Concentrations and fingerprints of PAHs and PCBs adsorbed onto marine plastic debris from the Indonesian Cilacap coast and theNorth Atlantic gyre

Abstract

We investigated the contamination of marine plastic debris from the Indonesian Cilacap coast and the North Atlantic gyre by polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) and polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs). The mean concentrations of 15 PAHs in gyre were 58 and 142 ng/g in polyethylene (PE) and polyethylene terephthalate (PET) debris, respectively, while PE and polypropylene (PP) Indonesian debris exhibited an average content of 552 ng/g (mainly naphthalene). The mean concentration of 61 PCBs in open ocean debris was 12.2 ng/g, while coastal debris showed a worryingly high mean value of 1.4×104 ng/g, with the notable presence of CB6, 101 and 173. PE gyre debris contained mostly high molecular weight PAHs such as benzo(g,h,i)perylene and indeno(1,2,3-cd)pyrene and low-chlorinated PCBs such as CB52, 77 and 105, whereas PET debris contained low molecular weight PAHs (mainly acenaphthylene and phenanthrene) and high-chlorinated PCBs such as CB204.