Publication details
Application of an unsteady state environmental distribution model to a decadal time series of PAH concentrations in Central Europe
| Authors | |
|---|---|
| Year of publication | 2009 |
| Type | Article in Periodical |
| Magazine / Source | Journal of Environmental Monitoring |
| MU Faculty or unit | |
| Citation | |
| Field | Environment influence on health |
| Keywords | Model; fugacity; PAHs; POPs; emission; soil; Košetice; aging |
| Description | To explain observed decadal trends in concentrations of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) in soil at the Košetice observatory, Czech Republic, an environmental distribution model for persistent organic pollutants (POPs) based on the fugacity approach was developed. Weekly air concentrations were used as input data for the unsteady state model and concentrations in soil were calculated. In general, agreement between measured and predicted soil concentrations of PAHs was observed. Temporal trends in PAH concentrations in Košetice can be related to changes in residential heating. Predicted soil concentrations of PAHs are in good agreement with observed data. The results from our dynamic multicompartmental model confirmed our hypothesis about unsteady state conditions between the air and soil, and suggested that a commonly used simple steady state model should be only applied as a predictive tool in a small region when local sources and sinks well described. |
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