Chromatographic determination of aliphatic hydrocarbons and polyaromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) in a sewage sludge

A simple chromatographic method, proposed by Aceves et al. (1988), for the determination of aliphatic hydrocarbons and polyaromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) was used. The results from a study of the presence and temporal variability of the aliphatic hydrocarbons and polyaromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) in sewage sludge are shown in this work. The sewage sludges originated from the Arazuri waste water treatment plant site in Pamplona (Spain). The organic pollutants have been extracted from the sewage sludge by a Soxhlet apparatus. Aliphatic hydrocarbons and PAHs are separated from the rest of the pollutants on a chromatographic column. Flame ionization (FID) and mass spectroscopy (MS) detectors have been used. The results showed that aliphatic hydrocarbons concentration varied between 230 and 1420 mg kg−1 dry matter (DM). The PAHs appeared in smaller quantitie of between 128 and 482 mg kg−1 (DM). The factor analysis of the results allowed us to verify the different origin of the aliphatic hydrocarbons and the PAHs.