Emissions of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons by road transport into roadside areas

Abstract

In experimental studies, the composition of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) in motor vehicle emissions was studied based on the analysis of PAHs in roadside soils of urban motor roads and suburban motor road. The concentration of PAHs in soils (1 m from the road) exceeded this indicator in the control sample by 8.7–152 times. The concentration of petroleum products in the investigated soils exceeded the specified permissible level in Ukraine (200 mg/kg), especially in the soils of the roadside area of the suburban motor road. The roadside area of suburban motor roads was contaminated with PAHs almost an 10 times higher than the roadside area of urban motor roads. The concentration of aliphatic compounds in the soils of the roadside area of urban motor roads was approximately 8 times higher than the concentration of aromatic compounds. While in the soils of the roadside area of the suburban motor road, the concentrations of aliphatic and aromatic compounds were very close. Among the studied PAHs, fluoranthene predominated in the soils of a suburban road, and phenanthrene slightly prevailed in the soils of urban roads.