Monitoring PAHs in the petrochemical area of Tarragona County, Spain: comparing passive air samplers with lichen transplants
- 22 October 2015
- journal article
- research article
- Published by Springer Science and Business Media LLC in Environmental Science and Pollution Research
- Vol. 24 (13), 11890-11900
- https://doi.org/10.1007/s11356-015-5612-2
Abstract
The levels of 16 polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) were determined in 8 passive air samples (PAS) and 6 lichen transplants (Ramalina fastigiata) deployed for a period of 2 months in different zones of Tarragona County (Catalonia, Spain), an area with an important number of chemical and petrochemical industries. The accumulated amount of the sum of the 16 PAHs ranged between 1363 to 7866 ng/sample in air samples. The highest concentration was found in the neighborhood of Puigdelfí (village of Perafort), in the vicinity of a big oil refinery and well under the potential influence of the petrochemical emissions. In lichen samples, the sum of the 16 PAHs ranged between 247 and 841 ng/g (dry weight), being the greatest value also observed in Puigdelfí. Data on the levels and profiles of PAHs in both passive monitoring methods were compared. A significant positive linear correlation was found between the concentrations of low molecular weight PAHs in lichens and the amounts accumulated in passive air samples (R = 0.827, P < 0.05), being especially significant the correlation of 4-ring PAHs (R = 0.941, P < 0.05). These results strongly suggest that lichens can be used to monitor gas-phase PAHs, providing data that can be quantitatively translated into equivalents for air.Keywords
Funding Information
- Ministerio de Economía y Competitividad (ES) (CTM2012-33079)
- Ministerio de Economía y Competitividad (ES) (BES-2013-066313)
- European Union Seventh Framework Programme (FP7-PEOPLE-2013-IEF-624022)
This publication has 40 references indexed in Scilit:
- Calibration and application of PUF disk passive air samplers for tracking polycyclic aromatic compounds (PACs)Atmospheric Environment, 2013
- A comparison study of atmospheric polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons in three Indian cities using PUF disk passive air samplersAtmospheric Environment, 2013
- Pollution level, inhalation exposure and lung cancer risk of ambient atmospheric polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) in Taiyuan, ChinaEnvironmental Pollution, 2013
- Risk Assessment Related to Atmospheric Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons in Gas and Particle Phases near Industrial SitesEnvironmental Health Perspectives, 2011
- Long-term environmental monitoring of persistent organic pollutants and metals in a chemical/petrochemical area: Human health risksEnvironmental Pollution, 2011
- Lichens as an integrating tool for monitoring PAH atmospheric deposition: A comparison with soil, air and pine needlesEnvironmental Pollution, 2010
- Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons in the atmosphere of Shanghai, ChinaEnvironmental Monitoring and Assessment, 2010
- Field Evaluation of Polyurethane Foam Passive Air Samplers to Assess Airborne PAHs in Occupational EnvironmentsEnvironmental Science & Technology, 2009
- Characteristics and sources of atmospheric polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) in Shanghai, ChinaEnvironmental Monitoring and Assessment, 2009
- Observations on persistent organic pollutants in indoor and outdoor air using passive polyurethane foam samplersAtmospheric Environment, 2008