Marine Oil Fate: Knowledge Gaps, Basic Research, and Development Needs; A Perspective Based on the Deepwater Horizon Spill

Abstract The various complex forms of transport as well as many other fate processes ongoing in the marine water column require research for the understanding and prediction of impacts of deepwater releases on the marine ecosystem. Such research is useful for assessing the context and limits of future deepwater oil and gas development in the Gulf of Mexico. The Deepwater Horizon incident in the Gulf represents the first oil spill occurring at significant depth, ∼5,000 ft (1,500 m). It is also the first situation where dispersants were directly added to the hydrocarbon effluent from the wellhead in efforts to disperse the droplets over a large volume of the water column. In this regard, this perspective is an original work in that it provides an in-depth analysis of gaps and needs, which will guide future work in the field. Preliminary reports have led to a variety of images that highlight new physiochemical phenomena whose comprehensive understanding will be needed in assessing the oil and associated hydr...