Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons in soil and selected plants

Abstract

The influence of soil load with polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) on their contents in selected plants was investigated. A set of experiments was realized in three years. The influence of extreme soil load with PAHs (soil contaminated by floods and sludge application) on their content in plants was observed in a pot trial. A laboratory column extract trial investigated PAHs transfer from the soil into soil solution in different conditions. The results showed that the transfer of PAHs into plants is influenced mainly by chemical characteristics of the substances (the number and position of aromatic nuclei); by soil characteristics (content and quality of soil organic matter) and by plant characteristics (plant species and plant bodies). The roots of tested plants were loaded with PAHs thanks to the transfer of less-nuclei compounds (2-3 nuclei) in soil solution into the roots and thanks to the binding of more nuclei compounds (4-6 nuclei) on organic substances in epidermis and primary bark of roots. These results were confirmed by a laboratory column trial.