22-7 Source and Fate of Condensed Aromatic Organic Compounds in a Petroleum Contaminated Aquifer near Bemidji, Minnesota

Session: Advances in characterizing groundwater, surface water, and their interactions (Posters)

Poster Booth No.: 15

Presenting Author:

Savanna Grip

Authors:

Grip, Savanna Shay Ward¹, DiNovo, Alicia², Podgorski, David C.³, Mohan, Yahminiy S. R.⁴, Lee, Hunter⁵, Shelley, Jacob T⁶, Wagner, Sasha⁷

(1) Chemistry & Chemical Biology, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, Troy, , (2) Earth & Environmental Science, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, Halfmoon, , (3) Chemistry, University of New Orleans, New Orleans, , (4) Chemistry, University of New Orleans, New Orleans, , (5) Chemistry, Gardner-Webb University, Boiling Springs, , (6) Chemistry & Chemical Biology, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, Troy, , (7) Earth & Environmental Science, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, Troy, ,

Abstract:

Condensed aromatic oxygen-containing organic compounds (OCOCs) present in petroleum-contaminated groundwaters have been shown to persist longer and be transported further than the volatile hydrocarbons often used in regulatory testing. The primary hypotheses for the origin of these OCOCs are that they are either petroleum metabolites or microbially synthesized. To test these hypotheses, groundwater samples were taken along a transect of an oil plume in the direction of groundwater flow in a petroleum contaminated aquifer near Bemidji, Minnesota. Samples were analyzed for total dissolved organic carbon (DOC) and then for concentrated aromatic carbon after solid phase extraction via benzene polycarboxylic acid (BPCA) analysis. Total DOC concentrations were above background levels in all contaminated samples and decreased with distance from the oil plume. The BPCA results showed an increase in aromaticity and degree of aromatic condensation with distance. Background levels of BPCAs were much lower than contaminated samples. The low BPCA concentration in the uncontaminated samples suggests that these concentrated aromatic OCOCs are derived from the oil plume itself while their downgradient persistence indicates they have to potential to be environmentally long-lived.

Geological Society of America Abstracts with Programs. Vol. 58, No. 2, 2026

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