Simultaneous extraction and fractionation of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons and their oxygenated derivatives in soil using selective pressurized liquid extraction

In this study, a selective pressurized liquid extraction (PLE) method which can extract polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) and their oxygenated derivatives (oxy-PAHs) from contaminated soil and simultaneously separate them into two fractions was developed. The method uses extraction cells packed with a chromatographic adsorbent and extraction solvents of increasing polarity. Several experiments were conducted on both spiked and authentic contaminated soil samples. Different types of adsorbents, combinations of extraction solvents, and extraction temperatures were tested in order to find a method that could fulfill the purpose of the study. The final method was based on extraction cells packed with 2% deactivated silica gel. The PAHs were extracted with cyclohexane/dichloromethane (9:1) at 120 degrees C, after which the oxy-PAHs where extracted with cyclohexane/dichloromethane (1:3) at 150 degrees C. The PAHs and oxy-PAHs were efficiently separated into two fractions, and only trace amounts of some compounds were found in the inappropriate fraction. The recoveries of the PAHs were mostly above 70% and of the oxy-PAHs, above 90%. The linearity of the method was good, and the calibration curves for most compounds had a regression coefficient better than 0.99 and an intercept close to the origin of coordinates. When the selective PLE method was applied to seven authentic soil samples, the results were found to be in good agreement with those of a reference method based on Soxhlet extraction and silica gel cleanup and also in good agreement with the certified reference values available for one of the soils. The selective PLE method is faster and consumes less solvent than a traditional method based on separate extraction and fractionation steps. The selective PLE method is, therefore, suitable for the concurrent analysis of PAHs and oxy-PAHs during large-scale soil contamination studies. This will provide more information about the soil contamination and the levels of toxicity than an ordinary PAH analysis.