Determination of hydrophobic organic contaminants in sediment fines and bulk sediment

We investigated 41 hydrophobic organic contaminants set of sediment samples (from 16 monitoring stations) taken in the North Sea (German EEZ). The samples were taken by the German Federal Maritime and Hydrographic Agency (BSH) in June 2016 on the RV Atair (Cruise AT239) using a box corer. Bulk sediment samples were analyzed for hydrophobic organic contaminants unsing micowave extraction, column clean-up, size-exclusion chromatography followed by GC-MS/MS analysis. Bulk sediment samples were additionally wet-sieved to seperate the sediment fine fraction (< 63 µm) which was analyzed accordingly. This study provides a comprehensive overview of hydrophobic organic contaminant concentrations in sediment fines (< 63 µm) for the German EEZ. The results indicate that the improved wet-sieving procedure is capable of physically normalizing the concentrations of the investigated contaminants and is useful for the comparison of different sediment types

Determination of inorganic and organic pollutants in a dated sediment core of the Skagerrak (North Sea)

We investigated 90 contaminants covering inorganic and organic pollutants analyzed in a set of sediment cores taken in the North Sea (Skagerrak). The cores were taken by the German Federal Maritime and Hydrographic Agency (BSH) in August 2017 on the RV CelticExplorer (Cruise CE17013a) using a multi corer (MUC, Oktopus, Kiel, Germany) at 57° 49.8 N and 7° 59.9 E at 520 m water depth. Samples were radiometrically dated and analyzed for the mass fractions of eight elements, as well as Pb isotope ratios by (MC) ICP-MS. Analysis of 61 HOCs was carried out using accelerated solvent extraction followed by GC–MS/MS analysis. Determination of 21 PFAS was carried out following DIN 38414-14, 2011, using LC-MS/MS. Furthermore, concentrations of 12 PAHs and 7 PCBs in porewaters were determined using equilibrium passive sampling and GC-MS analysis. Determined mass fractions decreased towards more recent deposited sediment for most analyzed contaminants. These trends could be linked to the time of introductions of restrictions and bans. Therefore, our results confirm, amongst possible other factors, the effectiveness of environmental legislation by revealing a successive change in contamination levels over the decades