Source identification and health risk assessment of PAHs in surface soils from the vicinity of Arad-Kouh processing and disposal complex, Tehran, Iran

Abstract

ABSTRACT Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) as ubiquitous pollutants can pose potential environmental and also human health risks. Therefore, this study was conducted for detecting, identifying the sources and evaluating the health risks of PAHs in topsoils in vicinity of Arad-Kouh processing and disposal complex, Tehran, Iran in 2020. In so doing, a total of 30 surface soil samples were collected from 10 sampling sites adjacent to Arad-kouh complex. After extraction of analytes, the gas chromatography/mass spectrometry (GC–MS) method was used to determine the rates of PAH compounds in surface soil samples. Based on the results obtained, the total concentrations (µg kg−1) of 16 PAHs ranged from 863 to 1384 with a mean of 1123. PAHs with 4–6 rings in their molecules with 65.3% of ∑16PAH mass dominated the PAH profiles. Molecular diagnostic ratios (MDRs) indicated that most of PAH compounds could originate from pyrogenic sources. The total incremental lifetime cancer risks (ILCRs) of PAH compounds with an average value of 4.20E-05 (ranging from 3.02E-05 to 5.23E-05), indicating a low potential carcinogenic risk of PAH compounds in the study area, especially through dermal contact. Although, the ILCRs values showed negligible adverse health effects from direct ingestion and inhalation of PAH compounds in the study area, regular and periodic monitoring of content and sources identification of PAHs in different environments and efforts to mitigate of their pollution for human health maintenance are recommended.