Occurrence and spatial distribution of organophosphorus flame retardants and plasticizers in the Bohai, Yellow and East China seas

Mingyu Zhong; Jianhui Tang; Xinyu Guo; Chao Guo; Fei Li; Huifeng Wu

doi:10.1016/j.scitotenv.2020.140434

Occurrence and spatial distribution of organophosphorus flame retardants and plasticizers in the Bohai, Yellow and East China seas

Sci Total Environ. 2020 Nov 1:741:140434. doi: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2020.140434. Epub 2020 Jun 23.

Authors

Mingyu Zhong¹, Jianhui Tang², Xinyu Guo³, Chao Guo⁴, Fei Li⁵, Huifeng Wu⁵

Affiliations

¹ Ocean School, Yantai University, Yantai 264005, China.
² Key Laboratory of Coastal Environmental Processes and Ecological Remediation, Yantai Institute of Coastal Zone Research (YIC), Chinese Academy of Sciences, Yantai 264003, China; Center for Ocean Mega-Science, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Qingdao 266071, China. Electronic address: jhtang@yic.ac.cn.
³ Center for Marine Environmental Studies, Ehime University, Matsuyama 790-8577, Japan.
⁴ Key Laboratory of Coastal Environmental Processes and Ecological Remediation, Yantai Institute of Coastal Zone Research (YIC), Chinese Academy of Sciences, Yantai 264003, China; University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, China.
⁵ Key Laboratory of Coastal Environmental Processes and Ecological Remediation, Yantai Institute of Coastal Zone Research (YIC), Chinese Academy of Sciences, Yantai 264003, China.

PMID: 32610241
DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2020.140434

Abstract

Organophosphate esters (OPEs) are man-made organic pollutants that are used in flame retardants (FRs), plasticizers, antifoaming and hydraulic agents, and extractants. The demand for FRs in China has increased, thereby rapidly increasing the use of OPEs and hence resulted in its high levels in the environment. In this study, we measured the concentrations of seven OPE congeners in the seawaters of the Bohai Sea (BS), the Yellow Sea (YS), and the East China Sea (ECS). The horizontal and vertical spatial distributions were then analyzed to assess the OPE pollution. The total concentrations of the seven OPE congeners (ΣOPEs) in the three seas ranged from 7.31 to 100 ng L^-1. The main OPE compounds were tris-(1-chloro-2-propyl) phosphate (TCPP, 3.97-35.6 ng L^-1), tris-(2-chloroethyl) phosphate (TCEP, 0.59-19.8 ng L^-1), and triphenylphosphine oxide (TPPO, from below the detection limit to 43.5 ng L^-1). The inventory of the ΣOPEs in the BS, YS, and ECS was estimated as 54.2, 513, and 3950 tons, respectively. Horizontally, the ΣOPE concentration was ranked as BS > YS > ECS. In the vertical direction, the OPE concentrations in the surface water were higher than those in the bottom water. Ocean currents and riverine inputs might be the main factors influencing the distributions of the OPEs in these seas. Moreover, a seasonal variation (summer 2015 versus winter 2016) in the OPEs was observed in the YS, which was probably due to anthropogenic influences and hydrological, meteorological, and biological factors.

Keywords: Chinese marginal sea; Concentrations and distributions; Organophosphate esters; Seasonal variation.