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Polybrominated Diphenyl Ethers in Surface Soils from the Yellow River Delta Natural Reserve, China: Occurrence, Sources, and Potential Risk

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Abstract

A total of 39 lower brominated PBDE congeners in surface soils from the Yellow River Delta Natural Reserve (YRDNR) were analyzed in the present study. The total concentrations of PBDEs (ΣPBDEs) ranged from “not detected” to 0.732 ng g−1, with a mean concentration of 0.142 ng g−1. The concentrations of the ΣPBDEs displayed no correlation with the content of the total organic carbon in the YRDNR. The ΣPBDEs concentrations in the Experimental Area were significantly higher than that of the Buffer Area and Core Area, and ΣPBDEs in soils in the North were lower than that of the South. PentaBDEs and HexaBDEs were the most abundant homologues, and the occurrence of PBDEs in the YRDNR may be attributed to the debromination and long range transport of DecaBDEs. Even though the cancer risk and mass inventory of PBDEs in the present study area were estimated to be very low, due to the widespread presence of PBDEs and the particularity of the natural reserve, vigilance should not be let up on the issue of environmental contamination caused by these compounds despite the gradual phase out of their commercial products in the world.

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Acknowledgements

This work was supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (41173032 and 41373110), the Natural Science Foundation of Anhui Province (1808085QD98), the University Natural Science Research Project of Anhui Province (KJ2018A0317), the Project funded by China Postdoctoral Science Foundation (2016M600487), and the doctoral start-up funds of Anhui Normal University (2018XJJ51). Special thanks are given to the editors and reviewers for their useful suggestions and comments.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. CAS Key Laboratory of Crust-Mantle Materials and the Environments, School of Earth and Space Sciences, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei, 230026, Anhui, China

    Zijiao Yuan, Guijian Liu, Houqi Liu, Rongqiong Liu & Chunnian Da

  2. Anhui Provincial Engineering Laboratory of Water and Soil Pollution Control and Remediation, Anhui Normal University, Wuhu, 241002, Anhui, China

    Zijiao Yuan

  3. University of Science and Technology of China - City University of Hong Kong Joint Advanced Research Centre, Suzhou, 215123, Jiangsu, China

    Zijiao Yuan, Guijian Liu & Michael Hon Wah Lam

  4. Department of Biology & Chemistry, City University of Hong Kong, Tat Chee Avenue, Hong Kong SAR, China

    Zijiao Yuan & Michael Hon Wah Lam

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  1. Zijiao Yuan
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Yuan, Z., Liu, G., Lam, M.H.W. et al. Polybrominated Diphenyl Ethers in Surface Soils from the Yellow River Delta Natural Reserve, China: Occurrence, Sources, and Potential Risk. Arch Environ Contam Toxicol 77, 594–604 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00244-019-00660-7

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