The “Oil-Spill Snorkel”: an innovative bioelectrochemical approach to accelerate hydrocarbons biodegradation in marine sediments

The “Oil-Spill Snorkel”: an innovative bioelectrochemical approach to accelerate hydrocarbons biodegradation in marine sediments

This study presents the proof-of-concept of the "Oil-Spill Snorkel": a novel bioelectrochemical approach to stimulate the oxidative biodegradation of petroleum hydrocarbons in sediments. The "Oil-Spill Snorkel" consists of a single conductive material (the snorkel) positioned suitably to create an electrochemical connection between the anoxic zone (the contaminated sediment) and the oxic zone (...

Cable Bacteria and the Bioelectrochemical Snorkel: The Natural and Engineered Facets Playing a Role in Hydrocarbons Degradation in Marine Sediments

The composition and metabolic traits of the microbial communities acting in an innovative bioelectrochemical system were here investigated. The system, known as Oil Spill Snorkel, was recently developed to stimulate the oxidative biodegradation of petroleum hydrocarbons in anoxic marine sediments. Next Generation Sequencing was used to describe the microbiome of the bulk sediment and of the bio...

Crude Oil Biodegradation in the Marine Environments

Kinetic parameters for nutrient enhanced crude oil biodegradation in intertidal marine sediments

Availability of inorganic nutrients, particularly nitrogen and phosphorous, is often a primary control on crude oil hydrocarbon degradation in marine systems. Many studies have empirically determined optimum levels of inorganic N and P for stimulation of hydrocarbon degradation. Nevertheless, there is a paucity of information on fundamental kinetic parameters for nutrient enhanced crude oil bio...

Field evaluations of marine oil spill bioremediation.

Bioremediation is defined as the act of adding or improving the availability of materials (e.g., nutrients, microorganisms, or oxygen) to contaminated environments to cause an acceleration of natural biodegradative processes. The results of field experiments and trials following actual spill incidents have been reviewed to evaluate the feasibility of this approach as a treatment for oil contami...