Measurement of volatiles, semi-volatiles and heavy metals in an oil burn test

Tests involving meso-scale burning of Louisiana crude oil were conducted, and during each burn, extensive samples were taken from the oil, residue, and the smoke plume. The detailed analytical work employed to obtain and analyze the burn samples is outlined and discussed. The analytical parameters included volatiles and semi-volatiles of environmental interests as well as heavy metals typically contained in the starting crude oil. Because the smoke plume did not always impinge on the samplers, the ground samplers did not collect sufficient samples for a definitive analysis. Crude/residue analyses showed the burn resulted in a significant reduction of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAH) in the original oil. Most of the reduction was thought to be simply evaporation or destruction from combustion. The residue did not have the degree of enrichment of the higher molecular weight PAHs as was the case in bench-scale burn experiments. Volatile organic compound and dioxin/furan measurements likewise did not show high levels of contamination from the burn itself. Most of the elevated levels of contaminants could probably be due to evaporation of the oil itself. Insufficient sampling was conducted to investigate the background levels from the weathering process. A novel means of sampling using a small remote controlled helicopter was attempted and sufficiently interesting results were obtained to indicate the potential of this passive sampling device for future work. 5 refs., 4 figs