RAPID Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill: In-situ tracking of oil in seawater and the aging process using spectral fluorescence

PIS要求获得快速奖励，以继续开发能够测量光谱荧光的原型现场仪器(激发发射荧光仪(XMF)和光谱荧光传感器(SAFIRE))，以帮助追踪墨西哥湾的深水地平线漏油事件。深水地平线漏油事件已经产生了一种明显且迫切的需求，需要现场核实原油在海水中所有深度的存在、分散剂的影响，以及一种原位方法学，以研究原油在风化、分散和生物群作用时经历的分子变化。该项目的成果将被用于开发一种升级途径，将为其他参数开发的当前低成本现场传感器转化为有效的原油跟踪仪器。这些先进的传感器可用于跟踪墨西哥湾漏油事件的长期变化，适用于各种自主观测平台，提供原油存在的实时现场确认，并随时可用于未来的原油传感应用。广泛影响：拟议的工作将确定所需的最佳荧光对，以提供精致且低成本的多光谱UV/VIS传感器，用于研究原油在环境中的命运和影响。这一点以及研究结果将直接提高我们在自然海洋环境中准确追踪石油的能力，从而更好地评估当前漏油的影响，从而在未来需要时改进应对措施。这项研究得出的结论可能会产生深远的影响，因为它们将增加社会可以利用来管理自然资源的知识体系。此外，这项工作将为PI作为一名博士后科学家作为一名初出茅庐的年轻研究员提供宝贵的研究经验。

The PIs have requested a RAPID award to continue development their prototype in-situ instrumentation capable of measuring spectral fluorescence (the excitation emission fluorometer (XMF) and the spectral fluorescence sensor (SAFire)) to aid in the tracking of the Deepwater Horizon oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico. The Deepwater Horizon oil spill has generated a demonstrable and urgent need for in-situ verification of crude oil presence at all depths in seawater, the effect of dispersants, and an in-situ methodology to study the molecular transformations crude oil undergoes as it weathers, is dispersed, and is acted upon by biota. The results from this project will be used to develop an upgrade path to transform current, low-cost, in-situ sensors developed for other parameters into effective crude oil tracking instruments. These advanced sensors could be used to track changes in the Gulf spill over the long term, would be appropriate for various autonomous observational platforms, provide real-time field affirmation of crude oil presence, and be readily available for future crude oil sensing applications.Broader Impact: The proposed work will identify optimal fluorescence pairs needed to provide refined and low-cost multi-spectral UV/VIS sensors for studying the fate and impacts of crude oil in the environment. This, and the study results, will directly improve our ability to accurately track oil in the natural ocean environment, providing for a better assessment of the impacts of the current spill and thereby improve response if needed in the future. The conclusions drawn from this study may have far reaching impacts in that they will add to the body of knowledge society can draw upon to manage natural resources. Additionally, this work will provide valuable research experience for the PI, a Post- Doctoral scientist, as a beginning young investigator.