9 / 11
Page 33
Notes:
allied
academies
August 16-17, 2018 | Copenhagen, Denmark
Industrial Biotechnology and Bioprocessing
International Conference on
Journal of Archives of Industrial Biotechnology | Volume 2
Practical response for volatile fuel spills on water (or land)
Kevin Mirise
and
Jo Ann Mirise
MicroSorb International, USA
M
ost published doctrine for diesel, gasoline or jet fuel spills
on water is the simple recommendation that nothing
can be done because the contaminant is light and spreads
immediately, and the volatile compounds vaporize off over the
next minutes or hours. The reality is that dispersed fuel like
diesel can coalesce into droplets and travel with wave action. It
can also adhere to suspended sediments which can then settle
to the seafloor. And after the lighter constituents vaporize,
compounds left behind are concentrated toxins. In areas where
contamination is ongoing like a fuel station near a shoreline
where sediment is more prevalent, the contamination can be
measurable.The prevalent thinking is that indigenous microbes
can remediate residuals in one to two months so damage is not
likely to be persistent. This thinking, however, can be countered
by the fact that these fuels are exquisitely and acutely toxic to
flora and fauna, especially in shallow or shoreline areas. Die-off
is fast and furious at a micro and macro level. There is currently
a high acceptable level of loss of life by regulatory bodies,
yet the authors of this report have proven that die-off can be
significantly mitigated with timely intervention.
A broad-spectrum, adequately concentrated hydrocarbon-
degradingnatural exogenousmicrobial consortiumcanbe ready
for immediate deployment to remediate the spilled volatile
contaminant. In addition to protecting a higher percentage
of flora and fauna from toxins, health benefits would also be
realized by the humans in the vicinity since fumes would be
eliminated very quickly.Microbes that eat oil and petroleum
distillates work at the surface level – the interface where oil
molecules are accessible, and water and oxygen are also readily
at hand. Since diesel and gasoline are so light and thin, the
microbes easily devour their way right through it. The odors
are gone almost immediately after the biotreatment contacts
the spill. And the microbes attach to the petroleum molecules
and follow themwherever they go – a significant benefit where
strong currents spread a plume. The microbes stay attached
until the pollutant is consumed – metabolized at the molecular
level.
Tactical methods of treatment will be discussed through
scenario-based drill examples, including 1) typical spill types
(example, ongoing fuel dock drips and spills) 2) application
methods (example, surface spreading, and/or mix and spray)
and 3) challenging scenarios (example, contaminated water
with fast-moving currents, fouled beaches or rocky or vegetated
shorelines.) 4) methods for soil and hard surface spills can be
addressed as well, given the close parallels.
e:
kevin@microsorb.com