scholarly journals Toxicokinetics and bioaccumulation of polycyclic aromatic compounds in wood frog tadpoles (Lithobates sylvaticus) exposed to Athabasca oil sands sediment

2019 ◽  
Vol 207 ◽  
pp. 217-225 ◽  
Author(s):  
J.C. Bilodeau ◽  
J.M. Gutierrez Villagomez ◽  
L.E. Kimpe ◽  
P.J. Thomas ◽  
B.D. Pauli ◽  
...  
2014 ◽  
Vol 14 (13) ◽  
pp. 19395-19429
Author(s):  
L. Zhang ◽  
I. Cheng ◽  
D. Muir ◽  
J.-P. Charland

Abstract. Athabasca oil sands industry in northern Alberta, Canada is a possible source of polycyclic aromatic compounds (PACs). Monitored PACs, including polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), alkylated PAHs, and dibenzothiophenes, in precipitation and in air at three near-source sites in the Fort MacKay and Fort McMurray area during May 2011 to August 2012 were analyzed to generate a database of scavenging (or washout) ratios (Wt) for PACs scavenged by both snow and rain. Median precipitation and air concentrations of parent PAHs over the May 2011 to August 2012 period ranged from 0.3–184.9 (chrysene) ng L−1 and 0.01–3.9 (naphthalene) ng m−3, respectively, which were comparable to literature values. Higher concentrations in precipitation and air were observed for alkylated PAHs and dibenzothiophenes. The median precipitation and air concentrations were 11.3–646.7 (C3-fluoranthene/pyrene) ng L−1 and 0.21–16.9 (C3-naphthalene) ng m−3, respectively, for alkylated PAHs, and 8.5–530.5 (C4-dibenzothiophene) ng L−1 and 0.13–6.6 (C2-dibenzothiophene) ng m−3 for dibenzothiophenes and their alkylated derivatives. Median Wt over the measurement period were 6100–1.1 × 106 from snow scavenging and 350–2.3 × 105 from rain scavenging depending on the PAC species. Median Wt for parent PAHs were within the range of those observed at other urban and suburban locations. But Wt for acenaphthylene in snow samples was 2–7 times higher. Some individual snow and rain samples exceeded literature values by a factor of 10. Wt for benzo(a)pyrene, dibenz(a,h)anthracene, and benzo(g,h,i)perylene in snow samples had reached 107, which is the maximum for PAH snow scavenging ratios reported in literature. From the analysis of data subsets, Wt for particulate-phase dominant PACs were 14–20 times greater than gas-phase dominant PACs in snow samples and 7–20 times greater than gas-phase dominant PACs in rain samples. Wt from snow scavenging was ∼9 times greater than rain scavenging for particulate-phase dominant PACs and 4–9.6 times greater than rain scavenging for gas-phase dominant PACs. Gas-particle fractions of each PAC, particle size distributions of particulate-phase dominant PACs, and Henry's Law constant of gas-phase dominant PACs explained, to a large extent, the different Wt values among the different PACs and precipitation types. This study verified findings from a previous study of Wang et al. (2014) which suggested that snow scavenging is more efficient than rain scavenging of particles for equivalent precipitation amount, and also provided new knowledge on the scavenging of gas-phase PACs by snow and rain.


2015 ◽  
Vol 15 (3) ◽  
pp. 1421-1434 ◽  
Author(s):  
L. Zhang ◽  
I. Cheng ◽  
D. Muir ◽  
J.-P. Charland

Abstract. The Athabasca oil sands industry in northern Alberta, Canada, is a possible source of polycyclic aromatic compounds (PACs). Monitored PACs, including polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), alkylated PAHs, and dibenzothiophenes (DBTs), in precipitation and in air at three near-source sites in the Fort MacKay and Fort McMurray area during January 2011 to May 2012, were used to generate a database of scavenging ratios (Wt) for PACs scavenged by both snow and rain. Higher concentrations in precipitation and air were observed for alkylated PAHs and DBTs compared to the other PACs. The sums of the median precipitation concentrations over the period of data analyzed were 0.48 μ g L−1 for the 18 PAHs, 3.38 μ g L−1 for the 20 alkylated PAHs, and 0.94 μ g L−1 for the 5 DBTs. The sums of the median air concentrations for parent PAHs, alkylated PAHs, and DBTs were 8.37, 67.26, and 11.83 ng m−3, respectively. Median Wt over the measurement period were 6100 – 1.1 × 106 from snow scavenging and 350 – 2.3 × 105 from rain scavenging depending on the PAC species. Median Wt for parent PAHs were within the range of those observed at other urban and suburban locations, but Wt for acenaphthylene in snow samples were 2–7 times higher compared to other urban and suburban locations. Wt for some individual snow and rain samples exceeded literature values by a factor of 10. Wt for benzo(a)pyrene, dibenz(a,h)anthracene, and benzo(g,h,i)perylene in snow samples had reached 107, which is the maximum for PAH snow scavenging ratios reported in the literature. From the analysis of data subsets, Wt for particulate-phase dominant PACs were 14–20 times greater than gas-phase dominant PACs in snow samples and 7–20 times greater than gas-phase dominant PACs in rain samples. Wt from snow scavenging were ~ 9 times greater than from rain scavenging for particulate-phase dominant PACs and 4–9.6 times greater than from rain scavenging for gas-phase dominant PACs. Gas-particle fractions of each PAC, particle size distributions of particulate-phase dominant PACs, and the Henry's law constant of gas-phase dominant PACs explained, to a large extent, the different Wt values among the different PACs and precipitation types. The trend in Wt with increasing alkyl substitutions may be attributed to their physico-chemical properties, such as octanol–air and particle partition coefficients and subcooled vapor pressure, which increases gas-particle partitioning and, subsequently, the particulate mass fraction. This study verified findings from a previous study of Wang et al. (2014) that suggested that snow scavenging is more efficient than rain scavenging of particles for equivalent precipitation amounts, and also provided new knowledge of the scavenging of gas-phase PACs and alkylated PACs by snow and rain.


