comprehensive evaluation of spill risk and prediction of oil fate.

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All data generated or analyzed during this study are included in this published article and its supplementary information files.

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Acknowledgements

This research was supported by the Multi-partner Research Initiative of Fisheries and Oceans Canada and the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada. The authors are also grateful to the editor and the anonymous reviewers for their insightful comments and suggestions.

Funding

This research was supported by the Multi-partner Research Initiative of Fisheries and Oceans Canada and the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Building, Civil and Environmental Engineering, Concordia University, Montreal, QC, H3G 1M8, Canada

    Azar Vahabisani & Chunjiang An

  2. Department of Civil Engineering, Memorial University of Newfoundland, St. John’s, NL, A1C 5S7, Canada

    Xiaying Xin

  3. Owens Coastal Consultants, Bainbridge Island, WA, 98110, USA

    Edward Owens

  4. Fisheries and Oceans Canada, Ecosystem Science, Ottawa, ON, K1A 0E6, Canada

    Kenneth Lee

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  1. Azar Vahabisani
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  2. Chunjiang An
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  3. Xiaying Xin
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  4. Edward Owens
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  5. Kenneth Lee
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Contributions

AV conducted the experiments, interpreted the data, and drafted the manuscript. CA designed the experiments, analyzed the data and revised the manuscript. XX performed the FTIR analysis. EO and KL revised the manuscript. All authors read and approved the final manuscript.

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Correspondence to Chunjiang An.

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Supplementary Information

ESM 1

Table S1 Sand specification used in this research. Table S2 Typical Characterization of crude oil. Table S3 Coded and uncoded values of the factors. Table S4 Coded levels and corresponding values for factorial design matrix. Table S5 Wavenumber (cm -1) and assignment of the major bands of ATR-FTIR spectra of crude. Fig. S1 Pareto chart for standardized effects for Residual oil remained on sand (DOCX 73.3 kb)

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Vahabisani, A., An, C., Xin, X. et al. Exploring the effects of microalgal biomass on the oil behavior in a sand-water system. Environ Sci Pollut Res 28, 32985–32994 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11356-021-12870-5

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