Normal paraffin profiles of pelagic tar samples from the marmap survey

Pelagic tar samples from twenty stations on cruises of the research vessels ALBATROSS IV (72-6) and DELAWARE II (72-19) were analyzed by gas chromatography to obtain semi-quantitative profiles of normal paraffins in the range from C₁₀ to C₃₅ and a qualitative indication of the relative amount of other compounds having a volatility in that same range. These samples are essentially all weathered residues of waxy paraffinic crude oils, and are similar (with respect to the parameters measured) to numerous samples collected in the Sargasso Sea near Bermuda.