Prediction of the Biodegradation and Toxicity of Naphthenic Acids

Abstract

Crude oil is a complex mixture of hydrocarbons, basically composed of aliphatic, aromatic and asphaltene fractions along with nitrogen, sulfur and oxygen-containing compounds. The constituent hydrocarbon compounds are present in varied proportion resulting in great variability in crude oils from different sources (Speight, 1999). There are several reports indicating the recalcitrance and potential health hazards of the different constituents of crude oil (KanalyH Miller& Miller, 1981). The sites contaminated with hydrocarbons are ecologically important locations as one may encounter microbial flora of diverse nature, which may be potential candidates for important industrial processes (Jain et al., 2005).