Armin Hildebrandt

Kohlen wasserstoffe in der umgebung des menschen : I. Mitt. Eine methode zur simultanen bestimmung von dreizehn polycyclischen kohlenwasserstoffen

A method for estimating the content of polycylic hydrocarbons in basic food-stuffs is described. By combining liquid—liquid partition chromatography on silica gel and paper chromatography the hydrocarbons are concentrated and then separated into various fractions by means of a column of aluminium oxide that has been washed until optically pure. The fractions are estimated spectrophotometrically. In a dust sample the content of phenanthrene, anthracene, pyrene, fluoranthene, 1:2-benzanthracene (benz[a]anthracene), chrysene, 3:4-benzopyrene (benzo[a]pyrene), 1:2-benzopyrene (benzo[e]pyrene), perylene, anthanthrene, 1:12-benzoperylene (benzo[ghi]perylene), 1:2;5:6-dibenzanthracene (dibenz[a,h]anthracene) and coronene, was estimated and the deviation of several analyses from the mean value determined. By adding appropriate amounts of authentic samples of all the components concerned it could be estimated that the loss of substance occurring during concentration was 5 to 12%, according to the nature of the hydrocarbon.

The use of passive samplers for monitoring polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons in ambient air

In this study polcyclic aromatic hydrocarbon (PAH) concentrations of ambient air are compared to those present in leaves, spruce sprouts and in the corresponding soil used as passive samplers. Marked profile alterations were detected in various soil horizons with increasing relative concentrations of higher boiling and decreasing relative concentrations of lower boiling PAH with depth. There is no direct correlation between the absolute PAH masses found in air samples and those collected by passive samplers or detected in corresponding soil samples. Even the PAH profiles differ significantly; they can, however, be correlated by introducing PAH- and sampler-specific factors. The PAH profiles appear to indicate that coal combustion mostly contributes to the PAH air pollution in the FRG. The time course of the concentration of benzo[a]pyrene and benzo[e]pyrene during the past seven years as measured with spruce sprouts as biological passive sampler indicate a significant decrease of the PAH concentration (by a factor of two) in the FRG. First measurements in a clean air area of the Eastern part of the FRG exhibited up to ten times higher PAH concentrations than found in comparable areas of the western part of the country.

Trends in Environmental Pollution by PAH In Germany During the Period 1985–1995

Abstract Passive samplers have been used for monitoring PAH in ambient air (spruce and pine sprouts, beech and poplar leaves) and in the marine environment (mussels and macroalgae) of Germany. A significant decrease of the benzo[a]pyrene content in these matrices has been observed for the last decade in West-Germany and also in East-Germany during 1991–1994. The predominance of brown-coal combustion processes in East-Germany is indicated by the PAH-profiles exhibiting high concentrations of low-boiling PAH. For the B[a]P content in mussels annual periodicities have been found with minima in summer and maxima in winter. Though PAH concentrations in macroalgae also declined from 1985–1994 no clear seasonal periodicities could be verified.

Extractability and Bioavailability of PAH from Soil and Air Particulate Matter

Abstract The extractability of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAH) from soil sediment, sewage sludge and vehicle exhaust particulates by various solvents has been investigated. In all cases toluene was found to be the most efficient solvent, especially in the case of vehicle exhaust, whereas dichloromethane and acetone are less suitable. The availability of PAH adsorbed to soil has been studied by degradation experiments using the soil fungus Mucor circinelloides van Tiegham (Zygomycotina) IMB MC 1.91. The degradation ended in a plateau phase after 14 days, whereas molecular dispersed PAH such as pyrene, chrysene and benzo[a]pyrene were completely degraded after 31 days in a control experiment.