Abstract
Abstract In the present study, the seasonal concentrations of polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs) in leachate and sediment samples, and the influence of geomembrane liners on PBDE levels and the extent of their infiltration into groundwater on selected landfill sites in Gauteng Province, South Africa were determined. Leachate and sediment samples were collected from seven operational landfill sites namely: Goudkoppies, Robinson Deep, Marie Louis, Soshanguve, Onderstepoort, Hatherly and Garankuwa from Johannesburg and Pretoria, in winter and summer. Groundwater samples were collected from monitoring boreholes from two landfill sites. Liquid-liquid and Soxhlet extraction techniques were employed for the extraction of leachate and groundwater, and sediment respectively using dichloromethane. The extracted samples were subjected to column clean up and, thereafter, analysed using gas chromatography–mass spectroscopy (GC-MS). PBDEs selected for the study were: BDE-17, -28, -47, -100, -99, -153, -154, -183 and -209. The ∑9PBDE concentrations in leachate samples for winter and summer ranged from 0.316–1.36 ng L−1 and 0.560–1.08 ng L−1 respectively. The ∑9 PBDE concentrations obtained for sediment in winter and summer were 3.00–4.91 ng g−1 and 2.50–3.71 ng g−1 respectively. Winter samples exhibited higher (p
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