Techniques for Analysis of Paraffin Hydrocarbons and for Interpretation of Data to Assess Oil Spill Effects in Aquatic Organisms

Normal paraffin hydrocarbons are one of the major groups of compounds in crude oil and petroleum products. Since these compounds can be readily separated from aquatic organisms using solvent extraction and liquid-solid chromatography and identified by gas-liquid chromatography, the normal paraffins can serve as indicators of petroleum pollution in the aquatic environment. It is necessary, however, to differentiate between natural (or biogenic) hydrocarbons and those assimilated by the organisms from pollution sources by comparing the natural hydrocarbon content and pattern (n-C₁₄ to n-C₃₇) of organisms from areas of pollution with those of organisms from relatively “unpolluted” areas.

The paper suggests techniques for obtaining and analyzing petroleum hydrocarbon data which can lead to a standard method for detecting and following the biological uptake of oil by living organisms from the aquatic environment.