Oil degradation ability difference and microbial community successions by Ochrobactrum and Shewanella in different oil-polluted seawater

Bioaugmentation is a green technology for oil pollution remediation, and its potential to oil-polluted seawater with different deep-sea microorganisms has not been investigated. The present study aimed to comprehensively analyze the oil degradation ability difference and the microbial community successions to oil-polluted seawater with different deep-sea microorganisms by bioaugmentation through the construction of original overlying seawater, natural restored oil-polluted overlying seawater, and bioaugmented oil-polluted overlying seawater from four different sites. Results showed that bioaugmentation was valid for the treatment of oil-polluted seawater with different deep-sea microorganisms, and the highest oil degradation efficiency was 61.15% after 50 days, which was 50% higher than that of natural restoration. In addition, bioaugmentation of oil-polluted seawater played a driving role in increasing the relative abundance of indigenous bacterial genera, such as Cycloclasticus, Alcanivorax, Ulvibacter, and Erythrobacter and they all contributed to crude oil degradation. Furthermore, the microbial changes influenced by environmental factors can lead to differences in oil degradation rates, especially for Cycloclasticus, which is positively correlated with longitude. This work can improve the understanding of bioaugmentation remediation strategy development in deep-sea environment.

Automated summary

The study demonstrated the effectiveness of bioaugmentation technology in treating oil-polluted seawater with different deep-sea microorganisms, promoting the relative abundance of indigenous bacterial genera and enhancing crude oil degradation. Environmental factors play a crucial role in microbial changes, especially with significant impact on Cycloclasticus.