Global Centre for Environmental Remediation (GCER), University of Newcastle, Callaghan, NSW 2308, Australia.
Lancaster Environment Centre, Lancaster University, Lancaster LA1 4YQ, United Kingdom.
Sci Total Environ. 2020 Jan 10;699:134303. doi: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2019.134303. Epub 2019 Sep 6.
Knowledge about polar derivatives of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) in soils is limited despite the extensive study of the environmental presence and persistence of non-polar parent PAHs. Polar PAHs have greater potential to be more toxic at low environmental concentrations compared to their homocyclic analogues. For both polar and non-polar PAHs, combustion of fossil fuels is often the main source especially in industrialised environments. This study investigated the concentration profiles of PAHs and its associated polar PAHs such as nitrated PAHs (NPAHs), oxygenated PAHs (oxy-PAHs) and nitrogen, sulphur and oxygen heterocyclic PAHs (N/S/O-heterocyclic PAHs) in a well-known industrial heritage city of Australia. The most abundant polar PAHs were 9-fluorenone (oxy-PAHs), 2-nitrofluorene (NPAHs) and carbazole (heterocyclic-PAHs). A positive correlation (r = 0.5, p < 0.01) between ∑13PAHs and ∑19 polar PAHs was observed, implying a possible spatial association between parent and polar PAHs. The concentrations of polar PAHs in soil samples, across various landuse patterns, were used to calculate the excess lifetime cancer risk (ELCR) from incidental ingestion of soils. The computed ELCR values ranged from 8.210 (industrial soils) to 2.310 (residential soils), indicating negligible cancer risks. This is the first known study on the occurrence and concentrations of polar and non-polar PAHs in any Australian city, and the results may serve a baseline purpose for improved risk assessment of contaminated sites.
尽管对非极性母体多环芳烃（PAHs）在环境中的存在和持久性进行了广泛研究，但对土壤中多环芳烃的极性衍生物的了解有限。与同环类似物相比，极性 PAHs 在低环境浓度下更有可能具有更大的毒性。对于极性和非极性 PAHs 而言，化石燃料的燃烧通常是主要来源，尤其是在工业化环境中。本研究调查了澳大利亚一个著名的工业遗产城市中 PAHs 及其相关极性 PAHs（如硝基 PAHs（NPAHs）、含氧 PAHs（oxy-PAHs）和氮、硫和氧杂环 PAHs（N/S/O-heterocyclic PAHs））的浓度分布情况。最丰富的极性 PAHs 是 9-芴酮（oxy-PAHs）、2-硝基芴（NPAHs）和咔唑（杂环-PAHs）。观察到∑13PAHs 和∑19 极性 PAHs 之间存在正相关（r=0.5，p<0.01），这表明母体和极性 PAHs 之间可能存在空间关联。在不同土地利用模式下的土壤样本中，极性 PAHs 的浓度用于计算因偶然摄入土壤而导致的终生癌症超额风险（ELCR）。计算出的 ELCR 值范围从工业土壤的 8.210（工业土壤）到住宅土壤的 2.310（住宅土壤），表明癌症风险可以忽略不计。这是在任何澳大利亚城市中首次对极性和非极性 PAHs 的发生和浓度进行的研究，研究结果可能为污染场地的风险评估提供基准。
