Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons in citrus fruit irrigated with fresh water under arid conditions

Concentrations, sources, and risk assessment

authored by

Anwar Jiries, Farh Al-Nasir, Tahani J. Hijazin, Mutaz Al-Alawi, Loubna El Fels, Amal Mayyas, Rasha Al-Dmour, Osama Y. Al-Madanat

Abstract

In Jordan, as well as in all the world countries, consumption of citrus fruits is an essential part of the daily diet, so it is important to assess the potential risk of the persistent organic pollutants such as polyaromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) in these fruits to the human health and identify their sources in order to eliminate or reduce them. This study reports 16 priority PAHs content in four types of peeled citrus fruits grown in Jordan valley. PAHs were detected in all the studied samples in variable quantities depending on the type of citrus fruits. The results showed that the highest PAH level corresponded to acenaphthene (35.018 µg/kg) in grapefruit. Among the carcinogenic PAHs, benzo[a]anthracene (BaA) and benzo(a)pyrene (BaP) were the most representative and found in all the analyzed fruit, soil, and water samples, whereas anthracene (ANT) was not detected at all. The mean ∑16 PAHs for the different fruits were found to be 62.593 µg kg⁻¹ in grapefruit, 24.840 µg kg⁻¹ in lemon, 22.901 µg kg⁻¹ in mandarin, and 5.082 µg kg⁻¹ in orange. The dominance of naphthalene (NAP) and acenaphthene (ACE) in soil under hot climatic conditions indicates the recent and continuous input of these types in the investigated area. The bioconcentration factor (BCF) for ∑16 PAHs was observed in the order of grapefruit > lemon > mandarin > orange. Based on the results of the principal component analysis (PCA), the primary sources of PAHs in agricultural soils mainly originated from biomass burning and vehicular emissions. The incremental lifetime cancer risk (ILCR) indicated that consumption of these four citrus fruits may expose human health to potential cancer risk. The findings of this study call the policymakers and public administrations to the formulation of stringent policies and actions to control biomass burning and vehicular emissions.

Organisation(s)

Institute of Technical Chemistry

External Organisation(s)

University of Mutah
Universite Cadi Ayyad
American University of Madaba

Type

Article

Journal

Arabian Journal of Chemistry

Volume

15

No. of pages

17

ISSN

1878-5352

Publication date

09.2022

Publication status

Published

Peer reviewed

Yes

ASJC Scopus subject areas

Chemistry(all), Chemical Engineering(all)

Sustainable Development Goals

SDG 3 - Good Health and Well-being

Electronic version(s)

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.arabjc.2022.104027 (Access: Open)