Project Information

Title: Publication: Resolution of Mixtures Containing Exxon Valdez Oil and Regional Background Hydrocarbons in Subtidal Sediments 00598

Project Year and Number: 2000: 00598

Other Fiscal Years and Numbers for this Project: None

Principal Investigator (PI): Jeff Short (NOAA )

Managing Agency: NOAA

Assisting Personnel: Michele Masuda, Jerome Pella

Research Location: Prince William Sound

Restoration Category: Research

Injured Resources Addressed: Pink Salmon, Sediments

Abstract: Using existing hydrocarbon data, this project will report application of multivariate statistical methods to the problem of resolving a hydrocarbon mixture from two different sources in subtidal sediments of Prince William Sound, viz., Exxon Valdez oil and the regional background hydrocarbon pattern. Multivariate logistic and Dirichlet error distributions will be compared as bases for maximum likelihood mixture compositions, under the assumption that Exxon Valdez oil is time-varying in composition, and the regional background from coal is not. The hydrocarbon database produced under Project /290 will be used to evaluate the performance of these approaches. Results will be used to evaluate biases inherent in a previous bivariate approach to resolution of these mixtures, which had erroneously assumed that both hydrocarbon sources were time-varying, and had concluded that Exxon Valdez oil contributed a small increment on a large background in shallow subtidal sediments.


Proposal: Not Available

Reports:
Final Report: Final Report Not available. For current status, please contact us.

Publications from this Project: None Available