title: Carbon, Hydrogen and Chlorine Stable Isotope Fingerprinting for Forensic Investigations of Hexachlorocyclohexanes.
abstract: Multielemental stable isotope analysis of persistent organic pollutants (POPs) has the potential to characterize sources, sinks, and degradation processes in the environment. To verify the applicability of this approach for source identification of hexachlorocyclohexane (HCHs), we provide a data set of carbon, hydrogen, and chlorine stable isotope ratios (δ13C, δ2H, δ37Cl) of its main stereoisomers (α-, β-, δ- and γ-HCHs) from a sample collection based on worldwide manufacturing. This sample collection comprises production stocks, agricultural and pharmaceutical products, chemical waste dumps, and analytical-grade material, covering the production time period from the late 1960s until now. Stable isotope ratios of HCHs cover the ranges from -233‰ to +1‰, from -35.9‰ to -22.7‰, and from -6.69‰ to +0.54‰ for δ2H, δ13C, and δ37Cl values, respectively. Four groups of samples with distinct multielemental stable isotope fingerprints were differentiated, most probably as a result of purification and isolation processes. No clear temporal trend in the isotope compositions of HCHs was found at the global scale. The multielemental stable isotope fingerprints facilitate the source identification of HCHs at the regional scale and can be used to assess transformation processes. The data set and methodology reported herein provide basic information for the assessment of environmental field sites contaminated with HCHs.
authors.affiliation: Department of Isotope Biogeochemistry, Helmholtz Centre for Environmental Research - UFZ , D-04318 Leipzig-Halle, Germany.|Isodetect GmbH , D-04103 Leipzig, Germany.
authors.forename: Natalija
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Ivdra
authors.affiliation: Isodetect GmbH , D-04103 Leipzig, Germany.
authors.forename: Anko
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Fischer
authors.affiliation: Department of Isotope Biogeochemistry, Helmholtz Centre for Environmental Research - UFZ , D-04318 Leipzig-Halle, Germany.|Institute of Landscape Biogeochemistry , Leibniz-Centre for Agricultural Landscape Research (ZALF) e.V., D-15374 Müncheberg, Germany.
authors.forename: Sara
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Herrero-Martin
authors.affiliation: Equipe Géochimie des Isotopes Stables, Institut de Physique du Globe de Paris, Sorbonne Paris Cité, Université Paris Diderot, UMR 7154 CNRS , 75005 Paris, France.
authors.forename: Thomas
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Giunta
authors.affiliation: Equipe Géochimie des Isotopes Stables, Institut de Physique du Globe de Paris, Sorbonne Paris Cité, Université Paris Diderot, UMR 7154 CNRS , 75005 Paris, France.
authors.forename: Magali
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Bonifacie
authors.affiliation: Department of Isotope Biogeochemistry, Helmholtz Centre for Environmental Research - UFZ , D-04318 Leipzig-Halle, Germany.
authors.forename: Hans-Hermann
authors.identifier: 0000-0002-6144-4129
authors.initials: HH
authors.lastname: Richnow
mesh_terms: D002244:Carbon; D002247:Carbon Isotopes; D002713:Chlorine; D004784:Environmental Monitoring; D001556:Hexachlorocyclohexane; D006859:Hydrogen; D007554:Isotopes
chemical_list: D002247:Carbon Isotopes; D007554:Isotopes; D002713:Chlorine; D001556:Hexachlorocyclohexane; D002244:Carbon; D006859:Hydrogen