The Influence of Culture Factors on Abiotic Loss of PAHs and Their Derivatives from Different Media

To obtain reliable estimates for the abiotic loss of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) and its derivatives from experimental media, one has to consider the effects of culture factors, such as light and dissolved organic C (DOC). We studied the abiotic loss of two PAHs and three derivatives of naphthalene from three different culture media in laboratory-experiment. The extent of their disappearance was monitored over five days using benzene extraction and HPLC analysis method. The results indicated that half of the abiotic loss occurred in the first 24 hr of experiment except for anthracene. Anthracene was the most persistent one in the media among the five chemicals in the experiment and its half-life was much longer than those of the others. Kinetic analysis of the results determined that the losing rate of the five test chemicals was first order. Light is the most important factor for PAHs abiotic loss and the addition of DOC enhanced slightly the removal of PAHs and its derivatives exposed to the light. Furthermore, the different substituent groups or the substituent sites of the test chemicals also affected the loss rate and half-life of organic matter.