Abstract:

Passive samplers were deployed on September 26th and 27th and retrieved on October 22nd and 23rd, 2011, at 40 locations in oil-impacted areas in the Gulf of Mexico to monitor PAH concentration in the water column and sediment porewater. The areas sampled included Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama and Florida. Forty low-density polyethylene (LDPE) and 19 polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) were deployed in sediments and 40 LPDE and 40 SemiPermeable Membrane Devices (SPMDs) were deployed in the water column. Additional samplers were deployed in Sarasota Bay, FL as control. During deployment and retrieval water quality parameters including pH, conductivity, dissolved oxygen, temperature and depth were recorded. Samples collected by LPDEs and SPMDs were analyzed in the laboratory for 37 polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, while samples collected using PDMSs were analyzed for 16 polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons.

Suggested Citation:

Bouwer, Edward. 2015. Application of Passive Samplers to Monitor PAH Concentrations in Water Column and Sediment Porewater in the Gulf of Mexico, 2011. Distributed by: GRIIDC, Harte Research Institute, Texas A&M University–Corpus Christi. doi:10.7266/N78S4NBP

Purpose:

Our goal is to use passive samplers, such as semipermeable membrane devices (SPMDs) and polyethylene (PE) tubing, to monitor the PAH concentrations in water and sediment porewater impacted by the Deepwater Horizon oil spill.

Data Parameters and Units:

Basic Data-- Location #, sample #, Latitude (decimal degrees), Longitude (decimal degrees), Measurement times (Month DD, YYYY) [Deployment September 26-27, 2011, Retrieval October 23-24, 2011], Temperature (degrees Celsius), pH, Conductivity (mS/cm), Dissolved Oxygen DO (mg/L), Water depth (ft), Locations Description (place name, state) [Chandelier Island, LA; Cat Island, MS; Ship Island, MS; Horn Island, MS; Petit Bois Island, MS; Dauphin Island, AL; Perdido Bay, AL; Mobile Bay, AL; Pensacola, FL; Sarasota, FL], LDPE low density polyethylene samplers deployed in water column and in sediments-- Location #, PAH Concentration (ng/L)[Naphthalene, 2-Methylnaphthalene, 1-Methylnaphthalene, C2-Naphthalene, C3-Naphthalene, C4-Naphthalene, Biphenyl, Acenaphthylene, Acenaphthene, Fluorene, C2-Fluorene, C3-Fluorene, Dibenzothiophene, C1-Dibenzothiophene, C2-Dibenzothiophene, C3-Dibenzothiophene, Phenanthrene, Anthracene, C1-Phe/Ant, C2-Phe/Ant, C3-Phe/Ant, C4-Phe/Ant, Fluoranthene, Pyrene, C1-Fluoranthenes/Pyrenes, Benzo[a]fluroene, Benzo[b]fluorene, Benz[a]anthracene, Chrysene, C1-chrysene, Benzo[b]fluoranthene, Benzo[k]fluoranthene, Benzo[e]pyrene, Benzo[a]pyrene, Perylene, Indeno[1,2,3-cd]pyrene, Dibenzo(a,h)anthracene, Benzo[ghi]perylene]. SPMD SemiPermeable Membrane Devices deployed in water column-- Location #, PAH Concentration (ng/L) [Naphthalene, 2-Methylnaphthalene, 1-Methylnaphthalene, C2-Naphthalene, C3-Naphthalene, C4-Naphthalene, Biphenyl, Acenaphthylene, Acenaphthene, Fluorene, C2-Fluorene, Dibenzothiophene, C1-Dibenzothiophene, C2-Dibenzothiophene, C3-Dibenzothiophene, Phenanthrene, Anthracene, C1-Phe/Ant, C2-Phe/Ant, C3-Phe/Ant, Fluoranthene, Pyrene, C1-Fluoranthenes/Pyrenes, Benz[a]antracene, Chyrsene, C1-chyrsene,Benzo[b]fluoranthene, Benzo[k]fluoranthene, Benzo[e]pyrene, Benzo[a]pyrene, Perylene, Indeno[1,2,3-cd]pyrene, Dibenzo(a,h)anthracene, Benzo[ghi]perylene]. PDMS polydimethylsiloxane deployed in sediments-- Location #, Depth below water/sediment interface (cm), PAH Concentration (ng/L) [Naphthalene, Fluorene, Acenaphthene, Phenanthrene, Anthracene, Fluoranthene, Pyrene, Chrysene, Benz[a]anthracene Benzo[b]fluoranthene, Benzo[k]fluoranthene, Benzo[a]pyrene,Dibenz[a,h]anthracene, Benzo[ghi]+Indeno].

Methods:

Instruments:

passive PAH Concentration samplers: SPMD semipermeable membrane devices (Environmental Sampling Technology, St. Joseph, MO) PDMS polydimethysiloxane profilers were fabricated in UT Austin (Dr. Danny Reible) using PDMS fiber (Polymicro Technologies, Phoenix, AZ) LDPE Low density polyethylene lay-flat tubing (US Plastic Corp) additional equipment: gas chromatograph (Agilent 6890) equipped with a capillary column (Agilent, DB-5MS; 25 m x, 0.25 mm ID, 0.25 um film thickness) and a mass selective detector (Agilent, 5973)

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