Toxic photoproducts of phenanthrene in sunlight

Conference · Sun Dec 31 04:00:00 EST 1995

OSTI ID:398186

McConkey, B L; Duxbury, C L; El-Alawi, Y S; Dixon, D G; Greenberg, B M ^[1]

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1. Univ. of Waterloo, Ontario (Canada). Dept. of Biology

Phenanthrene, one of the most prevalent PAHs, undergoes a significant increase in toxicity on exposure to sunlight. Over a period of several days exposure to light, the toxicity of an aqueous phenanthrene solution increased dramatically. This increase in toxicity is largely due to the primary photoproduct, 9,10-phenanthrenequinone. This compound is more toxic than phenanthrene at equimolar concentrations, and is more water soluble than phenanthrene, increasing its bioavailability. Although many PAHs are potent photosensitizers, phenanthrene did not exhibit a significant increase in toxicity due to photosensitization. Photo-oxidation was the principal cause of photoinduced toxicity, with 9,10-phenanthrenequinone being formed via an unstable intermediate. In addition, mixtures of phenanthrene and 9,10-phenanthrenequinone exhibited potentially synergistic effects, as shown by joint toxicity testing using Photobacterium phosphoreum. Thus, mixtures of oxidized PAHs produced by photoaction in the environment create a significant risk to the biosphere.

• OSTI ID: 398186
• Report Number(s): CONF-9511137--; ISBN 1-880611-03-1
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

56 BIOLOGY AND MEDICINE
APPLIED STUDIES
PHENANTHRENE
PHOTOCHEMICAL REACTIONS
PHOTOSYNTHETIC BACTERIA
SENSITIVITY
TOXICITY
WATER POLLUTION