2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Xin Qiu ◽  
Irene Cheng ◽  
Fuquan Yang ◽  
Erin Horb ◽  
Leiming Zhang ◽  
...  

Abstract. Two speciated and spatially-resolved emissions databases for polycyclic aromatic compounds (PAC) in the Athabasca oil sands region (AOSR) were developed. The first database was derived from volatile organic compound (VOC) emissions data provided by the Cumulative Environmental Management Association (CEMA) and the second database was derived from additional data collected within the Joint Canada-Alberta Oil Sands Monitoring (JOSM) program. CALPUFF modelling results for atmospheric polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAH), alkylated PAH, and dibenzothiophenes (DBT), obtained using each of the emissions databases, are presented and compared with measurements from a passive air monitoring network. The JOSM-derived emissions resulted in better model-measurement agreement in the total PAH concentrations and for most PAH species concentrations, compared to results using CEMA-derived emissions. At local sites near oil sands mines, the percent error of the model compared to observations decreased from 30 % using the CEMA-derived emissions to 17 % using the JOSM-derived emissions. The improvement at local sites was likely attributed to the inclusion of updated tailings pond emissions estimated from JOSM activities. In either the CEMA-derived or JOSM-derived emissions scenario, the model underestimated PAH concentrations by a factor of 3 at remote locations. Potential reasons for the disagreement include forest fire emissions, re-emissions of previously deposited PAHs, and long-range transport not considered in the model. Alkylated PAH and DBT concentrations were also significantly underestimated. The CALPUFF model is expected to predict higher concentrations because of the limited chemistry and deposition modelling. Thus the model underestimation of PACs is likely due to gaps in the emissions database for these compounds and uncertainties in the methodology for estimating the emissions. Future work is required that focuses on improving the PAC emission estimation and speciation methodologies and reducing the uncertainties in VOC emissions which are subsequently used in PAC emissions estimation.


2018 ◽  
Vol 18 (5) ◽  
pp. 3457-3467 ◽  
Author(s):  
Xin Qiu ◽  
Irene Cheng ◽  
Fuquan Yang ◽  
Erin Horb ◽  
Leiming Zhang ◽  
...  

Abstract. Two speciated and spatially resolved emissions databases for polycyclic aromatic compounds (PACs) in the Athabasca oil sands region (AOSR) were developed. The first database was derived from volatile organic compound (VOC) emissions data provided by the Cumulative Environmental Management Association (CEMA) and the second database was derived from additional data collected within the Joint Canada–Alberta Oil Sands Monitoring (JOSM) program. CALPUFF modelling results for atmospheric polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), alkylated PAHs, and dibenzothiophenes (DBTs), obtained using each of the emissions databases, are presented and compared with measurements from a passive air monitoring network. The JOSM-derived emissions resulted in better model–measurement agreement in the total PAH concentrations and for most PAH species concentrations compared to results using CEMA-derived emissions. At local sites near oil sands mines, the percent error of the model compared to observations decreased from 30 % using the CEMA-derived emissions to 17 % using the JOSM-derived emissions. The improvement at local sites was likely attributed to the inclusion of updated tailings pond emissions estimated from JOSM activities. In either the CEMA-derived or JOSM-derived emissions scenario, the model underestimated PAH concentrations by a factor of 3 at remote locations. Potential reasons for the disagreement include forest fire emissions, re-emissions of previously deposited PAHs, and long-range transport not considered in the model. Alkylated PAH and DBT concentrations were also significantly underestimated. The CALPUFF model is expected to predict higher concentrations because of the limited chemistry and deposition modelling. Thus the model underestimation of PACs is likely due to gaps in the emissions database for these compounds and uncertainties in the methodology for estimating the emissions. Future work is required that focuses on improving the PAC emissions estimation and speciation methodologies and reducing the uncertainties in VOC emissions which are subsequently used in PAC emissions estimation.


Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document