Spatial distribution, seasonal variation and risks of legacy and emerging per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances in urban surface water in Beijing, China

Abstract

In the current study, we investigated the occurrence, spatial distribution and seasonal variation of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFASs), including one group of emerging PFASs, the chlorinated polyfluoroalkyl ether sulfonic acids (Cl-PFESAs), in urban surface water (river and lake) samples from October 2013 to September 2014 (except during the frozen period) in Beijing, China. Perfluorobutanoic acid (PFBA) and perfluoropentanoic acid (PFPeA) were the dominant compounds, with average concentrations of 12.79 and 9.90 ng/L, respectively. For Cl-PFESAs, only C8 Cl-PFESA could be detected, and its concentration ranged from <MLQ to 6.93 ng/L. Higher concentrations of ∑PFASs were observed in the northern and eastern regions of Beijing. The highest and lowest levels of ∑PFASs were found in summer and winter, respectively. For C8 Cl-PFESA, there were no significant differences in the concentrations among different sampling sites. Additionally, risk assessments indicated that the studied PFASs at present levels might pose a low risk to aquatic organisms (green algae, Daphnia sp. and fish). However, further studies should be conducted on the combined risk from PFASs or the risk to other sensitive species in aquatic environments.

Keywords: Cl-PFESAs; Environmental risk; Occurrence; Pollution characteristics; Surface water.