An Extension of the Baseline Compositions of Hydrocarbons in Benthic Epifauna of the Outer Continental Shelf of the Eastern Gulf of Mexico

摘要

Twenty-four samples of benthic macrofauna collected during the MAFLA baseline survey under contract 08550-CT4-11 were analyzed for indigenous hydrocarbons. The procedures used are specified in contract 08550-CT5-30 and involve separating the extracted hydrocarbons into aliphatic and unsaturated fractions and analyzing each fraction by gas chromatography on two different columns. Data obtained from these analyses shows that the ratio of odd to even alkanes is close to unity in all the samples. This appears to be a natural characteristic of marine organisms. A homologous series of n-alkanes peaking around C25 to C27 is found in many of the samples. In most samples, the unsaturated fraction of hydrocarbons is at a greater concentration than the aliphatic fraction. These organisms display no obvious evidence of oil contamination.