Oil/Dispersant Weathering Study – Natural vs. Artificial Seawater, Fall 2012

This data was collected during a 28 day laboratory shaker flask weathering study conducted in the Response and Chemical Assessment Team (RCAT) Laboratory on the LSU Baton Rouge Campus in the Department of Environmental Sciences during the fall of 2012. 40% evaporatively (by mass) weathered Deepwater Horizon reference oil (MC252 collected through a riser vent pipe from the damaged wellhead of Deepwater Horizon drilling rig in the Gulf of Mexico on May 20, 2010) as well as with dispersant (DoR 1:20, Corexit 9500A, Batch # SC0E 2290, donated by NALCO) and without dispersant was placed into shaker flasks and filled with both natural seawater (containing the natural consortia of microorganisms associated with the Northern Gulf of Mexico) and artificial seawater (Instant Ocean mixed with sterilized filtered water) to determine the difference in the weathering profiles of specific crude oil compounds in a well-mixed, controlled environment. This data is used in the publication Olson, G.M.; Gao, H.; Meyer, B.M.; Miles, M.S.; Overton, E.B. (2017). Effect of Corexit 9500A on Mississippi Canyon crude oil weathering patterns using artificial and natural seawater. Heliyon, 3, 3, e00269. doi:10.1016/j.heliyon.2017.e00269.