Effect of Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbon Source Materials and Soil Components on Partitioning and Dermal Uptake

The bioavailability of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) in soils can be influenced by the source material they are emitted within, the properties of the receiving soil, weathering processes, and the concentration of PAHs. In this study 30 contaminated soils were constructed with common PAH sources (fuel oil, soot, coal tar based skeet particles) and direct spike with a solvent added to different types and contents of soil organic matter and minerals to achieve PAH concentrations spanning 4 orders of magnitude. Source material had the greatest impact on PAH partitioning. Soils containing skeet generally exhibited the highest KD values, followed by soot, fuel oil, and solvent spiked soils. Among all soil compositions, the presence of 2% charcoal had the largest enhancement of KD. Partitioning behavior could not be predicted by an organic carbon and black carbon partitioning model. Including independently measured partitioning behavior of the soil components and PAH sources allowed better prediction but still suffered from issues of interaction (oil sorption in peat) and highly nonlinear partitioning with depletion (for skeet). Dermal absorption of PAHs measured using pig skin was directly related to the freely dissolved aqueous concentration in soil and not the total concentration in the soil. Overall, we show that PAH source materials have a dominating influence on partitioning, highlighting the importance of using native field soils in bioavailability and risk assessments.