Occurrence of phthalate esters in the groundwater of Jianghan plain in winter, China

This study aimed to investigate the distribution and concentration of phthalate esters (PAEs) in jianghan plain more precisely. Samples of groundwater were collected from 42 sites in Jianghan plain in January to February, 2008. Sixteen phthalate esters (PAEs) in each sample were detected using solid-phase extraction (SPE) - gas chromatography (GC) spectrometry. The results showed that there were one or several PAEs in all the samples and the concentrations of total PAEs ranged from 0 to 4670.90 ng/L. Seven PAEs, i.e. di-iso-butyl phthalate (DIBP), di-n-butyl phthalate (DBP), bis (2-ethoxyethyl) phthalate (BEEP), di (2-ethylhexyl) phthalate (DEHP), dimethyl phthalate (DMP), diethyl phthalate (DEP) and disecoctyl phthalate (DOP) were detected. The horizontal distribution of PAEs was related to season, exact position from surface water, and the water depth. Among these, DIBP, DBP and DEHP concentrations were closely related to the water supply from Yangtze River, Hanjiang River and Honghu Lake. Compared with summer, the type and detection of PAEs were different in winter. PAEs distribution was irrelevant to the electrical conductivity and sample depth.