Passive Sampling of Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons in Johor Strait by Sol–gel Polydimethylsiloxane

Abstract

Passive sampling technique is an alternative technique in the monitoring of organic pollutants in aqueous environment. This technique is able to overcome several drawbacks of the conventional grab sampling technique. In this study, passive sampler consists of glass tubes coated with sol–gel polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) were fabricated in the laboratory. The passive samplers were used to study the level and distribution of 15 polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) in Johor Strait. Performance of the passive sampler was tested in the laboratory with an exposure system that has similar flow rate, temperature and water salinity with Johor Strait. Then, the passive sampler was deployed to five sampling stations located in Johor Strait for 7 and 30 days to accumulate PAHs in seawater. High performance liquid chromatography with fluorescence detector was used to analyze PAHs in the samples. All PAHs spiked in the exposure system were found to accumulate in the PDMS coating. Mass of 15 PAHs extracted from the passive sampler after deployment to Johor Strait was in the range of 0.372–1.131 ng/PDMS glass tube. Findings obtained from passive sampling method and seawater analysis were comparable. Passive sampling technique is low cost, simple and less solvent consumption.