Principal Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons Research Articles

Determination of Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons (PAH) from Air Conditioning Dust in Bonny Metropolis

Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) are ubiquitous environmental contaminants that are mostly carcinogenic and mutagenic at low concentrations. They have pyrogenic, petrogenic, geogenic, anthropogenic, and industrial sources. PAHs bound in dust retained in air-conditioning unit filters from office and residential buildings in Bonny metropolis were analyzed using a Gas-chromatography Mass spectrometer. The average summation PAH (∑PAHs) in Bonny's office and Bonny's residential, areas were 39.52 and 21.14, mg/Kg respectively. Principal PAHs in Bonny Metropolis were acenaphthalene and naphthalene. Furthermore, carcinogenic summation (∑cPAH) from Bonny office and Bonny residential, areas were obtained as 14.87 and 8.10 mg/Kg respectively. PAH ratios such as low PAH over high PAH (LPAH/HPAH), Fluoranthene plus Pyrene FL/(FL + PYR), Anthracene plus Phenanthrene ANT/(ANT + PHE), Benz[a] anthracene plus Chrysene BaA/(BaA + CHR) across the metropolis depicts that the source of these contaminants are petrogenic and anthropogenic. Bonny metropolis tends to have higher PAH contaminants and high carcinogenic contaminants. This could be attributed to the dense industrial activities and uncontrolled emissions within the metropolis. Thus, the government should establish and enforce environmental regulations that curb industrial emissions within the studied metropolis.

Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons in urban Greenland soils of Nanjing, China: concentration, distribution, sources and potential risks.

In order to better study the influence of land use on the concentration and distribution of organic contaminants in urban areas, the concentrations of 16 principal polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) were determined on soil samples collected at three depths (0~10cm, 10~20cm and 20~30cm) from urban greenland areas of 6functional zones: residential zone (RZ), business zone (BZ), industrial zone (IZ), cultural and educational zone (CZ), urban park (UP) and urban rural forest (URF) of Nanjing, China. Results showed that the average concentration of ∑PAHs in the urban greenland of Nanjing (499.47ng/g) was comparable to the value reported for other cities under similar conditions. Acenaphthene was the dominant compound (46.2% of the ∑PAHs), and low molecular weight PAHs (LPAHs) represented the largest share of ∑PAHs. Concentrations of ∑PAHs in 6 function zones were different, with the highest value in IZ (954.33ng/g) and lowest value in URF (147.81ng/g). The soil showed the highest ∑PAHs contamination in the layer 10~20cm in all zones (on average 547.01ng/g). ∑PAHs of IZ showed the highest values in all soil layers. Isomer ratio and factor analysis were used to determine the source of PAHs in soil. Petroleum combustion (PC), coal and biomass combustion (CBC), mixed (M) and petroleum (P) sources were finally identified as the four main sources of PAHs in Nanjing urban greenland soil, accounting for 50.2%, 14.9%, 8.4% and 6.6%, respectively. Bap toxic equivalent (TEQBap) was used to analyze the ecological risk. TEQBap was 20.59ng/g in total zones (TZ), below the threshold for multipurpose soil of Dutch legislation (32.96ng/g), but 69% of samples exceeded this threshold. TEQBap of different functional zones is ordered as: IZ (43.62ng/g)>RZ (23.89ng/g) > BZ (20.62ng/g) > CZ (19. 93ng/g) > UP (12.97ng/g) > URF (2.01ng/g). In the industrial area, more than 97% of TEQBap depended on seven carcinogenic PAHs (∑PAH7c), which indicated that IZ had high ecological risk. Lifetime risk of cancer (ILCR) model was used to assess the health risk of ∑PAHs. ILCRs ranked as following: children > youth > adults, with soil oral intake determining the highest cancer risk, followed by skin contact and breath intake. ILCRs of children were in high cancer risk range, with values of 3.77 × 10-4 (for boy) and 3.87 × 10-4 (for girl), while ILCRs of youth and adults were in an acceptable range; ILCRs were highest in IZ, followed by RZ, BZ, CZ, UP and URF. The soil PAHs analysis in different function greenland zones of Nanjing showed that land use influenced the concentration and distribution of PAHs in soils. This difference should be taken into account in the urban greenland planning and management to reduce the risks for the environment and human health.

Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons (PAHs) in Select Commercially Processed Meat and Fish Products in Finland and the Mutagenic Potential of These Food Items

Commercially processed meat and fish products are common sources of human exposure to chemical food mutagens. In this study, we investigated the mutagenic potential of 20 different commercially processed meat and fish products (7 product types with 2–3 lots of each), along with the presence of four principal polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) (benzo[a]pyrene [BaP], benzo[b]fluoranthene [BbF], benzo[a]anthracene [BaA] and chrysene [CHR]) in them. Sample extraction was carried out by an accelerated solvent extraction method, while the concentrations of the 4 PAHs were determined by gas chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (GC-MS/MS). The mutagenic potential of food extracts was assessed by the standard plate incorporation assay (Ames test) using two strains of Salmonella typhimurium (TA 100 and TA 98) both in the presence and the absence of metabolic activation (S9-mix). The results show that in the majority of food items investigated, PAH levels were below the limit of quantification (0.78 μg/kg), except for smoked fish (0.8–15 μg/kg for the 3 lots), one batch of which even exceeded the maximum limits for both the sum of the 4 PAHs (44 μg/kg vs. 30 μg/kg) and BaP (8.2 μg/kg vs. 5.0 μg/kg). Furthermore, all three batches of smoked fish were also found to be mutagenic on both strains of Salmonella, both in the presence and the absence of metabolic activation. Overall, the data from both assays were in a fairly good agreement with one another, suggesting that PAHs are major contributors to mutagenicity of processed food products and the set maximum levels for PAHs are usually protective against food mutagenicity, although food samples harboring PAHs at levels approaching the maximum limits may exhibit mutagenic potential. Since the number of samples investigated was relatively small, further studies are warranted to verify the conclusions.

Occurrence, Sources and Environmental Health Risk Assessment of Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons in Agricultural and Industrial Effluent Discharges in Wadi El Bey (Tunisia)

Persistent Organic Pollutants (POPs) such as polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) are of great concern due to their persistence, bioaccumulation and toxic properties. The occurrence, source and ecological risk assessment of 26 polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons in industrial and agricultural effluents affecting the Wadi El Bey watershed were investigated by means of gas chromatographic/mass spectrometric analysis (GC/MS). Total PAHs (Σ 26 PAH) ranged from 1.21 to 91.7 μg/L. The 4 and 5-ring compounds were the principal PAHs detected in most of the 5 sites examined. Diagnostic concentration ratios and molecular indices were performed to identify the PAH sources. Results show that PAHs could originate from petrogenic, pyrolytic and mixed sources. According to the eco-toxicological assessment, the potential risk associated to PAHs affecting agricultural and industrial effluents of Wadi El Bey Watershed ranged from moderate to high for aquatic ecosystem and human health. The Toxic Equivalency Factor (TEF) approach indicated that benzo (a) pyrene and benzo (a) anthracene were the principal responsible for carcinogenic power of samples.

Determination of PAH profiles by GC–MS/MS in salmon processed by four cold-smoking techniques

An analytical method based on gas chromatography/tandem mass spectrometry (GC–MS/MS) (triple quadrupole device) has been developed for quantification of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) in smoked salmon. This method was applied to determine PAH concentrations in smoked fish and assess the impact of four industrial smoking processes on their profiles. Two smokehouse temperatures and three smoke-exposure times were applied. All the smoking techniques used lead to acceptable PAH levels: the quantities recovered are 100 times lower than the legal limit (5 µg kg−1) concerning the principal PAH, i.e. benzo[a]pyrene. To compare different smoking processes, the toxic equivalent quantity (TEQ) approach was chosen. Smouldering leads to the highest TEQ, while liquid smoke leads to the lowest TEQ.

Structure‐type separation of diesel fuels by solid phase extraction and identification of the two‐ and three‐ring aromatics by capillary GC‐mass spectrometry

AbstractA simple and effective solid phase extraction (SPE) method using silica gel micro glass columns has been developed for the separation of diesel fuel into groups of aliphatic, and mono‐, di‐ and polyaromatic hydrocarbons. It is based on a stepwise gradient of dichloromethane in n‐pentane. The resulting fractions were analyzed by capillary gas chromatography with a flame ionization detector and coupled gas chromatography‐mass spectrometry.Commercially available standards, and retention indices and mass spectra were used for identification of individual aromatic compounds. The principal polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) in diesel fuel are naphthalene, biphenyl, fluorene, phen‐anthrene and their alkylated derivatives. Sulfur‐containing PAHs are mainly represented by methyl‐substituted dibenzo‐thiophenes.