Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons (PAHs) are pollutants with toxic effects, harmful to the environment and to human health. They are part of a group of persistent organic pollutants (POPs), which by its characteristics have an impact on the environment and are extensively studied for this reason. They may be present in particulate, dissolved and/or
gaseous forms, in different environments such as soil, sediment, air, water, particulate matter in the atmosphere, organisms and food (Kennish, 2007). Natural sources of PAHs include volcanic activity, natural fires, oil oozing and biogenic processes. Anthropogenic PAH pollution may occur by incomplete oil combustion (automotive and industrial), intentional burning of wood and plantations, domestic and/or industrial wastewater, urban water flow, accidental spills of oil and derivatives. Hydrophobic and lipophilic, these substances can be easily adsorbed by sediments, so that this matter is an important reservoir for them. To evaluate the presence of these compounds in the environment, this work used High Performance Liquid Chromatography. The samples used in the development and optimization of the methodology were collected in the Guajará bay (Belém - PA). This work consisted in the development of a methodological procedure (with adaptations and optimizations) to quantify 16 PAHs in 10 points in the Guajará bay in two field campaigns, so that 20 samples were analysed. In the development stage of the analytical method, elution systems, system polarity and eluent flow were tested, among others. In order to validate the method, the following parameters were assessed: fidelity, linearity, detection limit and quantification limit. Diagnostic ratios were calculated to identify the primary sources of PAHs found in the bay. The primary sources of the 16 PAHs studied in the sediments of the bay were identified based on ΣPAHs BMM/ΣPAHsAMM; Phe/Ant; Flt/Pyr; Ant/Σ178; Flt/Σ202; B(a)P/Σ228 and Ind(123cd)pyrene/Σ276. In the first field campaign, the total concentration of light PAHs ranged from 132.3 ng.g-1 to 1704.14 ng.g-1, the ΣPAHs of the heavy ones, from 125.82 ng.g-1 to 1269.71 ng.g-1 and the total ΣPAHs, from 317.84 ng.g-1 to 3117.06 ng.g-1. In the second field campaign, the total concentration of light PAHs ranged from 76.12 ng.g-1 to 1572.80 ng.g-1, the ΣPAHs of the heavy ones, from 213.90 ng.g-1 to 1423.03 ng.g-1, and the total ΣPAHs, from 290.02 ng.g-1 to 2995.82 ng.g-1. Based on these results, the Guajará bay can be classified as moderately impacted. The combustion is the predominant source of PAHs in the sediments of the bay, followed by vegetal biomass combustion and by the contribution of oil and supplies. Most of the points studied in this work, during the two field campaigns, showed concentrations of individual PAHs above the SQGs.
|
