title: Occurrence of phthalate esters in river sediments in areas with different land use patterns.
abstract: Phthalate esters (PAEs) are widely used as plasticizers in both industrial and commercial products and have aroused considerable concern over their widespread distribution and potentially hazardous impacts on the environment. The present study investigated the distribution (concentrations at different sites) of PAEs in typical riverine sediments in southern Jiangsu Province and its relationship with the physical and chemical properties of the sediments. PAEs were detected in all 34 sediment samples analyzed, and the total concentrations of the six priority control PAEs in sediments ranged from 2.3 to 80.1 mg kg(-1) with a mean concentration of 13.2 ± 14.7 mg kg(-1). Land use significantly (p<0.05) influenced the PAE concentrations in the river sediments. The average PAE concentrations in mixed industrial and commercial districts were 27.8 ± 18.2 mg kg(-1), three and eight times higher than those in suburban areas (8.8 ± 3.7 mg kg(-1)) and an agricultural field (3.4 ± 0.9 mg kg(-1)), respectively. The concentrations of PAEs showed significant linear positive correlations with sediment organic matter and phosphorus but no significant correlation with sediment pH. Di(2-ethylhexyl) phthalate (DEHP) and di-n-butyl phthalate (DnBP) were the dominant PAE compounds present in all examined sediment samples. These PAEs have relatively high ecotoxicology, but the potential risk of their transfer to the food chain needs further study.
authors.affiliation: Institute of Soil Science, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Nanjing 210008, China; Chongqing Research Academy of Environmental Sciences, Chongqing 401147, China.
authors.forename: Jun
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.affiliation: Institute of Soil Science, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Nanjing 210008, China; University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, China.
authors.forename: Luji
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Bo
authors.affiliation: Institute of Soil Science, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Nanjing 210008, China; University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, China.
authors.forename: Lina
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Li
authors.affiliation: Institute of Soil Science, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Nanjing 210008, China.
authors.forename: Dejian
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.affiliation: Chongqing Research Academy of Environmental Sciences, Chongqing 401147, China.
authors.forename: Gangcai
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Chen
authors.affiliation: Institute of Soil Science, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Nanjing 210008, China.
authors.forename: Peter
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Christie
authors.affiliation: Institute of Soil Science, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Nanjing 210008, China.
authors.forename: Ying
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Teng
mesh_terms: D004784:Environmental Monitoring; D019015:Geologic Sediments / Q000737:chemistry*; D010795:Phthalic Acids / Q000032:analysis*; D010968:Plasticizers / Q000032:analysis; D045483:Rivers / Q000737:chemistry*; D014874:Water Pollutants, Chemical / Q000032:analysis*
chemical_list: D010795:Phthalic Acids; D010968:Plasticizers; D014874:Water Pollutants, Chemical; C032279:phthalic acid
keywords: Phthalate esters; Risk assessment; River sediments; Southern Jiangsu