Polyaromatic hydrocarbons in the bottom sediments of the Caspian Sea

D.R. Svetasheva a*, V.O. Tatarnikov a**, M.A. Ocheretny a***, O.I. Bakun b****

aCaspian Marine Scientific Research Center, Astrakhan, 414024 Russia

bLUKOIL-Nizhnevolzhskneft, Astrakhan, 414000 Russia

E-mail: *svetashevadr@yandex.ru, **tatarnikov@caspianmonitoring.ru,

***netstormmakttis@gmail.com, ****olga.bakun@lukoil.com

Received September 12, 2022; Accepted March 15, 2023

 

ORIGINAL ARTICLE

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DOI: 10.26907/2542-064X.2023.2.263-280

For citation: Svetasheva D.R., Tatarnikov V.O., Ocheretny M.A., Bakun O.I. Polyaromatic hydrocarbons in the bottom sediments of the Caspian Sea. Uchenye Zapiski Kazanskogo Universiteta. Seriya Estestvennye Nauki, 2023, vol. 165, no. 2, pp. 263–280. doi: 10.26907/2542-064X.2023.2.263-280. (In Russian)

Abstract

In this study, variations in the levels of oil hydrocarbons and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), which are persistent organic pollutants generated by human activities, were assessed in the bottom sediments of the Caspian Sea (Russia) sampled from 2012 to 2021. The samples were analyzed for their chemical composition. The concentrations of the identified compounds responsible for hydrocarbon pollution were established. The quantitative results of the industrial environmental monitoring in the Russian sector of the Caspian Sea for subsoil use were also reviewed and processed by standard statistical methods. It was revealed that ΣPAH concentrations in the Northern and Middle Caspian Sea regions vary from analytical zero to 186.7 µg/kg and from zero to 467.8 µg/kg, respectively. The scale of oil pollution in these two regions was found to be determined by the following PAHs: phenanthrene, acenaphthene, and naphthalene. The origin of the listed PAHs provides vital information on the main sources of pollution of the Caspian Sea bottom sediments with hazardous organic substances. Based on the obtained data, the areas with background PAH pollution of the bottom sediments and those with the characteristic PAH of mainly natural and pyrogenic origin were located.

Keywords: Caspian Sea, oil hydrocarbons, polyaromatic hydrocarbons, bottom sediments, phenanthrene, anthracene, naphthalene, acenaphthene, fluoranthene, pyrene

Figure Captions

Fig. 1. Map showing the location of the Northern (a) and Central Caspian (b) license blocks.

Fig. 2. Fluoranthene (a) and pyrene (b) contents in the bottom sediments of the Northern Caspian Sea region, depending on the percentage of the 0.1–0.05 mm diameter fraction.

Fig. 3. Functional dependency graphs: a) dependence of the fluoranthene content on the percentage of bottom sediment particles < 0.05 mm in diameter; b) dependence of the pyrene content on the percentage of bottom sediment particles < 0.05 mm in diameter; c) dependence of the fluoranthene content on the percentage of bottom sediment particles 5–2 mm in diameter; d) dependence of the pyrene content on the percentage of bottom sediment particles 5–2 mm in diameter in the Middle Caspian Sea region.

Fig. 4. Long-term average annual values of the ratios of PAH fractions.

Fig 5. Relationship between the PAH content in oil hydrocarbons (up to 2% (a) and 5% (b)) and the phenanthrene/anthracene ratio in the bottom sediments of the Middle Caspian Sea region.

Fig. 6. Areas in the Northern Caspian Sea region with the high contents of fluoranthene (green), naphthalene (yellow), and pyrene (orange) that were registered from 2012 to 2021.

Fig. 7. Areas in the Middle Caspian Sea region with the high contents of naphthalene (yellow) and phenanthrene (orange), provided that the phenanthrene/anthracene ratio > 10, that were registered from 2012 to 2021.

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