Dissolution of anthropogenic and natural hydrogen sulfide in deep-ocean conditions

ABSTRACT

Natural and anthropogenic event information helped to simulate the physical–chemical behavior of hydrogen sulfide (H₂S) in a deep oil spill and a hypothetical deep-ocean hydrothermal discharge. This research led to the development of the Lagrangian model of the discharge plumes in both cases and also analyzed the profiles of the H₂S concentration at different depths taking into account its dissolution in ocean water and oceanographic conditions, such as thermohaline stratification, current fields, as well as the characteristics of the spilled hydrocarbon and the hydrothermal. The results revealed a first approximation in the identification of the dynamic behavior of the concentration profiles of H₂S as a function of the oceanographic conditions. Hydrogen sulfide concentrations vary between natural and anthropogenic discharges at various depths, leading to a numerical model for applying in chemical oceanography.

KEYWORDS:

• Blowout
• Gulf of Mexico
• hydrodynamic model
• hydrogen sulphide
• hydrothermal discharge

Disclosure statement

Author 1 conceived the idea, collected the data, developed the workflow, performed the assessment and did the background research. Authors 2 and 3 supervised the research and provided critical feedback.

Data availability statement

The datasets supporting the relevant research findings in this article are available from the corresponding author (Andrés Rodríguez) through reasonable request.

Consent for publication

All authors agree to publish this research (including any individual details and images) in Environmental Pollutants and Bioavailability.

Contributions

All authors provided support and contributions to the conception and design of this article. Sample collection and data collection were conducted by Andrés Rodríguez. Manuscript writing was completed by Andrés Rodríguez, and constructive comments from Jaíro Cubillos and Serguei Lonin guided the research process. All authors read and approved the final manuscript.

Correction Statement

This article has been corrected with minor changes. These changes do not impact the academic content of the article.