Molecular-level investigation of crude oil has become an essential part of oil spill research, It facilitates the assessment of oil behavior, fate, impacts, as well as the evaluation of oil spill origins, toxic substances, and the effect of such incidents. Notable oil spill incidents, such as the Deepwater Horizon, have emphasized the need for molecular-level information on spilled oil to evaluate and monitor environmental damage. In this study, the term 'Environmental Petroleomics' is defined. During the weathering of spilled oil, various effects can alter the oil's chemical composition, including evaporation, dispersion, photo-oxidation, and microbial degradation. The major toxic compounds in the spilled oil are aromatic compounds, followed by polar oxygenated aromatic compounds. Although gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS) is an effective approach for compositional analysis of crude oil, it falls short in its ability to separate individual compounds in the weathered oil. This is particularly challenging when dealing with weathered oil enriched with polar oxygen- and sulfur-containing compounds that emerge during the weathering process . Ultra-high-resolution mass spectrometry (UHR-MS) has played a key role in the development of Environmental Petroleomics, proving effective in characterizing various polar species. This review explores the application of ultra-high-resolution mass spectrometry for oil spill research. The study concludes that the toxicity of weathered crude oils results from the photo-oxidation of crude oil molecules into highly oxygenated, water-soluble species. Prospective research in environmental petroleomics concerning the analysis of oil spills may direct its attention towards innovating novel methodologies. These could encompass high-resolution imaging of oil spills, time-resolved analysis of spill dynamics, integration of ultra-high-resolution mass spectrometry (UHR-MS) with complementary techniques, and the utilization of UHR-MS for biomarker analysis.

原油的分子水平研究已成为溢油研究的重要组成部分，它有助于评估石油的行为、归宿、影响，以及评估溢油来源、有毒物质以及此类事件的影响。深水地平线等著名的石油泄漏事件强调需要有关泄漏石油的分子级信息来评估和监测环境损害。在这项研究中，定义了术语“环境石油组学”。在泄漏石油的风化过程中，各种影响会改变石油的化学成分，包括蒸发、分散、光氧化和微生物降解。溢油中的主要有毒化合物是芳香族化合物，其次是极性含氧芳香族化合物。尽管气相色谱-质谱法 (GC-MS) 是原油成分分析的有效方法，但它在分离风化油中的单个化合物的能力方面存在不足。当处理风化过程中富含极性含氧化合物和含硫化合物的风化油时，这一点尤其具有挑战性。超高分辨率质谱 (UHR-MS) 在环境石油组学的发展中发挥了关键作用，在表征各种极地物种方面被证明是有效的。本综述探讨了超高分辨率质谱在溢油研究中的应用。该研究得出的结论是，风化原油的毒性是由于原油分子光氧化成高氧水溶性物质造成的。有关石油泄漏分析的环境石油组学前瞻性研究可能会将其注意力转向创新方法。这些可能包括石油泄漏的高分辨率成像、泄漏动力学的时间分辨分析、超高分辨率质谱 (UHR-MS) 与补充技术的集成，以及利用 UHR-MS 进行生物标志物分析。