Microbes & oil spills
Let's begin by defining some terms - microbes, clean-up, and oil. First, what do we mean by microbes? When we talk about microbes that are able to clean up oil, we're talking primarily about bacteria and fungi. Bacteria can break down oil to carbon dioxide and water. However, no single org...
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| Format: | eBook |
| Language: | English |
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Washington, DC
American Academy of Microbiology
[2011], 2011
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| Series: | FAQ
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| Online Access: | |
| Collection: | National Center for Biotechnology Information - Collection details see MPG.ReNa |
| Summary: | Let's begin by defining some terms - microbes, clean-up, and oil. First, what do we mean by microbes? When we talk about microbes that are able to clean up oil, we're talking primarily about bacteria and fungi. Bacteria can break down oil to carbon dioxide and water. However, no single organism can break down all the components of crude oil or refined fuels spilled into the environment. The tens of thousands of different compounds that make up oil can only be biodegraded by communities of microorganisms acting in concert. Some bacteria can degrade several hydrocarbons or a class of hydrocarbons. The combined action of the community can degrade almost all of the components |
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| Physical Description: | 1 PDF file (13 pages) illustrations |