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Downham RP, Gannon B, Lozano DCP, Jones HE, Vane CH, Barrow MP. Tracking the history of polycyclic aromatic compounds in London through a River Thames sediment core and ultrahigh resolution mass spectrometry. JOURNAL OF HAZARDOUS MATERIALS 2024; 473:134605. [PMID: 38768537 DOI: 10.1016/j.jhazmat.2024.134605] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/07/2024] [Revised: 04/27/2024] [Accepted: 05/11/2024] [Indexed: 05/22/2024]
Abstract
Polycyclic aromatic compounds (PACs), including polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) and heteroatom-containing analogues, constitute an important environmental contaminant class. For decades, limited numbers of priority PAHs have been routinely targeted in pollution investigations, however, there is growing awareness for the potential occurrence of thousands of PACs in the environment. In this study, untargeted Fourier transform ion cyclotron resonance mass spectrometry was used for the molecular characterisation of PACs in a sediment core from Chiswick Ait, in the River Thames, London, UK. Using complex mixture analysis approaches, including aromaticity index calculations, the number of molecular PAC components was determined for eight core depths, extending back to the 1930s. A maximum of 1676 molecular compositions representing PACs was detected at the depth corresponding to the 1950s, and a decline in PAC numbers was observed up the core. A case linking the PACs to London's coal consumption history is presented, alongside other possible sources, with some data features indicating pyrogenic origins. The overall core profile trend in PAC components, including compounds with oxygen, sulfur, nitrogen, and chlorine atoms, is shown to broadly correspond to the 16 priority PAH concentration profile trend previously determined for this core. These findings have implications for other industry-impacted environments.
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Affiliation(s)
- Rory P Downham
- Department of Chemistry, University of Warwick, Coventry CV4 7AL, UK
| | - Benedict Gannon
- Department of Chemistry, University of Warwick, Coventry CV4 7AL, UK
| | | | - Hugh E Jones
- Department of Chemistry, University of Warwick, Coventry CV4 7AL, UK
| | - Christopher H Vane
- British Geological Survey, Organic Geochemistry Facility, Keyworth NG12 5GG, UK
| | - Mark P Barrow
- Department of Chemistry, University of Warwick, Coventry CV4 7AL, UK.
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Shao C, Wang Q, Zhang W, Bennett A, Li Y, Guo J, Im HG, Roberts WL, Violi A, Sarathy SM. Elucidating the polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons involved in soot inception. Commun Chem 2023; 6:223. [PMID: 37845500 PMCID: PMC10579345 DOI: 10.1038/s42004-023-01017-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/11/2023] [Accepted: 09/29/2023] [Indexed: 10/18/2023] Open
Abstract
Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons are the main precursors to soot particles in combustion systems. A lack of direct experimental evidence has led to controversial theoretical explanations for the transition from gas-phase species to organic soot clusters. This work focuses on sampling infant soot particles from well-defined flames followed by analysis using state-of-the-art mass spectrometry. We found that PAH molecules present in soot particles are all stabilomers. Kinetic Monte Carlo simulations and thermodynamic stability calculations further identify the detected PAHs as peri-condensed and without aliphatic chains. Van der Waals forces can easily link PAHs of such size and shape to form PAH dimers and larger clusters under the specified flame conditions. Our results provide direct experimental evidence that soot inception is initiated by a physical process under typical flame conditions. This work improves our understanding of aerosol particulates, which has implications for their environmental and climate change impacts.
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Affiliation(s)
- Can Shao
- King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST), Clean Combustion Research Center, Thuwal, 23955-6900, Saudi Arabia.
| | - Qi Wang
- Department of Mechanical Engineering, University of Michigan, 2350 Hayward St, Ann Arbor, MI, 48109-2125, USA
| | - Wen Zhang
- King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST), Core Labs, Thuwal, 23955-6900, Saudi Arabia.
| | - Anthony Bennett
- King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST), Clean Combustion Research Center, Thuwal, 23955-6900, Saudi Arabia
| | - Yang Li
- King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST), Clean Combustion Research Center, Thuwal, 23955-6900, Saudi Arabia
- Science and Technology on Combustion, Internal Flow and Thermostructure Laboratory, School of Astronautics, Northwestern Polytechnical University, 710072, Xi'an, China
| | - Junjun Guo
- King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST), Clean Combustion Research Center, Thuwal, 23955-6900, Saudi Arabia
| | - Hong G Im
- King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST), Clean Combustion Research Center, Thuwal, 23955-6900, Saudi Arabia
| | - William L Roberts
- King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST), Clean Combustion Research Center, Thuwal, 23955-6900, Saudi Arabia
| | - Angela Violi
- Department of Mechanical Engineering, University of Michigan, 2350 Hayward St, Ann Arbor, MI, 48109-2125, USA
- Department of Chemical Engineering, University of Michigan, 2350 Hayward St, Ann Arbor, MI, 48109-2125, USA
- Chemical Engineering and Biophysics Program, University of Michigan, 930 N. University Ave, Ann Arbor, MI, 48109-1055, USA
| | - S Mani Sarathy
- King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST), Clean Combustion Research Center, Thuwal, 23955-6900, Saudi Arabia.
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Menon A, Martin JW, Akroyd J, Kraft M. Reactivity of Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbon Soot Precursors: Kinetics and Equilibria. J Phys Chem A 2020; 124:10040-10052. [DOI: 10.1021/acs.jpca.0c07811] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Angiras Menon
- Department of Chemical Engineering and Biotechnology, University of Cambridge, Philippa Fawcett Drive, Cambridge CB3 0AS, United Kingdom
- Cambridge Centre for Advanced Research and Education in Singapore, CREATE Tower, 1 CREATE Way, 138602 Singapore
| | - Jacob W. Martin
- Department of Chemical Engineering and Biotechnology, University of Cambridge, Philippa Fawcett Drive, Cambridge CB3 0AS, United Kingdom
- Cambridge Centre for Advanced Research and Education in Singapore, CREATE Tower, 1 CREATE Way, 138602 Singapore
| | - Jethro Akroyd
- Department of Chemical Engineering and Biotechnology, University of Cambridge, Philippa Fawcett Drive, Cambridge CB3 0AS, United Kingdom
| | - Markus Kraft
- Department of Chemical Engineering and Biotechnology, University of Cambridge, Philippa Fawcett Drive, Cambridge CB3 0AS, United Kingdom
- Cambridge Centre for Advanced Research and Education in Singapore, CREATE Tower, 1 CREATE Way, 138602 Singapore
- School of Chemical and Biomedical Engineering, Nanyang Technological University, 62 Nanyang Drive, 637459 Singapore
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