CHEMICAL COMPOSITION AND SOURCE FINGERPRINTING OF DEPOSITIONAL OIL FROM THE KUWAIT OIL FIRES

ABSTRACT Depositional oil and soot derived from the 1991 Kuwait oil field fires produced huge tar mats in the desert. The concentration of oil in the upper 5 cm of the desert surface ranged from 1.16 to 8.92 percent oil by weight as determined by TPH analysis over a 10 km transect in southern Kuwait. The mean concentration of asphaltenes in the tar mat samples was estimated at 62 percent; a greater than 17-fold increase in concentration over unweathered Kuwait crude oil. The remaining oil forming these tar mats is believed to be derived from petroleum that escaped combustion within the well fires. Results from GC/MS analyses characterize the depositional oil as being significantly altered by evaporative weathering. We suspect that evaporation of the depositional oil will continue, further consolidating the weathered oil, sand, and soot into asphalt-like zones which will remain for a very long time as features of the Kuwait desert. Significant quantities of oil residue from the fires also fell into the Arabian Gulf, contributing to what may be the largest man-made oil spill.