Reduction of congener specific PCBs in water and peanut oil by polyethylene packaging film

The use of polyethylene film to reduce the concentration of selected polychlorinated biphenyl (PCB) congeners (one each from tri to deca chlorinated) from aqueous and oil systems, was investigated. The trend in removal of PCBs from the aqueous system showed an inverted mirror pattern of its uptake by the polyethylene film. There appeared to be little loss of PCBs from the oil during the duration of the study. The rate loss from each system was compared as a function of PCB congener types. The results show that the lower chlorinated congeners were removed at a faster rate from the water than their higher counterparts. In the oil, the congeners with higher chlorination generally were removed at a faster rate than those with lower chlorination. The mass balance ratio confirmed that the PCBs removed from the dissolved solutions were sorbed by the contacting polyethylene film.