Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons background concentrations

The environmental occurrence of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons is mainly associated with dispersion of oil products and with various types of combustion. For these chemicals a kind of pre-industrial background exists, due to forest fires or to domestic wood burning. The sediments of the deepest strata were certainly deposited in the nineteenth century, when no significant industrial activities had been initiated. The ratio between PAH concentrations found in the sediments dated to this century, and the deepest ones, vary from 1.7 to 30, increasing from the beginning of the... 

Some substances, such as metals and some organics (e.g., polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons), occur naturally, with background concentrations in soils that can vary widely (Table 5.1). An overview of the European background concentrations of metals and other inorganic elements was provided by Salminen et al. (2006). Maps and the raw data can be found in the Geochemical Atlas of Europe at http //www.gsf.fi/publ/foregsatlas/. 

Background Soil Concentrations of Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons (PAHs)... 

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