Occurrence and assessment of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons in soils from vegetable fields of the Pearl River Delta, South China Original Research Article

Surface soil (0–20 cm) samples from nine representative vegetable fields located in Guangzhou, Shenzhen, Zengcheng and Huadu within the Pearl River Delta, South China were collected and analyzed for 16 USEPA priority polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) using gas chromatography coupled to mass spectrometry (GC–MS). Total concentrations of 16 PAHs (ΣPAHs) ranged from 160 to 3700 μg kg−1. Large variations were observed also between concentrations of individual PAHs from different vegetable fields and within the site as well. Acenapthylene, benzo[b]fluoranthene, fluoranthene, benzo[a]pyrene and benzo[k]fluoranthene were consistently the most prevalent individual PAHs. The values of PAH isomer ratios [anthracene/(anthracene + phenanthrene) and fluoranthene/(fluoranthene + pyrene)] indicate that combustion processes are the major sources of PAHs. Concentrations of PAHs were poorly correlated with organic carbon concentrations of soils, suggesting different sources and also indicating that the PAH pollution of this area is recent. The same outcome is confirmed by the predominance of PAHs with fewer rings (less-than-or-equals, slant3) and by the great variations in the concentrations of PAHs on the same sites.