Occurrence and spatial distribution of plasticizers in aquatic environment of Guangzhou, China

Abstract

Plastic pollution has become an urgent problem in the global environment due to its harmful influence on humans. In this study, the occurrence and distribution characteristics of plasticisers in aquatic environment in Guangzhou, China was investigated. A gas chromatography coupled with mass spectrometry (GC-MS) analytical method was optimised and verified for the determination of 3 plasticisers. A total of 21 water samples were collected from 6 sites, the results showed that 3 plasticisers were detected in most samples, among which the detection frequency of Erucamide was 100%. The total concentrations of plasticisers from different sites were in the range of 35.2 to 322.2 μg/L for water, with the arithmetic mean of 152.1 μg/L. Among all the sampling sites, Chebei River was the most polluted by plasticisers. The analysis of data on the spatial distribution of plasticisers showed that developed industrial business patterns and higher population densities were responsible for exacerbating plasticiser pollution and it also exhibited that the closer the connection between the water systems, the more the local water system was influenced by the surrounding aquatic environment. According to Pearson correlation analysis, the chloride content and pH of the aquatic environment can significantly affect the degree of plasticisers pollution in the water.