Spatial distribution, partitioning, and ecological risk assessment of benzotriazoles, benzothiazoles, and benzotriazole UV absorbers in the eastern shelf seas of China

Ming-Liang Zhao; Xuan Ji; Zhen He; Gui-Peng Yang

doi:10.1016/j.watres.2023.120885

Spatial distribution, partitioning, and ecological risk assessment of benzotriazoles, benzothiazoles, and benzotriazole UV absorbers in the eastern shelf seas of China

Water Res. 2024 Jan 1:248:120885. doi: 10.1016/j.watres.2023.120885. Epub 2023 Nov 15.

Authors

Ming-Liang Zhao¹, Xuan Ji¹, Zhen He², Gui-Peng Yang³

Affiliations

¹ Frontiers Science Center for Deep Ocean Multispheres and Earth System, and Key Laboratory of Marine Chemistry Theory and Technology, Ministry of Education, Ocean University of China, Qingdao 266100, China.
² Frontiers Science Center for Deep Ocean Multispheres and Earth System, and Key Laboratory of Marine Chemistry Theory and Technology, Ministry of Education, Ocean University of China, Qingdao 266100, China; Laboratory for Marine Ecology and Environmental Science, Laoshan Laboratory, Qingdao 266237, China. Electronic address: zhenhe@ouc.edu.cn.
³ Frontiers Science Center for Deep Ocean Multispheres and Earth System, and Key Laboratory of Marine Chemistry Theory and Technology, Ministry of Education, Ocean University of China, Qingdao 266100, China; Laboratory for Marine Ecology and Environmental Science, Laoshan Laboratory, Qingdao 266237, China; Institute of Marine Chemistry, Ocean University of China, Qingdao 266100, China. Electronic address: gpyang@mail.ouc.edu.cn.

PMID: 38016257
DOI: 10.1016/j.watres.2023.120885

Abstract

Benzotriazoles (BTRs), benzothiazoles (BTHs), and benzotriazole UV stabilizers (BUVs) have attracted increasing attention due to their ubiquity in the environment, toxicity, and potential ecological risks. However, information on their distributions in the ocean is scarce. In this study, BTRs, BTHs, and BUVs were firstly determined in the surface seawater, sea-surface microlayer (SML), suspended particulate matter (SPM), and sediments of the Yellow Sea (YS) and East China Sea (ECS). The spatial distributions of BTRs, BTHs, and BUVs in the YS and ECS showed offshore decreasing trend in their concentrations, indicating that terrestrial inputs from runoff and rivers had important influences on their distributions. The organic carbon normalized partition coefficients (log K_oc) of target contaminants in surface seawater-SPM (3.06-4.16 L/g) and bottom seawater-sediment (2.55-4.82 L/kg) systems were determined. SPM showed greater sorption capacities for most target contaminants than the sediment. The burial capacities of BTHs, BTRs, and BUVs from SPM to surface sediments were evaluated using their respective log K_ow values and their sedimentary fluxes in the YS and ECS were quantified. BTRs, BTHs, and BUVs were enriched in the SML, with the enrichment extents of the suspended particulate phase being obviously lower than those of the dissolved phase. The ecological risks of BTRs, BTHs, and BUVs were evaluated using the risk quotient (RQ) method, which showed no toxic risk to aquatic organisms throughout the water phases, but high risk in nearshore sediments.

Keywords: Benzothiazoles; Benzotriazole UV absorbers; Benzotriazoles; Distribution; Eastern shelf seas of China; Ecological risk.

MeSH terms

Benzothiazoles* / analysis
China
Environmental Monitoring
Oceans and Seas
Particulate Matter
Triazoles / analysis
Water Pollutants, Chemical* / analysis

Substances

benzotriazole
Benzothiazoles
Triazoles
Particulate Matter
Water Pollutants, Chemical