Structural Determination of Petroleum Photoproducts: Gas Phase, Water Soluble, and Oil Soluble Components

在这个由化学系环境化学科学项目资助的项目中，新奥尔良大学的Matthew Tarr教授正在开发新的方法来了解海洋环境中溢出的石油如何被阳光转化。 这种方法有助于确定原油在环境中发生光化学变化时形成的化学品。 这些产品的性质和行为在溢油补救中很重要。 该项目涉及与国家高磁场实验室的合作。 此外，该项目通过高中生、高中教师和本科生的直接参与来培训青年科学家。本项目确定原油暴露在阳光下时形成的化合物类型，并研究气相、水相和油相中存在的光产物的结构。 该项目利用分馏方法，色谱法和衍生化来评估光产物中存在的官能团。 该研究还利用了广泛的分析工具，包括气相色谱法，液相色谱法，荧光光谱法和质谱法（包括GC-MS，LC-MS，电喷雾MS和高分辨率电喷雾FTICR-MS），以获得石油光化学的完整图像。 该项目的结果对于了解溢油的命运和改进溢油补救的预测模型具有重要意义。 其他更广泛的影响包括培训未来的科学家和使教师接触环境研究。

In this project funded by the Environmental Chemical Sciences Program of the Chemistry Division, Professor Matthew Tarr of the University of New Orleans is developing new methods to understand how oil spilled in ocean environments is transformed by sunlight. Such methods help identify the chemicals formed when crude oil is subjected to photochemical changes in the environment. The nature and behavior of these products are important in oil spill remediation. The project involves collaboration with the National High Magnetic Field Laboratory. In addition, the project trains young scientists through direct involvement of high school students, high school teachers, and undergraduate students. This project identifies the types of compounds formed when crude oil is exposed to sunlight and investigates structures of photoproducts present in the gas phase, the aqueous phase, and the oil phase. The project utilizes fractionation methods, chromatography, and derivatization to assess the functional groups present in photoproducts. The study also utilizes a wide range of analytical tools, including gas chromatography, liquid chromatography, fluorescence spectroscopy, and mass spectrometry (including GC-MS, LC-MS, electrospray MS, and high resolution electrospray FTICR-MS) in order to gain a complete picture of oil photochemistry. The results of this project will be important for understanding the fate of spilled oil and improving predictive models for oil spill remediation. Additional broader impacts include training of future scientists and exposing teachers to environmental research.