Comparison of test methods and early toxicity characterization for five dispersants

The acute toxicities of a commercial dispersant (Corexit 9527) and four experimental dispersant formulations were evaluated using the 96-h mysid (Mysidopsis bahia) test and two rapid screening tests, Microtox and the Mysid IQ Toxicity Test. During 96-h toxicity tests, survival observations were recorded at 3, 6, 9, 12, and 24 h to document mortalities from short-term exposures more consistent with field exposure times and more approximate to exposure times used in Microtox and the Mysid IQ Toxicity Test. At nominal concentrations (6.25 and 12.5 mg/liter) and exposure times (3-24 h) near the upper range of predicted field conditions, mysid mortalities were