Determination of Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons and Total Petroleum Hydrocarbons in Crude Polluted Soil from Esaba, Ughelli South, Delta Nigeria

Abstract

The current research examined the levels and composition of Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons (PAHs) and Total Petroleum Hydrocarbon (TPH) at six locations affected by crude oil spills (E1, E2, E3, E4, E5, and E6) within the Esaba community in the Niger Delta region, which is notable for petroleum exploration. The samples were assessed for the 16 priority PAHs recognized by the USEPA utilizing GC/FID analysis. The concentrations of Σ16 PAHs and TPH in the soil ranged from 19.322 to 83.542mg/kg with (average of 45.562mg/kg) and 890.908 to 4393.094mg/kg (average of 2622.097mg/kg) respectively. The concentrations of Σ16PAHs US-EPA and TPH in all the studied locations far exceeded the safety value of 10mg/kg and 100mg/kg respectively, set by the soil quality guidelines of Switzerland and above which is regarded as being highly contaminated for Agricultural soils of Poland. The mean PAHs concentrations recorded in E1, E2 and E3 studied locations were significantly greater that the permissible limit of 40mg/kg set by Department of Petroleum Resources (DPR) for oil spill sites. The result from this study showed higher distribution of low Molecular Weight (LMW) PAHs than high Molecular Weight (HMW) PAHs indicating possible petrogenic source. The research found that Site E2 had highest level of PAHs than the other sampled locations. It is recommended that immediate intervention not only at studied locations of E1, E2 E3 but also E4 be carried out given that all individual PAHs in E4 are known carcinogens.