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Polychlorinated Dibenzo-p-dioxins (PCDDs) and Dibenzofurans (PCDFs) and Polychlorinated Biphenyls (PCBs) in Water Samples from the Middle Reaches of the Yangtze River, China

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Abstract

Few studies have been conducted to investigate the polychlorinated dibenzo-p-dioxins (PCDDs), dibenzofurans (PCDFs) and polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) in freshwater since the volume of water needed for dioxin analysis is large. In this study, 19 water samples from the middle reaches of the Yangtze River were analysed for the levels of PCDD/Fs and dioxin-like PCBs (dl-PCBs). The results showed that the concentration ranges of PCDD/Fs and dl-PCBs were 0.6–8.5 and 2.0–15.8 pg/L, respectively, which were relatively low compared with those reported in the literature. The WHO-TEQ concentration range of dioxins was 0.002–0.040 pg/L. The PCA results indicated that the main sources of PCDD/Fs may be the applications of pentachlorophenol or sodium pentachlorophenate and domestic wood and coal burning. For dl-PCBs, domestic wood burning and coal burning were the main sources.

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Acknowledgments

This study was financially supported by the Chinese Academy of Sciences (Grant KZXZ-YW-JS406), National Natural Science Foundation of China (21007084, 21321004).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. State Key Laboratory of Environmental Chemistry and Ecotoxicology, Research Center for Eco-Environmental Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences, P.O. Box 2871, Beijing, 100085, People’s Republic of China

    Qin Zhang, Lirong Gao, Minghui Zheng, Lidan Liu & Cheng Li

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  1. Qin Zhang
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  2. Lirong Gao
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  3. Minghui Zheng
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  4. Lidan Liu
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  5. Cheng Li
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Correspondence to Lirong Gao.

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Zhang, Q., Gao, L., Zheng, M. et al. Polychlorinated Dibenzo-p-dioxins (PCDDs) and Dibenzofurans (PCDFs) and Polychlorinated Biphenyls (PCBs) in Water Samples from the Middle Reaches of the Yangtze River, China. Bull Environ Contam Toxicol 92, 585–589 (2014). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00128-013-1189-y

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00128-013-1189-y

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