Details

Autor(en) / Beteiligte

• Möller, Axel
• Xie, Zhiyong
• Sturm, Renate
• Ebinghaus, Ralf

Titel

Polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs) and alternative brominated flame retardants in air and seawater of the European Arctic

Ist Teil von

• Environmental pollution (1987), 2011-06, Vol.159 (6), p.1577-1583

Ort / Verlag

Kidlington: Elsevier Ltd

Erscheinungsjahr

2011

Quelle

MEDLINE

Beschreibungen/Notizen

• The spatial distribution of polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs) and several alternative non-PBDE, non-regulated brominated flame retardants (BFRs) in air and seawater and the air–seawater exchange was investigated in East Greenland Sea using high-volume air and water samples. Total PBDE concentrations (Ó 10PBDEs) ranged from 0.09 to 1.8 pg m −3 in the atmosphere and from 0.03 to 0.64 pg L −1 in seawater. Two alternative BFRs, Hexabromobenzene (HBB) and 2,3-dibromopropyl-2,4,6-tribromophenyl ether (DPTE), showed similar concentrations and spatial trends as PBDEs. The air–seawater gas exchange was dominated by deposition with fluxes up to −492 and −1044 pg m −2 day −1 for BDE-47 and DPTE, respectively. This study shows the first occurrence of HBB, DPTE and other alternative flame retardants (e.g., pentabromotoluene (PBT)) in the Arctic atmosphere and seawater indicating that they have a similar long-range atmospheric transport potential (LRAT) as the banned PBDEs. ► Flame retardants undergo long-range atmospheric transport to East Greenland Sea. ► Western Europe is a source of flame retardants in the European Arctic. ► Alternative flame retardants HBB and DPTE show concentrations similar to PBDEs. ► Air–sea exchange of brominated flame retardants is dominated by net deposition. Alternative flame retardants hexabromobenzene (HBB) and 2,3-dibromopropyl-2,4,6-tribromophenyl ether (DPTE) undergo long-range atmospheric transport to the Arctic.