San Francisco Estuary Institute, 4911 Central Avenue, Richmond, CA 94804, USA.
School of Environment and Guangdong Key Laboratory of Environmental Pollution and Health, Jinan University, Guangzhou, Guangdong 510632, China.
Sci Total Environ. 2019 Feb 20;652:212-223. doi: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2018.10.096. Epub 2018 Oct 11.
Flame retardant chemical additives are incorporated into consumer goods to meet flammability standards, and many have been detected in environmental matrices. A uniquely wide-ranging characterization of flame retardants was conducted, including polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs) and 52 additional brominated, chlorinated, or phosphate analytes, in water, sediment, bivalves, and harbor seal blubber of San Francisco Bay, a highly urbanized estuary once considered a hot spot for PBDE contamination. Among brominated flame retardants, PBDEs remained the dominant contaminants in all matrices, though declines have been observed over the last decade following their phase-out. Hexabromocyclododecane (HBCD) and other hydrophobic, brominated flame retardants were commonly detected at lower levels than PBDEs in sediment and tissue matrices. Dechlorane Plus (DP) and related chlorinated compounds were also detected at lower levels or not at all across all matrices. In contrast, phosphate flame retardants were widely detected in Bay water samples, with highest median concentrations in the order TCPP > TPhP > TBEP > TDCPP > TCEP. Concentrations in Bay water were often higher than in other estuarine and marine environments. Phosphate flame retardants were also widely detected in sediment, in the order TEHP > TCrP > TPhP > TDCPP > TBEP. Several were present in bivalves, with levels of TDCPP comparable to PBDEs. Only four phosphate flame retardants were detected in harbor seal blubber: TCPP, TDCPP, TCEP, and TPhP. Periodic, multi-matrix screening is recommended to track contaminant trends impacted by changes to flammability standards and manufacturing practices, with a particular focus on contaminants like TDCPP and TPhP that were found at levels comparable to thresholds for aquatic toxicity.
阻燃化学添加剂被加入到消费品中以达到阻燃标准，而许多阻燃化学添加剂已在环境基质中被检测到。本研究对阻燃剂进行了广泛的特征描述，包括多溴二苯醚（PBDEs）和另外 52 种溴化、氯化或磷酸分析物，检测对象为旧金山湾的水、沉积物、双壳类动物和港海豹的鲸脂，旧金山湾是一个高度城市化的河口，曾被认为是 PBDE 污染的热点地区。在所研究的所有基质中，多溴二苯醚（PBDEs）仍然是主要的污染物，尽管在过去十年中，随着它们的淘汰，其含量有所下降。六溴环十二烷（HBCD）和其他疏水性溴化阻燃剂在沉积物和组织基质中的含量通常低于 PBDEs。在所有基质中，也检测到了较低水平的十溴二苯醚替代品（Dechlorane Plus，DP）和相关的氯化化合物，或根本没有检测到。相比之下，在海湾水样中广泛检测到了磷酸酯阻燃剂，其中 TCPP>TPhP>TBEP>TDCPP>TCEP 的中位数浓度最高。海湾水样中的浓度通常高于其他河口和海洋环境中的浓度。磷酸酯阻燃剂在沉积物中也有广泛的检测，其浓度顺序为 TEHP>TCrP>TPhP>TDCPP>TBEP。在双壳类动物中也检测到了其中几种，TDCPP 的浓度与 PBDEs 相当。只有四种磷酸酯阻燃剂在港海豹的鲸脂中被检测到：TCPP、TDCPP、TCEP 和 TPhP。建议定期进行多基质筛选，以跟踪阻燃标准和制造实践变化所带来的污染物趋势，特别是要关注 TDCPP 和 TPhP 等污染物，因为它们的水平与水生毒性的阈值相当。
