Journal of Pollution Effects & Control
Open Access

Abstract

Towards A Convenient Procedure to Characterize Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons in Sediments Receiving Industrial Effluents

Nadia Morin-Crini, Coline Druart, Caroline Amiot, Frédéric Gimbert, Etienne Chanez and Grégorio Crini

Using pressurized liquid extraction and GC-MS/MS, Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons (PAH) levels were determined in pond and river sediments receiving effluents from a Chemicals Installation (CI) and a Surface Treatment Installation (STI), respectively. Maximum values were obtained for the STI site with total PAH concentrations of 3000-4000 ng g-1 compared to 200-2500 ng g-1 for the CI site. Furthermore, in the river (STI), for two PAHs (phenanthrene and acenaphthylene), one sample presented concentrations that exceeded the probable effect concentrations leading to this sediment being classified as toxic. However, PAH levels were higher upstream of the STI discharge water than downstream, indicating sediment PAH accumulation was not exclusively due to this industrial activity. At the CI site, the concentrations found at different points showed that in the pond, PAHs were derived from industrial activities but were rapidly diluted in the water mass. PAH fingerprinting following various guidelines, revealed the prevalence of a pyrolytic origin.