LAUSR

The distribution, composition, potential sources and ecological risk of 16 US EPA priority polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) were investigated in surface water from coastal Bohai Bay. The PAH concentrations ranged from 48.0 to 607 ng L-1 with the mean value of 267 ng L-1 in dissolved phase and 198 to 935 ng L-1 with the mean value of 424 ng L-1 in particle-associated phase, and decreased following the order: Qinhuangdao (QHD) > Caofeidian (CFD) > Huanghuagang (HHG). The 2-3 ring PAHs accounted for 79.9% to 86.2% in particle-associated phase and 65.6% to 73.2% in dissolved phase of total 16 PAHs, in which naphthalene (Nap) was the most dominant compound. The PAHs in surface seawater mainly originated from petrogenic sources according to the molecular ratios of benzo[a]anthracene/228 and fluoranthene/202. Risk quotients indicated that there was potential ecological risk for PAHs in surface seawater, especially for pyrene and fluorene.