ORCID ID
0009-0007-4848-6862
Date of Award
5-2024
Degree Type
Thesis
Degree Name
M.S.
Degree Program
Chemistry
Department
Chemistry
Major Professor
David C. Podgorski
Abstract
In this thesis, petroleum-contaminated groundwater from three spill-affected Minnesota sites—two contaminated with crude oil; one with diesel—is investigated to elucidate whether differences in degradation products from different parent oils exist. After spill events, parent molecules from the leaked oil seep underground and undergo microbial degradation over time, transforming into hydrocarbon oxidation products (HOPs), water-soluble contaminants that infiltrate groundwater aquifers, flowing into nearby environments and towns while exhibiting environmental persistence, toxicity to aquatic biota, and potential risks to humans that become exposed. Spectroscopic and chromatographic study of the structural themes and spatial distributions of HOPs reveals preferential degradation of aliphatic (biolabile) over condensed aromatic (biorefractory) HOPs, with distinct diesel trends detected. Thus, correlations between crude oil- and diesel-based degradational products and the parent petroleum at spill sources were exposed at the three contaminated groundwater sites, offering insight for environmental risk assessment and mitigation strategies to better predict spill outcomes.
Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-No Derivative Works 4.0 International License.
Recommended Citation
Turcios Valle, Eduardo E., "Modification, Transport, and Sources of Hydrocarbon Oxidation Products from Groundwater at Crude Oil and Diesel Spill Sites in Minnesota: Unveiling Common “ThEEMs” via Spectroscopy & Chromatography" (2024). University of New Orleans Theses and Dissertations. 3178.
https://scholarworks.uno.edu/td/3178
Included in
Analytical Chemistry Commons, Environmental Chemistry Commons, Environmental Monitoring Commons, Natural Resources and Conservation Commons, Oil, Gas, and Energy Commons, Water Resource Management Commons
Rights
The University of New Orleans and its agents retain the non-exclusive license to archive and make accessible this dissertation or thesis in whole or in part in all forms of media, now or hereafter known. The author retains all other ownership rights to the copyright of the thesis or dissertation.