Occurrence, distribution and sources of bisphenol analogues in a shallow Chinese freshwater lake (Taihu Lake): Implications for ecological and human health risk

Abstract

Since the production and use of BPA were regulated in China around 2008, several bisphenol analogues were widely used to substitute BPA in the manufacture of polycarbonates, epoxy resins, and plastics. However, there is limited understanding of the spatial distribution, potential sources and risk assessment for those bisphenol analogues. In this study, seven bisphenol analogues were investigated in water and sediment samples from Taihu Lake, China. Compared to the same lake in 2013 (range: 5.4–87ng/L for waters and 0.37–8.3ng/g dw for sediments), the samples from Taihu Lake contained comparatively higher BPs (2.0×102–9.5×102ng/L and 23–4.3×102ng/gdw) in 2016, indicating that the BPs levels in Taihu Lake have aggravated recently. In waters, BPAF has become the predominant congener in Taihu Lake, suggesting that BPAF was the most widely used substitute of BPA, recently. In sediments, BPA was the most abundant compound. Moderate or strong correlations between some individual BPs indicated that those BPs may have the common sources and/or similar environmental behavior. The strongly positive correlation between ∑BPs and TOC content indicated that TOC content was one of the major factors controlled the distribution of ∑BPs in the sediment. The risk assessment at the sampling sites showed no high eco-toxicity or estrogenic risk in Taihu Lake.