Deep Oil Spills

Section I. Introduction.- 1. Introduction to the Volume.- Section II. Physics and Chemistry of Deep Oil Well Blowouts.- 2. The importance of understanding fundamental physics and chemistry of deep oil blowouts.- 3. Physical and chemical properties of oil and gas under reservoir and deep-sea conditions.- 4. Jet formation at the blowout site.- 5. Behavior of rising droplets and bubbles - impact on the physics of deep-sea blowouts and oil fate.- Section III. Transport and Degradation of Oil and Gas from Deep Spills.- 6. The importance of understanding transport and degradation of oil and gasses from deep sea blowouts.- 7. Biodegradation of petroleum hydrocarbons in the deep sea.- 8Partitioning of organics between oil and water phases with and without the application of dispersants.- 9. Dynamic coupling of near-field and far-field models.- 10. Effects of oil properties and slick thickness on dispersant field effectiveness and oil fate.- 11. Far-field modeling of a deep-sea blowout: sensitivity studies of initial conditions, biodegradation, sedimentation and sub-surface dispersant injection on surface slicks and oil plume concentrations.- Section IV. Oil Spill Records in Deep Sea Sediments.- 12. Formation and sinking of MOSSFA (Marine Oil Snow Sedimentation and Flocculent Accumulation) events: Past and Present.- 13. The sedimentary record of MOSSFA events in the Gulf of Mexico: A comparison of the Deepwater Horizon (2010) and Ixtoc 1 (1979) oil spills.- 14. Characterization of the sedimentation associated with the Deepwater Horizon blowout: depositional pulse, initial response, and stabilization.- 15. Applications of FTICR-MS in oil spill studies.- 16. Changes in redox conditions of surface sediments following the Deepwater Horizon and Ixtoc 1 events.- 17. Long-term preservation of oil spill events in sediments: the case for the Deepwater Horizon spill in the northern Gulf of Mexico.- 18. Effect of marine snow on microbial oil degradation.- 19. Molecular legacy of the

Steven A. Murawski is a Professor and Downtown Partnership/Peter Betzer Endowed Chair of Biological Oceanography at the University of South Florida.  Murawski currently serves as director of the C-IMAGE consortium conducting interdisciplinary oil-spill related research.  Prior to his current position, he was Director of Scientific Programs and Chief Science Advisor for the US National Marine Fisheries Service.  He is a fishery biologist with interests in population and ecosystem ecology and dynamics.  He has published nearly 200 journal articles, technical reports and book chapters.  Awards include the Department of Commerce Gold Medal.  His Ph.D. is in Wildlife and Fisheries Biology from the University of Massachusetts-Amherst.
Cameron H. Ainsworth is an Associate Professor of Fisheries Science at the University of South Florida.  He uses 'end-to-end' models and other means to study anthropogenic influences on marine ecosystems.  His recent work has considered fishing, climate change and oil spills as drivers of ecosystem change.  He keeps an applied focus, working with NOAA and state fisheries managers on common research themes and serving as a member of the Ecosystem Science and Statistical Committee of the Gulf of Mexico Fisheries Management Council.  He has published over 100 peer-reviewed and technical articles.  Awards include a Sloan Research Fellowship for early career scientists and an Outstanding Faculty Award.  His Ph.D. is in Resource Management and Environmental Studies from the University of British Columbia in Vancouver, Canada.
Sherryl Gilbert is the deputy director of the C-IMAGE consortium operated at the College of Marine Science at the University of South Florida.  Gilbert has served as the center's operational core since 2011, coordinating research and management efforts.  Prior to 2011, Gilbert was the technical director of the Ocean Modelingand Prediction Laboratory and