Sorption of organics by Selenastrum capricornutum

The sorption of eight organic compounds by a representative green alga, Selenastrum capricornutum, was determined by gas-liquid chromatography using a series of linear model experiments. The log₁₀ bioconcentration factors (BCF), defined as the ratio of the concentration on in the algae to the concentration in the aqueous medium, are as follows: benzene, 3.32; toluene, 3.18; chlorobenzene, 3.69; 1,2-dichlorobenzene, 4.17; naphthalene, 4.10; phenanthrene, 4.38; di-n-butylphthalate, 4.36 and pyrene, 4.56. The relation of log₁₀ BCF correlation with log₁₀ octanol-water partition coefficient was determined as log₁₀ BCF = 0.46 log₁₀ P + 2.36.