Physical Sciences and Mathematics Commons^™

Physical And Chemical Characterization Of Crude Oil-Water Mixtures: Understanding The Effects Of Interfacial Process To Chemical Bioavailability, Kathia A. Sandoval

FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This work detailed the physical and chemical characterization of oil water mixtures prepared using fresh and weathered Macondo related oils under different conditions of mixing energy/time and in the presence/absence of chemical dispersants. The results indicated that WAFs produced consistent, droplet free solutions for both source and weathered oils with concentration ranges that represented the soluble components of the oil used. Chemically enhanced WAFs prepared with the source oil generated a large amount of micron-size droplets; however the viscosity of the weathered oils were a limiting factor for the preparation of CEWAFs with weathered oils. Droplet size distributions were influenced …