TOXICITY OF CRUDE OILS AND FUEL OILS PRESENTED DIRECTLY TO MICROALGAE

Crude oils were much less inhibitory than fuel oils to the growth of a green alga, a blue-green alga and a diatom. Baton Rouge and New Jersey fuel oil samples were toxic, but the Montana fuel oil was nontoxic. Heating (90 deg-110 deg C) detoxified the fuel oils. Chemical analyses of the nontoxic and toxic fuel oils before and after heating were compared to determine what compounds might be involved. Classes of aromatic compounds not accountable for the toxicity of whole fuel oils included naphthalenes, methylnaphthalenes, dibenzothiophenes, phenanthrenes, and compounds with volatilities greater than methylnaphthalenes. The accumulated chemical data suggests that the toxicity of these fuel oils is due to the less water-soluble compounds in the higher boiling aromatic fraction. Earlier work with water soluble fractions of these fuel oils showed reversed toxicity patterns to growth due to other types of compounds.

• Supplemental Notes:
  • International Seaweed Symposium sponsored by the Phycological Society of America and International Phycological Society.
• Corporate Authors:

  Phycological Society of America

  California University
  Berkeley, CA  United States  94720
• Authors:
  • Batterton, J C
  • Winters, K
  • Van Baalen, C
• Publication Date: 1977-6

Media Info

• Serial:
  • Journal of Phycology
  • Publisher: Phycological Society of America

Subject/Index Terms

• TRT Terms: Fuel oils; Impacts; Oil spills; Toxicity
• Old TRIS Terms: Oil spill impact
• Subject Areas: Environment; Marine Transportation;

Filing Info

• Accession Number: 00167801
• Record Type: Publication
• Source Agency: Pollution Abstracts
• Report/Paper Numbers: Report Number 13
• Files: TRIS
• Created Date: Jan 13 1978 12:00AM