Estimation of urban POP and emerging SVOC levels employing Ligustrum lucidum leaves

• Type: Article in International Scientific Journal
• Date: 2019

Authors

Natalia Soledad Graziani (Author) Other; Maria Florencia Tames (Author) Other; Ana Carolina Mateos (Author) Other; José Avelino Silva (Author) FEUP; Sara Ramos (Author) Other; Vera Homem (Author) FEUP; Nuno Ratola (Author) FEUP; Hebe Carreras (Author) Other

Journal

Title: Atmospheric Pollution Research

Vol. 10 No. 5

Pages: 1524-1530

ISSN: 1309-1042

Publisher: Elsevier

Indexing

ISI Web of Knowledge - 0 Citations

Scopus - 3 Citations

INSPEC

Associated Projects

LEPABE-2-ECO-INNOVATION - LEPABE-2-ECO-INNOVATION

LEPABE - Laboratório de Engenharia de Processos, Ambiente, Biotecnologia e Energia

Other information

Authenticus ID: P-00Q-YG3

DOI: 10.1016/j.apr.2019.04.010

Abstract (EN): Many persistent organic pollutants (POPs) have been banned in many countries including Argentina after enforcing the Stockholm Convention in 2014, while other emerging semi-volatile organic contaminants (SVOCs) are considered to enter the list due to their known environmental persistence and toxicity. However, there is still very little information regarding the distribution of these chemicals in the environment in developing countries. To address this issue, we employed leaves of Ligustrum lucidum Ait. as a passive monitor to estimate urban levels of polychlorinated biphenyls, brominated flame retardants and hexachlorobenzene (PCBs, BFRs, and HCB, respectively) considering three different land use areas in Cordoba city (Argentina). We found higher PCB values in urban and industrial areas, which could be attributed to local emission sources as well as a long-range transport of lightweight compound. BFRs were more abundant in the urban areas indicating that their main emission source is the volatilization from polymeric materials. HCB, on the other hand, was equally distributed at the three sampling areas. Overall, POP and SVOC levels were similar or even lower than some other urban environments and even comparable with remote places elsewhere.

Language: English

Type (Professor's evaluation): Scientific

No. of pages: 7